Biomasses and fine particles: the italian case

Every winter, air pollution becomes the central theme of a heated debate. The high levels of fine particles in the air, increased by the high pressure and the absence of wind typical of the Po Valley, triggers traffic limitation measures. This year the circulation of vehicles up to EURO 6 diesel was prohibited in Rome.
Wood biomass, wood and pellet heating is also indicated as the main responsible for the smog emergency. It is necessary to avoid the spreading of partial information that does not promote concrete solutions. Opinion leaders and researchers expressed themselves categorically, citing data and expressing incomplete and sometimes misleading opinions.

In recent years there has been an increase in wood and pellet consumption

False. According to the latest GSE Statistical Report1 , the consumption of wood and pellets in the residential sector has remained stable over the past 6 years. At a regional level, the 2013 Arpa Veneto2 survey recorded a drop in wood consumption of 260,000 tons compared to the 2006’s consumption.

The number of wood and pellet generators has increased considerably

This is inaccurate. According to data from the AIEL Observatory, the number of generators is slightly decreasing, from 9.4 million generators in 2014 to 9.1 in 2018. At regional level Arpa Lombardia found that from 2008 to 2015 the generators remained 600,000 units. Arpa Veneto recorded a slight increase of 1% from 2006 to 2013 (672,000).

Air quality has deteriorated in recent years

No, quite the contrary. The European Environment Agency certifies that, in the past 30 years, there has been an improvement in air quality. In Milan in 2005 the days beyond the allowed limits were 152, in 2019 they were only 72. In the annual statistics the maximum peak in Milan was 309 micrograms / cubic meter in 2002, only 107 in 2019 (Arpa Lombardia data3 ). There have been critical periods this past winter, but measures in recent years have improved the quality of the air. In many regions, in particular in the Po Valley, permanent non-emergency measures have been adopted. From 2018 the law does not allow the use of generators up to 2 stars4 . From 1st January 2020 generators with at least 3 stars are mandatory: at least 1 million technologically obsolete and polluting generators have been turned off by law! This improves the quality of the air and the consumer can choose over 2,600 models of 4 and 5 star generators, classified as part of the AriaPulita® certification 5.

Who is in charge for the enforcement of these rules?

AIEL has been demanding rigorous checks for years, so that the limits of use for old biomass appliances are respected. It is necessary to implement the regional registers of the heating systems, to guarantee the periodic maintenance of the appliances and ensure their optimal operating levels. In the daily use of the generator, the end user has a decisive role in keeping emission levels low: this is a way to empower the end consumer. In 2018 AIEL signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of the Environment on these issues.

The share of emissions to be attributed to the combustion of wood biomass has increased

This claim is incorrect. Arpa Lombardia surveys show that from 2010 to 2015 PM emissions from biomass combustion in the Lombardy Region have decreased by about 30%. The Arpa Veneto survey also confirmed a 20% reduction in PM produced from wood and pellets from 2006 to 2013. This happened thanks to the replacement of old biomass appliances with more efficient wood and pellet generators.

Is this enough to guarantee 40% of the Italian population living in the Po Valley to breathe clean air?

No, much more needs to be done for sustainable mobility and domestic heating, to accelerate the transition from fossil fuels to all renewable sources. The biomass home heating sector is investing in research and technological innovation to make appliances more efficient and reduce their emissions.

Should government incentives for the biomass heating sector be eliminated?

To improve air quality, it is necessary to encourage the replacement of old wood and pellet systems with new energy efficient generators with low particles emissions. The first results of the Government Incentives in Italy are good. In 2017, 23.400 devices were replaced, with a reduction of 1.100 tons per year of particulate matter (PM) and about 80.000 tons of CO2 equivalent per year (Gse, 2018 6). In 2018, with 46.000 appliances replaced, we expect to double the environmental benefits, i.e. 2.200 tonnes less particulate matter (PM) per year, corresponding to 160.000 tonnes of CO2 per year. AIEL, the Italian Agroforestry Energy Association, believes it is essential that incentives for wood biomass are allocated to quality generators, with high yields and low emissions, as required by the Agreement between the Italian Ministries signed in June 2019 during the Clean Air Dialogue.

So the solution is LPG instead of biomass?

The oil lobbies offer LPG, Liquefied Petroleum Gas, as an alternative to wood biomass. They consider it a clean and zero particles product. They forget that fossil fuels are primarily responsible for climate change because they emit CO2. For each megawatt hour of primary energy produced, diesel emits 326 kg of CO2 equivalent into the atmosphere, LPG 270 kg of CO2 equivalent, methane 250 kg of CO2 equivalent, pellets only 29 kg of CO2 equivalent, firewood 25 kg. of CO2 equivalent 7. Many other EU countries are also going in the opposite direction of fossil fuels. The Austrian government has decided to ban the installation of diesel boilers in new buildings. Norway has banned the use of diesel and kerosene for heating buildings (source: Bioenergy Europe).

Referral

1. GSE Statistical Report 2018 published in December 2019 https://www.gse.it/documenti_site/DocumentiGSE/Rapporti statistici/GSE – Rapporto Statistico FER2018.pdf

2.INVESTIGATION ON DOMESTIC CONSUMPTION OF WOOD BIOMASSES IN THE VENETO REGION. Sample survey results and atmospheric emissions estimate (2015).

https://www.arpa.veneto.it/temi-ambientali/aria/file-e-allegati/Consumi%20domestici%20legna%20in%20Veneto_1.0.pdf

3. ARPA Lombardy Regional Agency for Environmental Protection

4. Environmental certification of heat generators fueled by solid combustible biomass provided for by Decree 7 November 2017 n. 186 of the Ministry of the Environment, which classifies the performance of the appliances in 5 quality classes from 1 to 5 stars.

5. www.certificazioneariapulita.it

6. https://www.gse.it/documenti_site/Documenti%20GSE/Rapporti%20delle%20attivit%C3%A0/GSE_RA2017.pdf

7. The aforementioned LCA emission factors take into account the consumption of all resources throughout the life cycle of the respective energy source. The factors are expressed in kg CO2eq per MWh of final energy. The factors were calculated by the University of Stuttgart (Institut für Energiewirtschaft und Rationelle Energieanwendung, IER), using the GEMIS database (Global Emissions Model for integrated Systems) Version 4.95.