WOOD BASED FUEL

Wood based fuel - Wood based fuel is a biomass that can be used as fuel – a biofuel, which was originally tree trunks, branches or roots. Generally it is solid, but also can be carburized into biogas (wood gas). The energy in the wood is utilised by burning, from which heat, energy or both is obtained. - Wood is a renewable energy source. Its use as fuel does not increase carbon dioxide emissions, because the carbon bound and that is going to be bound in wood is seen as part of a natural cycle differently than in fossil fuels. The trees that grow in place of the felled trees bind carbon dioxide. Furthermore carbon dioxide is released as trees decay. - The nitrogen emissions from burning wood depend on how the wood burning is managed. The negative effects of burning wood include particulate matter, which cause heart and vascular diseases as well as causing breathing difficulties for asthmatics. - Ash from burning wood can be utilised as a fertilizer. - Transporting wood based fuel long distances is not generally economically profitable. Often wood based fuel contains plenty of water, so it is dried outside or mechanically. The heat value of dry wood is approximately 19 MJ/kg (compared to dried peat at approx. 20 MJ/kg and light fuel oil 42.7 MJ/kg).

Use in Finland -In Finland wood and forest energy is a domestic renewable natural product. - It is important to the national economy, because its procurement creates new jobs for the whole wood procurement sector and refining enables new domestic investments, products and workplaces. -In 2004 Finland obtained 27 terawatt-hours from wood, which was 7 % of total energy consumption. The share of electric energy was 8 TWh. -In billion solid cubic metres of wood based fuel was used, that is 35.9 terawatt- hours. -Nowadays a considerable part of otherwise unsuitable waste wood is utilised as energy, such as forest industry by-products, felling waste and small trees felled in forest maintenance. These days sturdy stumps are also collected as firewood from a portion of felling areas. Source: Ministry of Employment and the Economy publications, Energy and the Environment, 66/2010: and Statistics Finland

Use in Finland - Felling waste, stumps and small trees felled in forest felling are collected from forests and used to produce heat and forest energy in power stations. - Forest energy is only a part of the energy derived from wood. Wood based waste from the forest industry and industrial waste wood are significant energy production fuels. - Of the total energy consumption of Finland, a ¼ is covered by energy deriving from wood. - Forest energy can replace the use of fossil fuels and therefore prevent climate change. - As a part of the climate change restraining E.U. energy and climate strategy, Finland’s national goal is to have 38 % renewable energy from all energy consumption by Currently forest energy produces 70 % of all Finland’s renewable energy.

Wood based fuel Broad basic information about bioenergy and fuels derived from wood: In English:

Research Results -Collecting forest energy together with felling improves the future quality of forest maintenance work. -Forest regeneration is easier, because after the final felling the land can be immediately ploughed for planting and be planted by a planting machine. If branches, the tips of trees and stumps are not collected at all, decomposing slows forest regeneration work. -Removal of stumps also increases soil cultivation and planting machine productivity. According to research by the Finnish Forest Research Institute, the collection of felling waste increases soil cultivation productivity by up to 20 % and raising stumps by up to 5 %. -The collection of forest energy has a positive effect on the control of wood-decay fungi. The most efficient way to control Finland’s worst wood-decay fungus, heterobasidion annosum, is, to collect the stumps for forest energy along with the felled trees, whereby spore cases are removed from the forest.

Improving competitively for wood based fuels Examples: - Ensure that forest owners are willing to sell energy wood. - Support, according to state approved Sustainable forestry financing law (=KEMERA), or other forms of support for energy wood from young forests must be ensured in Finland - The training, communications and advice of forest owners and forest professionals in a key position - Forest sector vocational skills must be protected through good training - The preference of renewable energy - The development and utilisation of new equipment solutions