Short-rotation woody crop opportunities to mitigate carbon dioxide buildup
Short-rotation woody crops (SRWC) have a significant potential for permanently mitigating carbon dioxide buildup in the atmosphere. The greatest benefit can be derived from growing large amounts of woody crops dedicated to substitute for fossil energy resources. Assuming current production and conversion technologies and a conservative estimate of the viable US land base (35 million acres), SRWC energy could displace 34 to 67 million tons of fossil carbon releases, 3 to 5% of current annual US emissions. Assuming predicted technology advancements and a high estimate of the US land base available for SRWC (103 million acres), SRWC energy could displace 272 to 470 million tons of annual fossil fuel carbon releases. The carbon mitigation potential of SRWC-based electricity production would be equivalent to about 7.5% of current global fossil fuel emissions and 35% of current total US fossil fuel emissions. This document discusses the strategies to mitigate carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Topics include planting new trees, managing forests, improving forest utilization and using wood as a renewable energy source to replace fossil fuels. 16 refs., 2 figs., 4 tabs.
- Research Organization:
- Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
- Sponsoring Organization:
- DOE/CE
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC05-84OR21400
- OSTI ID:
- 6654323
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9005261-1; ON: DE90016526
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: North American conference on forestry responses to climate change, Washington, DC (USA), 15-17 May 1990
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
09 BIOMASS FUELS
CARBON DIOXIDE
AIR POLLUTION CONTROL
FORESTS
BIOCONVERSION
BIOLOGICAL ACCUMULATION
BIOMASS
BUILDUP
CARBON SOURCES
COMBUSTION
CROPS
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
EMISSION
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
FOSSIL FUELS
FUEL SUBSTITUTION
MITIGATION
PLANT GROWTH
RENEWABLE RESOURCES
CARBON COMPOUNDS
CARBON OXIDES
CHALCOGENIDES
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
CONTROL
ENERGY SOURCES
FUELS
GROWTH
OXIDATION
OXIDES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION CONTROL
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
RESOURCES
THERMOCHEMICAL PROCESSES
540120* - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
090900 - Biomass Fuels- Processing- (1990-)