The US EPA recently stated its plans to propose a rule that would classify combustion of forest biomass from power plants and other sources as carbon neutral.
The US EPA has struggled to develop an accounting framework for biogenic CO2 emissions for a decade as part of its effort to regulate GHG emissions under the Clean Air Act, as it must based on a Supreme Court ruling. The US EPA has modified Title V, New Source Review (NSR), and other programs accordingly. For example, NSR is triggered by net emission increases of proposed new or modified plants or operations and requires certain emission reductions. How does one count the CO2 generated from wood-burning equipment, given that the carbon given off comes from the ground and the CO2 generated can be absorbed by other biomass? The US EPA has performed a lengthy process to research and assess whether combustion of biomass is truly carbon neutral and whether such treatment of biogenic CO2 emissions is valid.
In 2011 and then again in 2014, the US EPA published draft technical reports containing frameworks for assessing biogenic CO2 emissions associated with biomass combusted for power generation at stationary sources based on a carbon lifecycle approach. Peer review of the second draft report has not been finalized due to accounting and calculation disagreements. Therefore, the answer to the question of how to account for GHG emissions from biomass combustion has not been settled until now.
On April 23, 2018, the US EPA issued a policy (stated as a non-scientific) statement (https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2018-04/documents/biomass_policy_statement_2018_04_23.pdf) that future regulatory actions would treat as carbon neutral biogenic CO2 emissions from the combustion of biomass from managed forests at stationary sources for energy production. The policy statement intended to reduce environmental barriers and, thus, encourage the use of forest biomass for energy at stationary sources.
On April 2, 2019, US EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler told lawmakers that the agency intends to propose a new rule that would treat biogenic CO2 emissions from power plants as carbon neutral. The proposal is expected this summer and, if adopted, the rule will have implications for the power generation industry
Besides changes in emission accounting in NSR and similar air quality rules based on this potential rule change, this potential rule also has impacts on forest policy. Currently, there are few certifications that qualify a forest for federal procurement opportunities. However, if biomass combustion is considered carbon neutral and less negative compared to the past, then the number of forests that could participate in federal procurement opportunities could increase. In the private sector, this could make it easier for companies to claim sustainable environmental practices and meet established sustainability criteria.
Declaring biomass combustion as carbon neutral may provide states with more options to meet their Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS). Nearly 40 states have their own RPS, which requires a specified percentage of saleable electricity to come from renewable sources. If biomass combustion is considered carbon neutral, it can be an additional option for a state planning to meet its RPS goal.
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