[February 17, 2009] Wood chip boiler saves money, reduces pollution at Newton Greenhouse Tweet NEWTON, Feb 17, 2009 (The Eagle-Tribune - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Things are heating up at Newton Greenhouse. The greenhouse, which previously burned about 75,000 gallons of oil every year, has turned to a greener solution for heat. The 53,000-square-foot facility now is heated by a wood chip boiler that reduces both cost and pollution. The boiler, which burns wood chips rather than coal or oil, will heat three-fourths of an acre of the greenhouse. Benefiting from the energy-efficient heat source is the Texas bluebell, a flower that grows faster in warmer temperatures and was in high demand for Valentine's Day. But more than just the flowers are seeing the benefits of the new boiler. Greenhouse owner Tom McElroy said the savings will help keep his company in business. McElroy said the initial installation cost of the new boiler, purchased from Combustion Systems Inc., was "a killer" at $350,000. To accommodate the new boiler, McElroy had to construct a 40-foot by 30-foot building for the boiler and trailer for the wood chips. There's a "walking floor" that carries the chips from the trailer to the boiler. But McElroy thinks it was worth it. He estimates the new system will save him at least $100,000 a year over the next three to four years. Russ Samara is co-owner of Combustion Systems Inc. in Worcester, Mass., the company that installed the system. He said another benefit of wood chip boilers is they keep money local. By getting wood from local processing companies, rather than oil from Canada, Samara said profits go directly to the communities. McElroy said he gets a lot of his wood chips from Asplundh Tree Expert Co., which often needs a way to get rid of fallen trees. But the community's pocketbook isn't the only thing benefiting from the new system. The environment will profit, too. The only product of the new boiler is steam, and McElroy said the gasification process uses every ounce of energy from the wood chips. This leaves only water vapor and very little ash. And none of it goes to waste. Since the ash isn't hazardous material, McElroy uses it to sand icy areas around the greenhouse. Kathy Brockett, an air quality specialist with the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services, said she was happy to see Newton Greenhouse using the new energy source. "In general, converting from fossil fuels like coal or oil to a renewable resource like wood is a positive thing," she said. "It's a lot cleaner than oil or coal." The state promotes the use of wood chip boilers as a renewable energy, Brockett said, as long as the wood is harvested in a sustainable manner and burned in a new boiler like the one at Newton Greenhouse. Brockett said one of her only concerns with wood-burning sources is the potential for sulfur dioxide and carbon monoxide. But Samara said the carbon monoxide emissions are significantly less harmful than the acidic emissions from natural gas and oil. "When you burn oil and gas," he said, "everything you put into the environment is new. When you're burning wood, the carbon monoxide is the same carbon monoxide sucked into the trees years ago. You're only putting into the atmosphere what was already there." McElroy said Newton Greenhouse is happy with the switch. And it's not alone. Samara installed similar systems at greenhouses in Sudbury, Mass., Wisconsin and Ontario. To see more of The Eagle-Tribune or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.eagletribune.com/. Copyright (c) 2009, The Eagle-Tribune, North Andover, Mass. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]