This is Part 2 of a 2 part series exploring the impact that the wood pellet industry is having on the rural communities of the Gulf coast. Part 1 looked at the wood pellet industry in Mississippi and the destructive impact it has on the forests and the rural local economy…
Environmental groups delivered a petition signed by over 110,000 people to new Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, Amber Rudd. The petition calls for an end to government support for Drax’s new White Rose ‘carbon capture’ power station.
Soaring demand for woody fuel has led to the construction of more than two dozen pellet factories in the Southeast and special port. European officials promote the trade as part of the fight against climate change. But that claim is increasingly coming under challenge.
Recent science shows that many forms of biomass — especially from forests — produce higher carbon emissions compared to fossil fuels. In particular, a growing body of peer-reviewed, scientific studies shows that burning wood from whole trees in power plants to produce electricity can increase carbon emissions relative to fossil fuels for many decades — anywhere from 35 to 100 years.
Rachel Weber is a student at Duke University and who just became our newest Board member.
