Senator John Thune (R-SD), chairman of the Senate agriculture committee’s energy subcommittee, held a public hearing this week in Rapid City, SD, on the potential of woody biomass in national forests for cellulosic ethanol projects and why it’s not currently included in the definition of “woody biomass” as written in the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Thune told hearing attendees that the final definition failed to include material removed or harvested from federal lands and national forests because the U.S. House of Representatives changed the wording “behind closed doors” in the final days of debate before the bill’s passage. (NASF sent a letter to House leaders earlier this year urging a modification to the definition.) He has since introduced bill S.2558 that would amend that definition. 

Check out another interesting take on the role of wood waste from Biomass Magazine that looks at the processes industrial waste wood must undergo before it is suitable for use and recycling.