Researched Argument Essay and Bibliography

Using Biomass as a Possible Homegrown Energy Source
With the current “green” movement going on throughout the world, many countries are beginning to research new sources of energy that are renewable and also able to remain sustainable given the current demand. Biomass offers an alternative and sustainable source of energy that will eventually be able to replace the need for the exponentially depleting fossil fuel sources with a source that can be grown and produced in the United States. In the United States the most publicly seen alternative energy forms are solar and wind, but biomass supplies nearly fifteen times as much energy as both solar and wind power combined (How Biomass Energy Works). Using biomass as a fuel source is not a new concept. For the last several hundred years, humans have been able to successfully harness the energy from the sun that is contained in biomass. The process of harnessing this energy included the following processes: burn the biomass, heat water, create steam, and use steam to generate electricity (How Biomass Energy Works).There are many promising uses of biomass for a renewable energy source, but there are also skeptics that question if the biomass technology is going to be able to keep up with the demand. The skeptics of biomass state that if the biomass energy is moved to large scale power production there will not be enough biomass fuel sources to sustain these new biomass plants. This early increases in demand for biomass fuel sources can increase the price of food, as seen in ethanol production in the last few years, prices since many of the biomass crops include ones used for consumption (Alternative Energy Sources). This increase in food prices is mainly due to the U.S farming subsidies for corn production that have made corn a very powerful political influence (Bryce, 2009). As with every change to infrastructure, there is expected to be many challenges that will need to conquer before the system is perfected.
Biomass energy is one of the many different alternative energy fuel sources that have been explored in more detail in the last decade. One of the main reasons that biomass energy appeals to the United States is its ability to be grown and harvested on our own land. The political events that have been occurring over the past decade in the Middle East have sparked the need to look for a fuel source other than foreign oil. The ideal situation would be for the United States to be able to grow and produce all of the fuels that are consumed on such a large scale every day. In order to keep up with the large demand, there must be numerous sources to use to make the biomass based fuels. Trees, grass, crops, industrial and agricultural waste would all be sources on biomass that would be utilized. These sources are used to fill the three main fuel demands in the world right now, solid, liquid and gas. Biomass would be able to meet the demand for each one of these fuel types. For solid fuel demands, biomass can be pelletized and in turn burned to produce heat and electricity. Liquid fuels can be made by liquefying biomass to create natural oils. Biomass gases such as methane can be captured from any decomposing biomass , mainly waste, and converted into natural gas (Biomass Energy Advantages over Non-Renable Energy Sources, 2009). All of these modes of creating fuel from biomass have been developed and successfully tested in the laboratories and on both large and small scale operations.
There are two main approaches to growing and harvesting biomass plants. One approach includes farming specific plants that have the potential to be fully converted into a fuel. The second approach includes using the residues from the harvested plants such as corn husks (How Biomass Energy Works). In the article “Building on its Biomass Base” in the Biomass Magazine, author Lisa Gibson talks about how four separate companies are testing their own developed biomass systems in the same building. In this article Lisa writes about the different research areas that are currently being explored including , an algae photo bioreactor, a Fastox gasification system, a circulating fluidized bed combustor, and a methane producing waste water treatment plant (Gibson). Each one of these processes offers great potential to be used in various applications to create new fuel sources, Although these processes will have to overcome certain challenges in order to be able to produce these biofuels on a large scale as outlined in “An Overview of Second Generation Biofuel Technologies” by Ralph Sims. These challenges include technical barriers, production cost, need for more investment in research and development, and the transition process from one source to another (Sims). One major negative impact that skeptics of biomass discuss is the fact that the fuels made from corn based fuels will increase the demand for corn drastically, which will in turn cause the price to sky rocket as seen during the ethanol movement in the last decade. This drastic increase in food prices is just one reason why it is very important to determine the scale at which the biomass fuel source would have to be created at, and how this large scale would affect of all other resources we currently use. These are all problems that have arose from the ethanol movement, which can all be used to build a move efficiently and thorough plan for our biomass energy needs (Bryce, 2009).
When biomass energy is implemented on a large scale, there will be a need for a substantial amount of biomass. One source of biomass that is readily available for harvest in almost every area in the U.S. is what is known as woody biomass. In Woodland, California there is a power plant that is fueled directly from locally supplied woody biomass. This woody biomass is comprised of agricultural residues and urban wood waste (Gibson). Although this site has proven that the technology can work, one main argument that can be said is that if there was a biomass power plants like this one in every major city there would not be enough woody biomass to enable the plant to keep up with the demand for power. This plant can function because it is the only one in the area and therefore can utilize a vast amount of resources that are, at this time, unused by any other production method. The reason that these woody biomass plants require such a large amount of biomass to operate, is due to the fact that the woody biomass contains much less energy per unit than that of coal. Since the woody biomass produces less energy when burned we must obtain and harvest it at a rate that is greater than the current mining rate of coal. Therefore as more woody biomass plants are built, more forest will have to be harvested. The current forest systems will not be able to sustain themselves if they are harvested at the rate they would need to be if coal was replaced completely with woody biomass alone. When all of the woody biomass is removed, the forest loses its natural nutrient supply and fertilizer that it needs to sustain itself. If the forest is going to replenish itself it will need fertilizers added to it, which are currently made of petroleum based products. This is another reason why it is so difficult to find a technology that completely frees our society from petroleum and coal. Large scale storage and harvesting is a another issue that has to be solved due to the large volume that would be required for each biomass plant(Alternative Energy Sources). When it comes to energy usage in the United States, Ohio was rated as the sixth largest energy consumer in 2000 (Green Energy Ohio). This means that the people of Ohio should be on the top of the list of people looking for a new clean fuel source produced from products that are already grown. The reason that a new sustainable and clean fuel source is needed is because our current practices cause environmental issues such as clear cutting, toxic ground water, and air pollution (Green Energy Ohio). These environmental issues have been occurring since the Industrial Revolution, but only in the last decade have these issues begun to emerge as a main stream topic in which people have become involved. When biomass energy is discussed, one environmental issue that often arises is the fact that carbon dioxide is released when the biofuels are burned. If the trees are used as a biomass fuel source themselves, without their process of photosynthesis, how will the carbon dioxide be absorbed? These are all issues that need to be weighed when determining the best option for an energy source to replace coal. One of the major advantages of using biomass energy is that “there are not any destructive mining or drilling methods used that would cause long term negative effects to the area that the biomass was harvested from (Biomass Energy Advantages over Non-Renable Energy Sources, 2009).
Time is not on our side when it comes to selecting a new renewable and sustainable energy source. As a society we have been exploiting the use of coal and oil as sources of cheap energy, and it is not until now that we are looking at the numerous negative effects that these fuel sources have caused both to the environment and to our society. There are many different energy possibilities that have resulted from dedicated and vigorous research work of companies, university, and individuals. In order to make the correct decision and choice when it comes to the replacement of coal we have to weigh all of the options both short term and long time. I believe that we have a vast number of people who are beginning to recognize that we need to be aggressive and act quickly when it come to our future energy plans. Biomass energy is one source that will be able to fill a niche, large or small, in the fuel industry and help to move our society away from coal.


Bibliography
Biomass Energy Advantages over Non-Renable Energy Sources. (2009). Retrieved Febuary 19, 2010, from Bionomicfuel: http://www.bionomicfuel.com/biomass-energy-advantages-over-non-renewable-energy-sources/
Biomass Energy Facts. (2009, April 1). Retrieved February 19, 2010, from Interesting Energy Facts: http://interestingenergyfacts.blogspot.com/2008/04/biomass-energy-facts.html
Bryce, R. (2009). The Ethanol Scam. In K. Weber, Food, INC (pp. 91-102). NewYork City: Participant Media.
Gibson, L. (2010). Building a Biomass Base. Biomass Magazine .
Green Energy Ohio. (2004, January). Retrieved January 21, 2010
How Biomass Energy Works. (2009). Retrieved January 2010, 2010, from Union of Concerned Scientist: http://www.ucsusa.org/clean_energy/technology_and_impacts/energy_technologies/how-biomass-energy-works.html
Its Good but Disadvantages of Biomass Energy Must also be Acknowledged . (2008). Retrieved Febuary 3, 2010, from http://www.alternate-energy-sources.com/disadvantage-of-biomass.html
Sims, R. (2009). An overview of secound generation biofuel technologies. Bioresource Technology , 1570-1580.