Why is burning biomass for energy considered “carbon neutral”?
Burning wood is considered “carbon neutral” because, as trees grow, they pull carbon out of the atmosphere and when they die, decompose, or are burned they release that same amount of carbon. With this, there is no net gain of CO2 in the atmosphere and growing plants and trees will continue to cycle that CO2. Compare this to the burning of fossil fuels like petroleum and natural gas, which release old carbon that has been deep in the earth for millions of years, creating a carbon imbalance in the atmosphere which contributes to global warming.
