Wood – “Dirtier than coal”
by Angus, 2 January, 2014, 1 comments
About a year ago the RSPB, along with Friends of the Earth and Greenpeace, put the cat among the proverbial pigeons by arguing that use of some woodfuel is "Dirtier than Coal". This caused controversy amongst woodfuel zealots but the study showed that not all woodfuel is created equally. The report was particularly concerned about subsidies which encourage the burning of whole trees where they are grown especially for woodfuel, and where these displace other land uses often to be transported long distances for power stations. The "Dirtier than Coal' report said that full carbon accounting was necessary and we should take account of the short term effect of clear felling rather than using thinings: clear felling can lose the benefit of carbon fixing which is achieved by letting trees grow on. The RSPB position is that we need to do full carbon accounting, create new woodlands and set up coherent sustainability standards. Read more...
