Excellent points, Betsy. I also wanted to resend part of what I sent yesterday, because someone pointed out that they nearly missed an important point because I didn't mention it until the very end of my message: We (CCETC) have a program for people currently heating with oil or propane to convert to pellets (with a $500 rebate), another for homeowners with an outdoor wood boiler to upgrade to a pellet boiler (aimed at reducing emissions; $4000 rebate), as well as a state program for low-income homeowners (or renters) on oil or propane to transition to pellets and, not income-based, another for anyone with an old wood stove to upgrade to a pellet stove ($1000 rebate).
Biomass (wood, wood pellets, and ultimately Ag residues and dedicated biomass crops) are a crucial part of the renewables mix, with huge potential, primarily for home heating (as well as larger applications). As Betsy pointed out, NY is (by far) the biggest user of oil for home heating in the US. If you or someone you know is heating with oil (or propane), pellets could save you significant amounts of money, while greatly reducing carbon emissions (and contributing to the local economy, better forest management, etc.). Contact me if you have any questions. -Guillermo Guillermo Metz Green Building and Renewable Energy Program Coordinator Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County 615 Willow Avenue Ithaca, NY 14850-3555 http://ccetompkins.org (P) (607) 272-2292, x185 (F) (607) 272-7088 (E) [email protected] On Tue, Sep 2, 2014 at 5:31 PM, Elizabeth V. Keokosky <[email protected]> wrote: > Just wanted to add a few comments to Guillermo’s. > > > > To me, first and foremost the discussion of alternative energy life cycle > analysis begins with its appropriateness for the region. The northeast USA > is one of the most appropriate regions in the world for biomass. It is > plentiful and we get cold. We also use a lot of fuel oil. NY is the number > one user of fuel oil in the US,. > > > > Sustainable wood harvesting in the NE is not the same as clear-cutting the > rain forest. Wood management is not extractive and does not add chemicals > to the environment. It in fact can improve the habitat for other species. > > > > Cordwood is the most efficient (and energy independent) use of biomass on > both a carbon and a Energy In Energy Out basis. If a person manages their > own wood lot, has an efficient stove, and uses well, dried seasoned wood > and good operating techniques. Both carbon and other pollutions are > minimized and EROEI can range from an astonishing 1:40 (hardwood) to 1:26 > > > > Wood Pellets have a lower EROEI but since most of the energy used in > drying wood for pellets is from wood energy their fossil fuel use is still > low (pellet people estimate 1:12), On other environmental counts, as > Guillermo says, pellets have cleaner, more efficient combustion generating > less health affecting pollutants like carbon monoxide and particulate > matter. Pellets have the advantage of easier transport and “flowability” > for delivery to people or organizations who don’t find it convenient to > stack, carry, and load cord wood. > > > > But to me, the promise of biomass lies in technology of the future. I am > looking forward to the time when distributed micro CHP will be produced by > appliances using highly efficient gasification or pyrolysis with biochar as > the by-product. Under these circumstances pellets could be agricultural as > well as wood. There is some underfunded research being done on this at > Appalachian State University. If anyone is interested in finding out more > contact me directly. See also http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd21/11/pres21195.htm > for a permaculture-type farming example in Columbia. > > > > Using waste energy always boosts efficiency. Cogeneration of heat with > electric can increase power plant efficiency by 50 to 60%. Unfortunately > we do not have the incentives of Sweden or Denmark. But district heating > with wood is being attempted in Fleischmanns, New York in the Catskills > Region. The problem there actually is more connected to the social and > economic contractual underpinnings then the fuel. For more information on > that contact Jim Waters of the Catskills Forest Association. Betsy > > > > > > *From:* [email protected] [mailto: > [email protected]] *On Behalf Of *Guillermo Metz > *Sent:* Tuesday, September 02, 2014 11:35 AM > *To:* SUSTAINABLE_TOMPKINS-L > *Subject:* Re: [sustainable_tompkins-l] Dryden Pipline Update from Irene > Weiser > > > > Hi, all. I just wrote a bit about the state of wood pellets in another > e-mail response for another thread for Sustainable Tompkins, so I won't > repeat it all here. But what's in this thread is mainly along the lines of > what I know and have learned about pellets over the past few years. > However, a few things that should be corrected or elaborated on: > > - pellet boilers can be scaled up to heat any size building or provide > heat in district heating systems (apartment buildings, whole neighborhoods, > etc.) > > - there is plenty of wood locally to sustainably heat all our homes (and > the energy it takes to make pellets from logs, as opposed to the preferred > waste sawdust, is only about 12% of the embedded energy of the log, > compared to about 5% for delivering cut cord wood to a home from the same > logs, so while it's higher, it's not as high as most people would assume) > > - the cost of pellets is roughly equivalent on a BTU basis as natural gas > at current prices (with pellets not being in any way subsidized and their > cost increasing annually roughly equivalent to the cost of inflation; as > opposed to natural gas, which is currently highly subsidized and has large > price variability) > > - most pellets are 100% wood, sometimes with a little bit of soy oil to > help grease the die (though some use other oils) > > - not to do with pellets, although ground-source heat pumps (geothermal > systems) have a high up-front cost, their payback is typically 3-5 years > (for people heating with oil or propane). Air-source heat pumps (aka > minisplits, ductless heating systems) are much cheaper to install but a > little less efficient. Both are attractive even compared to natural gas > (you won't save a ton of money, but I think with gas prices expected to > rise, they are cost-competitive). > > > > And, yes, Ehrhart (along with another local company, Mesa Reduction) will > be providing bulk pellet delivery to our region (the entire Southern Tier > and beyond), with limited options this heating season and full coverage > starting in 2015. This means automatic feed systems for pellet boilers (so > that home- or business owners don't have to do anything more than empty the > ash pan as little as once a month) and, for pellet stove owners, no more > need to pick up pallets of pellets or lug 40-pound bags (pellet stoves > don't have very good automatic feed systems but the homeowner can use a > small pail to move pellets from the bulk storage unit to the pellet stove). > > > > We have a program for people currently heating with oil or propane to > convert to pellets (with a $500 rebate), another for homeowners with an > outdoor wood boiler to upgrade to a pellet boiler (aimed at reducing > emissions; $4000 rebate), as well as a state program for low-income > homeowners (or renters) on oil or propane to transition to pellets and, not > income-based, another for anyone with an old wood stove to upgrade to a > pellet stove ($1000 rebate). > > > > -Guillermo > > > Guillermo Metz > Green Building and Renewable Energy Program Coordinator > Cornell Cooperative Extension of Tompkins County > 615 Willow Avenue > Ithaca, NY 14850-3555 > http://ccetompkins.org > (P) (607) 272-2292, x185 > (F) (607) 272-7088 > (E) [email protected] > > > > On Sun, Aug 31, 2014 at 10:30 PM, Stuart Staniford <[email protected]> > wrote: > > > > On Aug 31, 2014, at 10:01 PM, Margaret McCasland <[email protected]> > wrote: > > > > > We do need these nitty-gritty reality checks, but we also need optimism > and the gumption to take on large projects. > > In terms of just trying to stop the pipeline, what is the legal/political > landscape like? What kinds of decision points are there, and what tools > are potentially available to slow-down or stop it? > > Stuart. > > > > > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, > please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ > If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom > Shelley, at [email protected]. > > > For more information about sustainability in the Tompkins County area, please visit: http://www.sustainabletompkins.org/ If you have questions about this list please contact the list manager, Tom Shelley, at [email protected].
