Garbage incineration and biomass burning create environmental, health, and financial risk. Private lenders know this, which is why it can be hard to get such projects financed. Unfortunately, these polluting technologies are still eligible for support under the Department of Energy’s rebooted loan guarantee program, for which comments are due today.
PFPI is especially familiar with the kinds of waste-to-energy projects that are applying for the DOE loan support, because last year, PFPI released a report on the Taylor Biomass project proposed in New York, a garbage and wood gasification project that is applying for a $100 million loan guarantee from the DOE. Our investigation found that despite repeated claims of how “clean” the project would be, it was effectively being permitted as a garbage incinerator.
Along with our co-releasers on the Taylor Biomass report, New York Public Interest Group and Citizens’ Environmental Coalition, PFPI submitted comments on the DOE loan program. Our letter urges the DOE to eliminate supports for all combustion-based technologies in the renewable energy program, and focus on technologies that reduce emissions in reality, instead of just on paper.
Download the letter here.