Agenda 2020
Advancing the Forest Biorefinery
A Unique Industry Opportunity
Through Agenda 2020’s Advancing the Forest
Biorefinery platform, the forest products industry has a unique
opportunity to increase revenues and improve environmental
sustainability. By evolving existing infrastructure, the industry
can develop Integrated Forest Products Biorefineries (IFPB)
— geographically distributed facilities that produce
renewable "green" bio-energy and bio-products. IFPB
technologies will allow industry to manufacture high-value
chemicals, fuels and/or electric power, while continuing to
produce traditional wood, pulp and paper products. The industry
already controls much of the raw material and infrastructure
necessary to create IFPBs, and Agenda 2020 partnerships are
speeding development of the key enabling technologies. Once
fully developed and commercialized, these technologies will
produce enormous energy and environmental benefits for the
industry and the nation.
The forest products industry’s manufacturing facilities
are an ideal foundation to develop the IFPB. Those facilities,
which today produce pulp, paper and wood products, also are
geared to collect and process biomass. Rather than creating
a “greenfield” operation, additional bioconversion
or thermochemical processes can be built around existing mills
(either as extensions of the mill or as “across-the-fence”
operations) to generate bio-energy or manufacture bio-products.
This presents industry with dramatic potential to increase
the productivity and profitability of its manufacturing infrastructure.
Possible benefits include: improved efficiency of raw material
utilization, protection of traditional product lines, creation
of higher skilled and better paying jobs, and access to new
domestic and international markets for bio-energy and bio-products.
A Shared Opportunity for the Nation
The IFPB also can contribute to strategic national needs.
The IFPB uses an abundant, renewable, sustainable resource:
forest material. Because forest material is carbon neutral,
the bio-energy it produces helps reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Bio-energy also helps ease dependence on foreign fossil fuel
by substituting for products now derived from nonrenewable
carbon. By installing key IFPB technologies such as black
liquor gasification, existing facilities could reduce emissions
by 80-90 percent. Since forest products mills are located
throughout the country, renewable bio-based fuels can be supplied
more economically throughout the country. This improves both
the diversity and security of the national energy supply.
Both the US national and regional economies stand to benefit
from implementation of the IFPB. As the world’s largest
manufacturer of forest products, the U.S. forest products
industry is a top ten manufacturing employer in 42 states.
The industry employs 1.3 million people with a payroll more
than $50 billion. The industry faces serious global competition,
which has led to numerous domestic mill closings as production
moves overseas. These closings impact mostly rural communities.
The IFPB offers an opportunity to preserve high paying, skilled
jobs and revitalize manufacturing facilities in these communities
– all while creating a new domestic bioindustry based
on one of the world’s largest sustainable biomass supplies.
Read more about:
What is the IFPB?
IFPB Research
Components
