Green Heat News
A monthly news service for everyone
interested in renewable wood & pellet heating
July 2022
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Featured Stories
The EPA just posted a new compliance webpage, undertaken as a result of Alaska and NESCAUM's work, showing that they were not properly reviewing stove certification applications. One fallout is that it may be harder to for manufacturers to get their certification renewed every 5 years—a process that used to be a routine formality.
Big changes are underway in wood and pellet heating on the state and regional level. In southern states people are ditching stoves, likely in favor of heat pumps, but growth rates in wood heat remain strong in the Northeast. We expect to see a major comeback in wood and pellet heating over the next few years.
AGH developed a short schematic history of wood heat, from prehistoric days to the future. The history of wood heat technology was interwoven with cooking and baking until the late 20th century. Coal stoves came and went and pellet stoves picked up where gravity fed pea coal stoves left off. Now sensors and automation are the next frontier.
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5th Wood Heater Design Challenge
Coming soon...
The organizing committee is about to post more detailed rules for the technology slam and the requirements of the full application, now due on Aug. 15. (Instead of August 1.) There is also more info on the Q&A page. And join this LinkedIn group to find others building teams and looking for talent. A DOE webinar about the event was postponed but registration will open again soon. (If you already registered, you will receive a notice.)
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Agencies and Federal Labs
The DOE's National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) develops Standard Work Specifications (SWS) for the home energy upgrade industry, giving home energy contractors and auditors, utility and energy efficiency programs the same baseline. But they have failed to integrate solid fuel appliances as a home combustion appliance. If your organization wants to sign on to a group letter from the hearth community, please contact us, or sign-up to leave your own comments. Click here for more information.
Four projects in California, 2 in Alaska, and 2 in Oregon were among biomass heating initiatives that won federal grant funds. The effort “tackles problems like the wildfire crisis and climate change while creating new markets, supporting jobs, building affordable housing and improving conditions on our forests at the same time,” USDA Secretary Vilsack said.
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced that American heat pump manufacturer Lennox International became the first partner in DOE's Residential Cold Climate Heat Pump Technology Challenge to develop a next-generation electric heat pump that can more effectively heat homes in northern climates relative to today’s models.
The proposed standard pertains to certain types of furnaces that run on natural gas and requires them to operate at 95 percent efficiency. The proposed changes—which, if adopted, will go into effect in 2029—will save consumers $1.9 billion annually.
The Forest Service invites public comment on the framework of its Wildfire Crisis Implementation Plan. This cross-jurisdictional blueprint for coordination, collaboration and funding designed to reduce wildfire risk and can involve removing wood to be used in heating applications.
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HPBA income falls by 2/3rd during pandemic
The industry association HPBA took a huge hit during the pandemic because it mainly relies on revenue from its Expo, which was virtual in 2021. Revenues and expenses, based on publicly available annual reports were over $5 million in 2018, 2019 and 2020. In 2021, revenue fell to $1.6 million, requiring the association to use its reserves, which all well-managed groups have.
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To better understand the DIY stove installation culture in America, between 1920 and 1960, most US homes installed whole house wood/coal boilers or furnaces in a revolutionary shift to modern, whole house heating. Sears & Roebuck, the Amazon supermarket of the era, was the largest supplier and they promoted self-installation of their boilers and furnaces. And, every installation was sealed and insulated with another self-applied modern product - asbestos paper and cement.
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Energy & The Russian Invasion of Ukraine |
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The public has long been allowed to purchase branches left after logging in state forests. “Collecting branches for fuel is allowed at all times, with the consent of the forester,” but since the invasion of Ukraine, demand has gone way up.
As of mid-July, Russian sawmills in the North-West of Russia, the main producers and suppliers of wood pellets to Europe, will be completely without a sales market. And if a sawmill cannot sell or recycle sawdust, it may have to shut down, as it creates a huge problem.
Because gas prices are rising so fast, “Latvians now have an opportunity to buy wood pellets and switch to wood burning systems.” And, lines are starting to build to get state permits to collect brushwood left over from logging operations as Riga faces an energy crisis.
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State News
Maine: Maine establishes a program for projects that will burn wood to create electricity and also capture the heat produced for use on-site—heat that would go to waste in a conventional power plant.
Maine: Maine approved a residential pellet boiler as an eligible thermal renewable to satisfy Maine’s renewable resource portfolio. This wood pellet boiler is also eligible to receive alternative energy credits in Massachusetts and under New Hampshire’s RPS.
Montana: Missoula, Fairbanks Alaska, and a handful of other towns have been at forefront of trying to reduce wood smoke. This new change would involve removing any wood stove, even new ones, when a house is sold. But in one area, Seeley Lake, new wood stoves could still be installed.
International
Australia: As usual, the headline is far worse than the story. The "ban" is on new installs in new construction and densely inhabited areas. Heat pumps are the future of urban heating and in the colder areas combining it with a pellet stoves will help save money and relieve stress on the grid.
Canada: To meet its climate goals, New Glasgow will be conducting a feasibility study on burning renewable biomass to heat 90 percent of the Nova Scotia’s town's buildings. Natural Resources Canada says it will contribute $515,000 towards the $755,000 study.
Chile: Protecting and stimulating the formal trade in firewood could increase the points of sale of certified firewood, which would facilitate user access to cleaner fuels.
Chile: The source of firewood is rarely studied in North America but in Chile, authors found firewood is usually a by-product of other activity and landowners are not really interested in firewood production. Further, a growing firewood supply from forest plantations implies a lower pressure on native forests. This suggests that firewood production is less likely to be a driver of forest degradation.
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"As with many aspects of technology often the right choice lies somewhere halfway between tradition – things that proved to work for centuries in a given environment – and new technological innovations and developments."
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Denver, Colorado, August 1-5, 2022
Registration for the Energy OutWest Conference 2022 is now closed.
Vancouver, Canada, September 20-21, 2022
This year’s theme is The Power of Pellets: Unlocking a World of Possibilities.
Dowagiac, Michigan, September 25-27, 2022
Virtual, September 29, 2022
Save the date!
Manchester, New Hampshire, October 14, 2022
The event of the year for local energy champions, policymakers, municipal officials, town staff, regulators, and industry representatives.
Washington DC, October 20-21, 2022
Keep an eye out for updates regarding the 2022 RTC Summit soon!
Burlington, Vermont, October 27-28, 2022
Celebrating its 22nd year, REV’s Annual Conference and Expo is the leading renewable energy event in northern New England.
Leipzig, Germany, April 18-20, 2023
A network-hub, the World of Fireplaces, also includes many wood heaters.
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Misleading Advertisement of the Month |
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The former US Stove employer who went public about the sale of over 4,000 uncertified stoves to Tractor Supply is still under a gag order. The EPA’s Office of Inspector General opened an investigation into the case, but the former US Stove employee cannot talk to the Special Agent Jacob Hamm, who is leading their investigation. Other US Stove employees or former employees have cooperated with the EPA, enabling the investigation to move forward to some extent. The next trial date for the former US Stove employer is July 8. If anyone has information related to this case, they can contact the EPA investigators at 919-937-8349.
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Please support our work and keep this newsletter free of charge |
Thank you to everyone who donated to AGH during 2021! Your support makes a huge difference and helps to keep this newsletter a free source of information for everyone. The Alliance for Green Heat is an independent non-profit organization working to promote cleaner and more efficient biomass heating. Please consider making a generous contribution. The Alliance is a tax exempt 501 (c)(3) organization.
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