Before starting any discussion of biomass for bioenergy or biofuels, it is
worth reviewing a number of essential
or fundamental principles:

• The earth can only sustainably support a finite population.
• Technology changes the limit of a sustainable population; a point Malthus underestimated.
• Land use preferences and standards of living impact the sustainable peak population.

There are wide differences of understanding and opinion on these matters.
• Higher standards of living require more per capita energy consumption.
• There has been no shortage of energy in industrialized nations, just shortages of low-cost liquid energy. There are predictions of widespread electrical shortages.
• Almost all government incentives have unintended consequences or costs, some of which have exceeded the benefit.

Figure 1 shows the major categories of renewable resources. Three interesting features stand out.

First, only five major categories are listed, but nuclear needs to be footnoted or included. Nuclear power has the essential characteristics of a renewable resource since it derives great amounts of energy from small quantities of raw material with minimal C02.

Secondly, the nature of the first four categories is such that there is little debate about the conversion pathway.

Finally, of all the categories, only biomass produces food as well as the potential of producing liquid fuel. In some future decade, there will be limited use of electric or nuclear power to isolate hydrogen for use in fuel cells.

Figure 2 shows the investment in renewables from 1995 to 2007 where investment has grown to US $70 billion per year and will surely increase further. This investment level creates a renewable energy sector.

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The Best Use of Wood