Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues

The report evaluates 'post-harvest to grave' emissions for woody biomass residues in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. It finds that alternatives displacing fossil fuels—such as industrial boilers, biochar, and integrated gasification—significantly reduce greenhouse gases, carbon monoxide, and fine particulate matter compared to on-site burning. Conversely, residential wood stoves and fireplaces often increase local air pollutants.

• The most common current practices for managing woody biomass residues in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska are burning them in slash piles on-site or leaving them to decay.
• GHG emissions from the pre-processing and distribution of residues—including gathering, chipping, and transport—are relatively low, accounting for less than 4% of total system GHG emissions across all analyzed fates.
• The greatest reductions in net GHG emissions occur when woody biomass residues displace fossil fuels. The magnitude of these reductions depends on the energy efficiency of the process and the emissions intensity of the displaced fuel, with industrial boilers for heat production providing the lowest net GHG emissions of all fates studied.
• Using woody biomass residues to displace existing wood or organic products results in minimal changes to net GHG emissions compared to on-site combustion or decomposition.
• Industrial facilities with emission controls (including biochar, industrial boilers, IGC, cogenerators, and pulp production) achieve significant reductions in carbon monoxide (93% or more) and fine particulate matter (85% or more) compared to uncontrolled on-site burning.
• Residential energy use in fireplaces and EPA-certified stoves increases CO and PM2.5 emissions relative to common practices, emitting 4 times more CO and 6 times more PM2.5 per bone dry ton than pellet stoves.
• Among residential options, pellet stoves result in a decrease in CO and PM2.5 emissions compared to common practices, particularly when they replace EPA-certified stoves and the displaced fuel wood is left to decay.
• Displacing gasoline with liquid fuels (ethanol) provides the largest net CO emissions benefit, while displacing residual oil with industrial energy use provides the largest net PM2.5 emissions benefit among fossil fuel displacement options.

APA

Lee, C., Erickson, P., Lazarus, M., & Smith, G. (2010). Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/greenhouse-gas-and-air-pollutant-emissions-of-alternatives-for-woody-biomass-residues.pdf

Chicago

Lee, Carrie, Pete Erickson, Michael Lazarus, and Gordon Smith. Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2010. https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/greenhouse-gas-and-air-pollutant-emissions-of-alternatives-for-woody-biomass-residues.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Lee |first1=Carrie |last2=Erickson |first2=Pete |last3=Lazarus |first3=Michael |last4=Smith |first4=Gordon |title=Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=November 2010 |url=https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/greenhouse-gas-and-air-pollutant-emissions-of-alternatives-for-woody-biomass-residues.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{lee2010greenhouse, author = {Lee, Carrie and Erickson, Pete and Lazarus, Michael and Smith, Gordon}, title = {{Greenhouse gas and air pollutant emissions of alternatives for woody biomass residues}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2010}, month = nov, url = {https://www.sei.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/12/greenhouse-gas-and-air-pollutant-emissions-of-alternatives-for-woody-biomass-residues.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }