Life-Cycle Inventory of Wood Pellet Manufacturing and Utilization in Wisconsin*

Abstract

Abstract This study summarizes environmental impacts of “premium” wood pellet manufacturing and use through a cradle-to-grave life-cycle inventory. The system boundary began with growing and harvesting timber and ended with use of wood pellet fuel. Data were collected from Wisconsin wood pellet mills, which produce wood pellets from a variety of feedstocks. Three groups of manufacturers were identified, those who use wet coproduct, dry coproduct, and harvested timber. Pellet mill data were weight averaged on a per unit basis of 1.0 short ton of “premium” wood pellets, and burdens for all substances and energy consumed were allocated among the products on a 0 percent moisture basis. Wood pellets produced from dry coproduct required 60 percent less energy at the pellet mill. However, when considering all cradle-to-gate energy inputs, producing wood pellets from whole logs used the least energy. Pellets from wet coproduct and dry coproduct used 9 and 56 percent more energy across the life cycle, respectively. This study also compared environmental impacts of residential heating fuels with wood pellet fuel. Environmental impacts were measured on net atmospheric carbon emissions, nonrenewable energy use, and global warming potential (GWP). Assuming “better than break-even” forest carbon management, cordwood and wood pellet fuels emitted 67.3 and 26.6 percent less atmospheric carbon emissions per megajoule of residential heat across the life cycle than natural gas, the best fossil fuel alternative. Cordwood and wood pellets consumed fewer nonrenewable resources than natural gas, which consumed fewer resources than petroleum-based residual fuel oil. However, wood pellet fuels had a smaller GWP and effect on respiratory health because they have more efficient combustion.