Are Wood Pellets A “Green” Heat Source?
Rachel Berliner February 6, 2025
Just because wood pellets are made from wood doesn’t mean they are necessarily carbon neutral. Credit: By Tom Bruton, Public Domain.
Dear EarthTalk: What’s so bad about wood pellet biomass energy anyway? Isn’t wood a renewable resource? —M. Wilson, Houston, TX
Inch-long, compressed pieces made from pine and hardwood trees are plentiful in the Southeastern region of the United States, which is home to many wood pellet manufacturing companies.
According to the Dogwood Alliance, 75 percent of wood pellets produced in the U.S. are sent to be burned in the U.K.
Biomass took off in 2009, after the European Union (EU) created its Renewable Energy Directive, which deemed wood pellets a renewable energy source and, as such, an important energy source.
Seth Ginther, executive director of the United States Industrial Pellet Association, believes that wood pellet biomass is a “low-cost, low-carbon alternative,” and “helps encourage forest owners to reforest and replant.”
That said, many eco-advocates question just how sustainable producing and burning wood pellets really is. A recent report by Chatham House, a London-based think tank, estimates that 17.6 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO2) were released from burning wood pellets in the U.K in 2019.
Also, gathering the wood requires clear cutting of forests, which releases CO2 that had been sequestered in the trees and soil. In the U.S., clear cutting and the making wood pellets produced upwards of 88 million tons of CO2.
Besides the ecological impact, communities living near wood pellet manufacturing centers suffer from constant exposure to thick smoke and toxic pollutants. “Fourteen million people in the United States live within a few miles of bioenergy facilities and breathe potentially harmful toxins and pollutants,” says Edi Huno of the National Wildlife Federation.
And often, those living right outside these manufacturing centers are communities of color with the majority of residents living below the poverty line. Added to all this, many don’t consider wood pellets renewable resource, which is one that does not exhaust Earth’s resources.
Trees that are ideal for wood pellets don’t quickly regenerate. One idea has been to use fast-growing pine plantations, but they’re less biodiverse and bad at capturing carbon. Burning wood with lower levels of carbon generates less heat, making pine an inefficient source of fuel.
The wood pellet biomass industry continues to grow. That said, many environmental organizations, such as Dogwood Alliance, offer virtual petitions to sign on their respective websites. These petitions will be sent to state senators. By signing your name, you can help save southern forests and communities and keep unsafe levels of carbon emissions out of the atmosphere.
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• Groundbreaking report reveals harmful impacts of biomass wood pellet plants
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