Biomass Feasibility Project Final Report - Xcel Energy

study estimates that this increase will not pose any problems at the plant itself, this great an
increase in truck traffic could tax local infrastructure and stir up opposition.
Responding to community concerns. Project developers can avoid local political opposition by
giving careful attention to project design and including the local community in the planning
process. At the state policy level, support for local infrastructure improvements would help
develop public support for bio-power projects.
QUESTIONS OF SUSTAINABILITY
The sustainability of using large amounts of biomass to generate electricity (or produce liquid
fuels) is still very much in question. All plants uptake nitrogen compounds and other minerals
from the soil for their metabolic processes. Since those minerals remain in the tissues of plants
when they are harvested, they must be replaced to maintain the soil’s fertility. Questions about
the rate at which biomass harvests deplete the soil are central to many debates on the
sustainability of biomass power plants.
Other environmental concerns are the effects of biomass harvest on soil erosion and wildlife
habitat. The 2005 legislation mandated that the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
and Forest Resources Council generate “(g)uidelines or best management practices for
sustainably managed woody biomass”. The guidelines will be based on recent scientific
information and public comment. They must pay “particular attention to soil productivity,
biological diversity … and wildlife habitat.” Research into the sequestration of carbon on forest
and brush lands also was called for.
Research must guide the development of future biomass power projects. This particular project
applies specifically to woody biomass; issues surrounding other potential feedstocks for biomass
power may be quite different. For that reason, research into sustainable practices regarding
other biomass sources like corn stover or switchgrass will be needed to write guidelines for other
kinds of biomass power projects.
Since water is a necessary input to virtually all electrical generating technologies, sufficient
water supplies are important requirements for biomass power projects. This poses a challenge in
certain regions of Minnesota, where competition for water is beginning to intensify. In recent
years a number of projects, including ethanol plants, have been stalled by constraints on water
supplies (Gordon, 2005).
Local and regional factors, like reservoirs and rivers, the needs of local municipal water systems,
and potential effects of a new water user on its neighbors, determine whether water is available.
There can be no statewide policy solution. True, the Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources issues permits to use water from aquifers and streams, but it does so on the basis of
local effects, and it has denied permits to ethanol projects in Southwestern Minnesota (Wilson,
2007). Developers of biomass power plants must determine early on whether water is available
for the project.
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Identifying Effective Biomass Strategies:
Quantifying Minnesota’s Resources and Evaluating Future Opportunities