A former coal fired power generation plant is going green by converting to a renewable form of fossil fuel, biomass. An Albany-based energy company, ReEnergy, is going to convert the power plant to run on wood.
Dr. Timothy Volk of SUNY ESF said, “The assessments that have been done in New York State and particularly in the region where this plant is located up around Watertown show that there’s a lot of wood resource available in the forest. And part of that is because the market for the low-value material that was here previously, the pulp and paper industry, has largely disappeared from that part of the state.”
In addition, Dr. Volk said the biomass market will help improve management of Northern New York forestland. “We’re going in now and taking out the highest value materials because there’s a market for that wood but the low-value material is left behind so eventually over time you degrade the quality of the stand, the forest stand,” he said.
Retrofitting the plant, located on the Black River on the Fort Drum Army Base, will also produce water and air quality benefits.
From YNN News: http://rochester.ynn.com/content/other_features/584082/going-green—biomass-power-plant/
Tags: Black River, Fort Drum Army Base, New York biomass plant, New York biomass power plant, New York forestland, power plant conversion, ReEnergy, SUNY ESF, Timothy Volk
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