Woody biomass has a great future, but there is a strong body of expert opinion that heat, not electricity generation, is where it can be used to greatest effect - a view not well reflected in current Australasian policies, as Michael Dover reports. There are a number of processes that can be used to turn wood waste into renewable energy products, including direct combustion, gasification, biological digestion, and co-firing of wood with coal or other waste products such as bagasse (sugarcane waste).Around 3 million tonnes of dry wood waste is produced annually in Australia - enough to deliver electricity to 400,000 houses and reduce the country's greenhouse gas emissions by 2.2 million tonnes per year. It has been calculated that Australia could be producing up to 20% of its energy needs from woody waste within 15 years, but the current federal government is emphasising the development of other energy sources, such as nuclear power.
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