Tell Congress that Forest Biomass is NOT Clean Energy

Forest biomass is made by cutting down forests, turning the trees into wood pellets, and burning the pellets to produce electricity. Power plants that burn biomass emit 150 percent more climate-wrecking carbon pollution than those burning dirty coal.

Many people near active biomass sites, wood pellet plants, and wood-burning power plants suffer from respiratory illnesses and must wear masks or leave their windows closed to keep dust out – and a huge percentage of the communities near these sites are communities of color or low-income. This is a grave environmental injustice.

We must urge Congress to treat biomass as it really is: a threat to our climate, wildlife, forests, air quality, and the communities where polluters set up shop.

Urge Congress to protect U.S. forests and communities from the biomass industry!

Smoke billows out of the Enviva Pellets factory in Northampton, North Carolina, next to piles of freshly cut timber.

Dogwood Alliance

Forest biomass is made by cutting down forests, turning the trees into wood pellets, and burning the pellets to produce electricity. These companies claim they only use woody material that’s no longer viable – but this is not the case.

Power plants that burn forest biomass emit 150 percent more climate-wrecking carbon pollution than those burning dirty coal. Many people near active biomass sites, wood pellet plants, and wood-burning power plants suffer from respiratory illnesses, must wear masks or leave their windows closed to keep dust out, and struggle to sleep at night due to the industrial noise – and a huge percentage of these communities are communities of color or low-income. This is a grave environmental injustice.

We must urge Congress to treat forest biomass as it really is: a threat to our climate, wildlife, forests, air quality, and the communities where polluters set up shop.

CTA

Your Message

Subject Forest biomass is NOT clean energy

Member of Congress:

Message Body

I’m worried about dangerous misinformation from the energy industry claiming that forest biomass – the product of cutting down forests and turning the trees into wood pellets to burn for electricity – is a carbon neutral “clean energy” source. This could not be further from the truth.

Power plants that burn forest biomass have some of the highest rates of climate-wrecking carbon emissions compared to most other power plants. It’s impossible for forests to regrow fast enough to take the place of the trees burned. And wood pellet mills in the U.S. frequently target communities of color and lower income communities.

A large percentage of the people who live near active biomass sites and wood pellet factories are people of color – and many people near these sites suffer from respiratory illnesses, must wear masks or leave their windows closed to keep dust out, and struggle to sleep at night due to the industrial noise. This is a grave environmental injustice.

In particular, for years the forest biomass industry has razed Southern U.S. forests and sent the pellets to Europe, where biomass is tragically written into law as “clean energy.” And now the industry is trying to expand even further into the U.S. market. But I need you to stop that from happening.

I need you to see forest biomass as it really is: a threat to our climate, wildlife, forests, air quality, and the communities where this industry sets up shop. Forest biomass is NOT a carbon neutral “clean energy source.”

Please do everything you can to stop the forest biomass industry from undermining truly clean energy deployment. Thank you.

Sincerely,

[First Name] [Last Name]

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