Better for Forests, Better for the Environment
The fuel for Northern Wood Power is a category of wood products collectively known as biomass materials. Biomass materials consist of whole-tree wood chips (undried, unprocessed wood chips with bark attached), stumps, brush and smaller low-lying vegetation, low-grade woods, and other plant material unusable in timber or paper production. These materials result from normal forestry practices like timber harvesting and fire control measures or from clearing land for homes, roads and commercial developments. For wood-fired power generation, natural residue from sawmills and other clean wood byproducts can be added to this mix. PSNH uses only clean wood material and does not accept construction and demolition debris.

It's important to note that these materials are generally considered "waste." In previous years, brush and unused scrap vegetation were typically left to decay on the forest floor after tree harvesting. Over time, these unhealthy trees could become dominant and obstruct the growth of healthy trees. In modern forestry practices, biomass materials are removed to properly prepare the forest floor for reforestation. While these organic materials have little or no commercial value, they can be used as a convenient, economical, and most importantly, clean fuel source. By creating a market for these less healthy trees, PSNH is helping foresters and landowners grow a more healthy and productive forest.

Wood: A Renewable Energy Source
Unlike fossil fuels, biomass fuel is a sustainable and renewable energy source. By employing responsible forestry management practices, forests can be harvested, regenerated, and reharvested within 15 to 20 years. In contrast, the supply of coal and oil is finite. Taking advantage of wood as a renewable energy source creates a practical alternative energy supply and reduces our state's vulnerability to economic instability in the fossil fuel market.

The Wood-to-Energy Process:

1. Arrival and Weigh-In The truck loaded with chips is weighed on scales
2. Unloading Trucks empty their chips into a hopper
3. Screening & Sizing Chips are screened for size and ground in a 'hog' if too large
4. Combustion Chips are injected into the boiler with air and combust
5. Ash Collector Ash and particles from the chips are separated from the hot gases in the 'bag house'
6. Recycle & Reclaim Wood ash is used for many purposes, including agriculture, wastewater treatment, etc.