American energy security could come from trees

Creston News Advertiser (Iowa)
Created: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 12:00 a.m. CDT
By (ARA)

You don't have to be an energy expert to realize the challenge ahead if the country is to reach President Obama's goal of reducing 50 percent of America's fossil fuel emissions by 2050. To do that will require several innovative approaches to generating fuel and electricity.

One alternative is to use plant or tree materials, also known as biomass, as an energy source. Biomass trees could be specifically planted for use as bioenergy in regions where available land is well-suited to tree growth and harvest. Although many different types of crops can be used as biomass, trees have particular advantages, including the ability to be harvested year-round. In the Southeast, where the infrastructure to harvest and transport trees to the mill already exists, biomass production could help reinvigorate rural economies.

In addition to poplar, pine and cottonwood, another variety of tree being evaluated for its amazing growth potential is the eucalyptus. One of the fastest growing hardwood trees in the world, eucalyptus is cultivated in more than 90 countries and represents 8 percent of all planted forests. In 2003, global eucalyptus pulp demand was 8 million tons and it represented 40 percent of the world's hardwood pulp market.

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