Introduction

Heating the Northeast with Renewable Biomass: A Bold Vision for 2025 is a call for an American Revolution to domestically produce the thermal energy consumed in the six New England states and New York. We propose that 25% of all thermal energy requirements in the Northeast are met with renewable energy resources by the year 2025.

Sponsoring Organizations

Vision

Key Findings and Conclusions of the Report

If achieved, this vision will:

• Supply 19 million green tons of sustainable biomass for thermal energy available annually from forest and farm sources
• Achieve 25% of all thermal energy from renewable resources by 2025
• Achieve 75% of thermal renewable energy from biomass by 2025
• Convert 1.38 million households in the seven states to biomass for thermal needs
• Improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gases and build healthier communities
• Reduce 1.14 billion gallons of heating oil annually
• Reinvest $4.5 billion in resulting economic wealth in the Northeast economy
• Create 140,200 jobs

Presentation Slides

Download a presentation on the Vision given by NEBTWG Steering Committee Co-Chairman Charlie Niebling on August 5, 2010.

Vision Presentation - August 5, 2010

Download the Report

	Executive Summary		Full Report
	Vision 4-Pager

Additional Resources

This publication, recently released by the O.O. Energiesparverband (Upper Austrian Renewable Energy Agency),  is a comprehensive yet concise how-to guide written with much relevance for the northeastern United States.  It describes how private land owners and business entrepreneurs have, with the support of state policy, gained rapid ground on the state’s policy of meeting 100% of its electrical and space heating demand from renewable sources by 2030. 

The state of Upper Austria is in land area, population, climate, and forest area much like several of the Northeast states.  In the last 15 years Upper Austria achieved rapid and deep reaching renewable energy success.   The statistics for the small state of Upper Austria are impressive:

• Renewable energy is now 33.4% of total primary energy demand
• 45.6% of the total heating demand is accomplished with renewable energy
• 78.4% of electricity is produced from renewable sources
• 263 million dollars are invested annually in new renewable energy installations
• 7.4 million tons of CO2 are avoided each year
• 1.25 billion dollars of imported fossil fuels are avoided annually

Placing an emphasis on renewable biomass energy has had far reaching benefits for both Upper Austria’s citizens and its land.  The sustainable use of forest and agricultural resources is of utmost importance to Austria’s economy and therefore these resources are carefully utilized with an underlying principle of a stable and functioning ecosystem. The northeastern U.S. should consider the story of Upper Austria when shaping its renewable energy policies. 

Take Action

In addition to the Northeast Biomass Thermal Working Group, the Vision is supported by the Maine Pellet Fuel Association, the Pellet Fuels Institute, the New York Biomass Energy Alliance, the Alliance For Green Heat and the Biomass Thermal Energy Council. This report is a work in progress. We welcome all feedback, criticism and ideas.

• Contact us to offer feedback, criticism and ideas to improve this Vision
• Share the Vision document with anyone who may be interested. Invite their feedback.
• Join and financially support any of the organizations that have presented this Vision.
  
• Raise these issues with your governor, state and federal officials, and state legislators.