In November 2006 the Pocono Northeast RC&D Council
initiated the Pennsylvania Fuels for Schools and Beyond Program. This statewide
energy-use initiative, promotes the use of local renewable resources to provide
reliable energy for Pennsylvania schools and businesses. With environmental
concerns and fuel costs mounting, many Americans are looking for ways to reduce
their dependence on fossil fuels and replace them with renewable energy sources.
In Pennsylvania, renewable energy sources include wood, wood residue and
dedicated agricultural energy crops, also known as biomass. The Pennsylvania
Fuels for Schools & Beyond program is helping schools and businesses
understand the economic, operational, and environmental benefits of biomass
systems. Numerous sources of funding assistance exist for biomass energy systems
in Pennsylvania for schools, institutions, greenhouses or other businesses. Both
state and federal programs have grant and loan opportunities available at
certain times during the year.
• Benton Area School District:
The Council is working in cooperation with the Benton Area
School District in Columbia County to install a biomass heating system that will
provide heat to both the elementary and middle/high school buildings. The
Council was instrumental in assisting the school district with acquiring a
$350,000 grant from the PA Energy Development Authority (PEDA) to assist with
the installation costs of the biomass heating system. Currently, the district’s
heating system is a hot water boiler fueled with oil with an average heating
load requirement of approximately 45,000 gallons of oil or more per year needed
to heat both schools. Through this project, the district is going to be
installing a biomass boiler system that will be able to produce approximately
80% or more of the schools heating requirements throughout the entire heating
season. By using biomass it will offset almost 36,000 gallons of oil that will
not be needed.
• Biomass & Renewable Fuel Development Utilizing Pelletized Grasses Project
The Council is working in cooperation with numerous partners to
facilitate the growth of grassland agriculture systems which can provide
economically competitive and more environmentally friendly fuel choices for
consumer energy needs. The “Biomass & Renewable Fuel Development Utilizing
Pelletized Grasses Project” focuses on the construction and subsequent
demonstration of a mobile pelletizing unit that will densify grassland biomass
fuel for direct combustion for heat and energy. This unit will be used as an
important demonstration tool for this technology in the marketplace. By
demonstrating this relatively small-scale, affordable, conversion technology to
the public, the project will serve as proof of technology to farmers and
landowners interested in energy production on the land and will facilitate the
integration of this equipment into the local agriculture community. In addition,
public awareness will be raised concerning the very real benefits of grassland
agriculture and will demonstrate to the general public how they can, as
consumers, make choices which help to protect the integrity of their rural
communities and environments.
Contact Bob Thomas for information on Biomass Energy
Sourcing
Phone: 570-470-1305
E-Mail: bob@renewableenergycenter.org
E-Mail: bob@renewableenergycenter.org
Contact Information
Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 432Dalton, Pennsylvania 18414
Telephone Number:
570-234-3577
Links to Training Courses
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