BIOMASS AND BIOGAS (incl. Woodstoves)
Introduction
Biomass comes from a number of sources, processes and products. Essentially biomass sources include:
Forestry/Woodland residue and thinnings - Round wood, branch wood and brash produced from commercial forestry and woodland management. Biomass material can be sourced during the thinning process or after harvesting, where as much as 30% of the felled plantation is currently left on the forest floor. Forestry residue can be used for energy generation in the form of logs or woodchip or processed into secondary bio-oil or bio-gas fuels.
Energy crops - Dedicated energy crops include short rotation coppice of both willow and poplar varieties and herbaceous grasses such as miscanthus and canary reed. It can be grown solely for the purpose of energy generation and used in the form of woodchips or secondary processed into bio oil/gas fuels.
Wood manufacturing residue - Characterised as untreated wood by-products from manufacturing and industry, such as from furniture factories, wood packaging and the construction industry, This resource can be separated into clean woodfuel which has not been treated with chemicals etc. and treated wood, which has been treated by preservatives and chemicals. This latter wood waste is not suitable for energy unless rigorous flue scrubbing processes are installed. Clean wood material is used for energy in the form of woodchips, secondary bio oil/gas or processed by extrusion into high-density wood pellets or wood briquettes.
As noted, sources may be processed in different ways to yield quite different outputs and some processes may be capable of accepting a variety of feedstocks.
Complete guide to biomass heat and power in the UK CD rom
Dulas Ltd., in conjunction with Forestry Commission and the WDA, has produced a CD-ROM as a complete guide to Biomass Heat and Power in the UK. It is to be used as a signposting tool and is available free of charge from Hayley Myles at Dulas.
To receive a copy please e-mail Russell Jones at Dulas:
russell.jones@dulas.org.uk
Site selection and planning issues
When planning for biomass energy development, a consenting procedure is required for the various elements of the biomass chain, and the environmental effects need to be assessed at each stage. A guide to the primary planning issues and site selection, environmental effects and consultation for biomass schemes are detailed in the biomass planning issues document which can be downloaded below:
Biomass Planning.doc
Further information
Further information on biomass and bio-energy can be found on the British Biogen web-site.
