Finding energy in forest waste

Public, private forest interests urge senators to change energy law.

By Kevin Woster, Journal staff | Thursday, August 21, 2008

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Tree thinning and other forest-management operations in the Black Hills National Forest produce more than 200,000 tons of waste wood products each year, most of which could be used to fuel the emerging cellulosic ethanol industry, forest Supervisor Craig Bobzien said Monday.

But most of that “woody biomass” is piled up throughout the forest and eventually burned, he said.

“Our opportunities to use this considerable resource of biomass are limited,” Bobzien said in testimony at a U.S. Senate subcommittee hearing at the South Dakota School of Mines & Technology.

Bobzien joined representatives of the Black Hills timber industry, private forest owners and cellulosic-ethanol producers in testifying at the hearing, which was called and run by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D. The testimony urged Congress to change federal energy policy to provide incentives for the energy industry to use forest products in ethanol production.

Thune, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee and ranking member on its Energy, Science and Technology Subcommittee, was joined at the hearing by Sen. Tim Johnson, D-S.D., a member of the Senate Energy Committee.

Thune, Johnson and Rep. Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, D-S.D., are united in their push to get national forest materials included in the official definition of renewable biomass. The inclusion would make the often-wasted materials a part of the nation’s energy policy and provide incentives for the renewable energy industry to include national forest products in its development.

Randy Kramer, president of KL Process Design Group in Rapid City, said those incentives are crucial to the future development of ethanol plants that will use wood products from national forests.

“As we plan for our next plant, a key consideration is the ability to use incentives put in place in the 2007 energy bill,” Kramer said. “However, as the bill was finalized, we now understand that the National Resources Defense Council influenced legislation that exempted biomass taken from the national forests to count toward the renewable fuel standard.”

Tom Troxel of Rapid City, director of the Black Hills Forest Resource Association, said the renewable fuels standard (RFS) set by Congress mandates the use of 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022, with 16 billion gallons coming from cellulosic biofuels. But Troxel said that goal could be difficult to attain without woody biomass, which includes limbs, tops, roots, foliage and parts of the trunk not considered valuable for lumber uses.

“There are significant opportunities to utilize woody biomass to contribute to our nation’s energy needs,” Troxel said. “And I question whether or not the United States can achieve the 16 billion gallon renewable fuels standard without utilizing woody biomass.”

Thune, Johnson and Herseth Sandlin share those concerns, and are working to change energy law that excluded wood products from national forests, most of which are currently wasted or little used. Testimony received Monday will help in that effort, Thune said.

 “Today’s hearing was an important step in our efforts to expand cellulosic ethanol opportunities across the country,” Thune said. “Cellulosic ethanol can be produced from a variety of raw materials, including wood waste found in our national forests, which is a serious fire danger if not properly managed.”

National forest products were included in the renewable fuels standards under the Senate version of the energy bill, but were removed on the House side. Johnson said strong support remained in the Senate for including the woody biomass in the incentives plan.

There is enough woody biomass available in the nation’s forests to replace current oil imports from the Middle East, Johnson said.

“This law should be modified so we can use this abundant source and further move our country toward energy independence,” he said.

Contact Kevin Woster at 394-8413 or kevin.woster@rapidcityjournal.com

If you go

What:  T. Boone Pickens town-hall meeting

When: 3 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 20 (doors open to the public at 2:30 p.m.)

Where: Rushmore Hall at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center in Rapid City

More: Pickens will outline his Pickens Plan, which he identifies the single biggest crisis facing America today -- the growing and dangerous dependence on foreign oil.