Economic development through biomass systems integration. Final report

This report (RP3407-20) presents the results of an upstate New York study to evaluate the use of short-rotation willow as an energy crop feedstock along with available wood wastes in an integrated biomass system. Such a system is economically viable because (1) the high-productivity tree species, with available wood waste, provides a fuel that is cost-competitive with delivered coal, and (2) costs for retrofitting four pulverized-coal plants to co-fire at 10 percent by heat content are acceptable. Research indicates that this shift in the fuel mix would decrease NOx emissions more than 16 percent and SOx nearly 9 percent. The annual CO2 offsets would be more than 6,000 tons for each MW of coal displaced. With all costs accounted for, net levelized energy costs would remain at 2.3 cents/kWh. Due to the loss of agricultural markets and improved agricultural productivity, New York state cropland has decreased by more than 14 percent since 1987. The members of the Empire State Biopower Consortium will encourage the establishment of about 10 farmer cooperatives to manage the planting of 30,000 idle acres in this new tree crop. This could result in a direct contribution to annual rural incomes of perhaps as much as $9 million by 2006