The Wood Recyclers’ Association has welcomed the launch of an independent review into Greenhouse Gas Removals, after a call for evidence was issued on Friday (May 16).
The review, first announced in March and led by Dr Alan Whitehead CBE (above) – the former shadow Minister for Climate Change and Net Zero – will explore how GGRs will play a significant role in supporting the UK to reach net zero.
The WRA’s Richard Coulson said: “We welcome this review and call for evidence which comes at a time when our biomass members need urgent clarity over the business models and linking policies which will support greenhouse gas removals in future.
“Importantly, the call for evidence asks about the barriers to and enablers for GGR deployment in the UK.
“Biomass plants powered by waste wood have significant potential to retrofit carbon capture and storage technology (BECCS) – a key greenhouse gas removals technology – however policy stagnation continues to hamper these efforts.
“It is critical that we have urgent clarity over future support for waste wood biomass to enable these plants to transition to carbon capture and storage technology following the expiry of ROCs from 2027.
“Our members currently save 700,000 tonnes of carbon emissions each year and this could rise to an incredible 3.6 million tonnes a year* if retrofitted with carbon capture and storage technology (BECCS) – equivalent to over 15% of the UK’s previous 2035 negative emissions target.”
The Call for Evidence also asks about the cost of deploying GGRs, approaches for transitioning away from public investment and how GGRs could play a role in energy security.
Richard commented: “As well as providing an important environmental service, waste wood powered biomass plants deliver secure, thermal baseload power which will become increasingly important as the UK transitions to more intermittent sources of renewable energy.
“Furthermore, plants with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) offer a low-cost solution, in future being able to trade freely with links to the UK Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and voluntary carbon markets.”
He concluded: “The WRA has been advocating for these policy solutions for many years, and we have now reached a crucial moment where some of our members will soon come out of the ROCs system. We need to break down the barriers now and need urgent, timely decision making.”
Pictured: Dr Alan Whitehead CBE (picture credit: House of Commons)