Switzerland is not fully exploiting a significant source of clean energy: 173,000 tonnes of used wood could be re-used producing valuable heat and power energy today, in addition to the 644,000 tonnes of used wood already being used. This was the conclusion reached by a nationwide survey conducted by the Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) among 567 companies in the construction, waste management and transport sectors.
Switzerland is not fully exploiting a significant source of clean energy: 173,000 tonnes of used wood could be re-used producing valuable heat and power energy today, in addition to the 644,000 tonnes of used wood already being used. This was the conclusion reached by a nationwide survey conducted by the Swiss Federal Research Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research (WSL) among 567 companies in the construction, waste management and transport sectors.
Nearly 1 million tonnes of used wood, i.e. wood accumulated on construction or demolition sites, arising from building renovations or conversions or in the form of packaging or crushed wood waste, were produced in Switzerland in 2014. Sustainable energy could have been generated out of 817,000 tonnes of this wood, but only 644,000 tonnes of used wood were actually used producing heat or electricity. The additional used wood available would suffice to supply heat, at 80% efficiency, to some 80,000 average households during the cold season (from September to May) and provide enough power for 40,000 average homes.
These data are based on a hitherto unprecedented nationwide survey in Switzerland of 567 businesses that collect, transport and/or dispose used wood. A team of WSL researchers led by Oliver Thees ascertained how much disused wood accrued in 2014 in all regions of Switzerland and which quantities were used in order to produce energy, were disposed of or were sold abroad. In a just published report2, the authors explain how much potential there is to gain energy from used wood and how the utilisation of this raw material could develop in the future.
Read more at Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL
Image: Wood pallets are considered as packaging material. New ones are added on a regular basis, which is why they are a reliable source of energy. Credits: Doris Hölling (WSL)
