GLIN==> Press release: New York State Biomass Energy Alliance to Advance Green Solutions

PRESS RELEASE: March 23, 2009
Contact: Dan Conable, 315-529-0634, dconable at att.net
 
New York State Biomass Energy Alliance to Advance Green Solutions

Syracuse, NY -- The New York State Biomass Energy Alliance will begin
operations on April 1, 2009, with the mission of increasing public
understanding of the renewable energy value of biomass and facilitating
communication among renewable energy industry pioneers. The Alliance¹s
office will be co-located with the New York Farm Viability Institute, a
non-profit organization based in Syracuse, NY.
 
The Alliance is a membership organization open to individuals, businesses,
and organizations support powering factories, heating homes and businesses,
supplementing coal in power plants, and replacing petroleum with products
made from renewable biomass.
 
³Perennial grasses, shrub willow, crop residues and wood chips from our
forests can help meet local energy needs with local raw materials,² says
Alliance Director Dan Conable.
 
Alliance members will receive a newsletter on new projects, emerging
technologies, and policy matters affecting producers and users of biomass
for heat, electricity, or fuel. They can participate in task forces
addressing industry concerns and efforts to educate the public regarding the
many practical biomass energy applications that are available.
 
Nathan Rudgers, former New York State Commissioner of Agriculture & Markets
and a member of the Steering Committee of the national "25X25" Renewable
Energy Coalition, said, "Biomass energy tends to be overlooked as a source
within the renewable energy discussion, even though it is one of the most
accessible and practical of the options we have today, and certainly the one
that offers the most economic development benefit in rural America."
 
Dr. Timothy A. Volk, a researcher specializing in woody crops at the SUNY
College of Environment and Forestry, is an advisor to the new Biomass Energy
Alliance.
 
³There is a lack of communication among the different players in the biomass
sector, whether it be people making wood pellets, farmers experimenting with
new perennial grasses, or industry managers looking to replace heating oil
and coal in their boilers. This Alliance will give all the players a chance
to work together on common issues and opportunities," Volk said.
 
Conable added, "There is a good deal of confusion about the sustainability
of agricultural and forest-based biomass being used for energy production.
Producing and harvesting biomass can contribute to sound land management and
forest health, while helping communities guide their own energy and economic
futures."
 
Conable has worked as a consultant on agricultural policy, land use and
biomass supply issues in New York State for the past ten years, following
twenty years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In 2006 and 2007, he
helped the New York Farm Viability Institute develop its bioenergy feedstock
research initiative.
 
New York Farm Viability Institute Executive Director Thomas Sleight said,
³The Institute is pleased to support bioenergy development projects. The
Institute has already invested in bioenergy feedstock development projects,
and the Alliance will coalesce efforts to establish a viable, sustainable
future for energy from biomass in New York.²
 
Sleight added, ³The Institute is home to another industry-spanning
collaboration, the New York Center for Dairy Excellence, which brings dairy
producers, processors and marketers together to work on barriers to dairy
industry growth and prosperity. We are excited to do the same for existing
and aspiring biomass producers and their customers.²
 
To learn more about the New York State Biomass Energy Alliance, contact
info at newyorkbiomass.org, 315-453-3823. # # #




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