Skip to main content

Written question asked by Bill Olner (Labour) on Tuesday, 22 July 2008, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 6 October 2008. It was answered by Hilary Benn (Labour) on Thursday, 9 October 2008 on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.


Wood: Waste Disposal

Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the merits of the recommendations for incinerating waste wood put forward in his Department's research and development project on carbon balances and energy impacts of the management of UK wastes.
Answer

The findings of the study helped to inform the conclusion, set out in our waste strategy in May 2007, that wood has relatively low embodied energy (energy consumed in extraction) but high calorific value. While for some kinds of wood waste re-use or recycling are better options, its use as a fuel generally conveys a greater greenhouse gas benefit than recovering the material as a resource (and avoiding primary production).


Secondary information

Type
Written question
Reference
222495; 480 c763W;480 c757W
Session
2007-08
Subjects
Waste disposal Timber
Link
View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk