"Are Climate Claims for Burning Renewable Trees a Smokescreen?"

"Nestled into a seaside forest on the University of British Columbia's lands, amid a carpet of sword ferns and salal, sits a gleaming industrial facility that's been hailed as a significant step toward a carbon-neutral future for B.C., Canada and even the world.

The wood-gas fired plant just off Marine Drive in Vancouver, the university boasts, "will reduce UBC's natural gas consumption by 12 per cent and campus greenhouse gas emissions by nine per cent (5,000 tonnes), the equivalent of taking 1,000 cars off the road."

"It's very exciting," said Brent Sauder, UBC's director of strategic partnerships, who helped shape plans for the plant. "It's not a research activity -- it's a mission.""

Robert McClure reports for InvestigateWest with The Tyee April 22, 2014, in the first part of a three-part series.

SEE ALSO:

Sidebar: "Smoke and Numbers: Do Green Claims for Burning Wood Add Up?" (InvestigateWest/Tyee)

"Biomass Fuel: Worse for Climate than Coal?" (InvestigateWest/Tyee)