Michael Moore’s new film:
Best part is the segment
on biomass, beginning at
52 minutes in.
It runs for about 20 minutes.
The biomass shown
in the chart below includes
‘wood, forestry residue,
animal dung, human
excrement, and
agricultural residues
in the form of crop
waste like stalks’ etc.
( biomass is the primary
source of energy for heating
and cooking in the Third World:
65% in Haiti, 72% in Kenya,
78% in Democratic Republic
of Congo, 81.5% in Nigeria,
85% in Tanzania, to 89%
in Kenya and Niger”).
There are also wood burning
heaters used in EU homes,
to reduce the cost of
central heating only with
electricity.
Biomass produces
far more CO2
than coal does,
due to its lower
calorific value.
For CO2 emissions
over the next 30 years,
it makes no difference
whether one is releasing
CO2 sequestered
hundreds of millions
of years ago as coal,
hundreds of millions
of years ago as coal,
or CO2 sequestered
60 to 80 years ago
in trees.
in trees.
Much more
CO2 is emitted
CO2 is emitted
when burning
biomass versus
burning much
more efficient
biomass versus
burning much
more efficient
natural gas.
The problem with biomass
is the fact that it takes
no CO2 from the atmosphere
-- it adds lots of CO2
to the atmosphere,
and lots of air pollution too.