How do you define biomass?

Jan. 6, 2012 – It is a simple question: what qualifies as "biomass"? The
American Council on Renewable Energy has compiled the first global
definition of biomass for introduction into legislation.

The
American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE) Biomass Definition subcommittee decided to aggregate all the definition of biomass into one singular definition that can be integrated into piece of legislation. Once completed, the definition will give legal standing to what qualifies as biomass and what does not.

"Everybody agrees it’s good for the country; it's good for baseload renewable energy" says Charles Brettell, subcommittee member and principal of Energy Asset Advisors. "It makes sense, it’s just a matter of how you get it
out there.”

According to the article published in Biomass Power and Thermal, the definition that ACORE is moving forward is:

"’Biomass’ is any organic material including:

(a) Materials, pre-commercial thinnings, or invasive species from
U.S. Forest Service, National Forest System lands, Department of
Interior, Bureau of Land Management, Department of Defense lands or
public lands (as defined by federal law) that:

(i)are byproducts of preventive treatments or removed:

(A) to reduce hazardous fuels;

(B) to reduce or contain disease or insect infestation; or

(C) to restore ecosystem health and resiliency; and

(ii) are harvested in accordance with applicable forest management laws, rules and regulations, and

(b) From private land, non-Federal land or land belonging to a Native
American or Native Tribe that is held in trust by the United States or
subject to a restriction against alienation imposed by the United
States, including

(i) residual materials, including:

(A) crop residue;

(B) other vegetative materials and oils (including wood waste and wood residues);

(C) animal waste, bedding materials, and byproducts (including fats, oils, greases, and manure); and

(D) the biogenic fraction of municipal materials including all
residuals segregated, after reasonably practicable efforts, from waste
material, food waste, yard waste, and wastewater treatment plant
biosolids; or

(ii) plant materials, including

(A) grains;

(B) other agricultural products;

(C) trees harvested in accordance with applicable forest management laws, rules and regulations;

(D) other plants; and

(E) algae, aquatic plants and byproducts (including oils).”