Biomass and Web Site FAQ

• What is biomass?
  Biomass is the residue from agriculture and forestry product processing, as well as residues from some industrial applications. Examples include wheat straw, corn cobs, corn stalks, tree trimmings, sawdust, wood chips, and wood pellets. See the list below for more examples.


• What are some uses for biomass?
  Biomass has several markets including animal bedding, firewood and pellets for renewable energy systems and home heating, composite wood products, landscaping mulch, liquid fuels, and chemicals. In the renewable energy market, biomass can be used as a fuel source to generate heat or electricity, at commercial, industrial and residential scales. Components of some biomass sources can also be extracted as higher value ingredients for the pharmaceutical, medical, and renewable plastics industries.


• Why exchange biomass?
  Companies are often interested in finding outlets for their biomass materials and individuals and companies are seeking biomass supplies. This site is intended to bring those people together for mutual benefit.


• How do I add a listing?
  Go to the Listings tab and select "Create a Listing". If you do not yet have an account, you will have to create one.


• What types of biomass can I list on your site?

  • Mill/Manufacturer Residue

  • • Sawdust – clean
    • Sawdust – mixed (solid wood & material with adhesives)
    • Shavings
    • Coarse residue – solid wood (scraps, edgings, slabwood)
    • Coarse residue – engineered wood (particle board, plywood, etc.)
    • Coarse residue – mixed (solid wood & material with adhesives)
    • Coarse residue – treated wood
    • Clean chips
    • Mixed chips – (solid wood & material with adhesives)
    • Bark

  • Timber Harvest

  • • Whole tree chips (includes bark & foliage)
    • Clean chips (<4% bark)
    • Pulpwood
    • Sawlogs
    • Harvest residues (slash)

  • Urban/ROW Trimming & Removals

  • • Chips (includes bark & foliage)
    • Bole wood
    • Yard waste

  • Wood Pellets

  • • Pellet Fuels Institute (PFI) Premium grade pellets
    • Softwood pellets
    • Hardwood pellets
    • Industrial pellets

  • Recycled Wood

  • • Construction/Demolition wood – clean (no metal)
    • Construction/Demolition wood – unsorted
    • Recycled pallets/crating
    • Railroad ties
    • Non-burnable treated wood (utility poles, CCA & ACQ treated wood)

  • Wood Energy Crops

  • • Cottonwood chips or bales
    • Hybrid poplar chips or bales
    • Willow chips or bales

  • Grass Energy Crops

  • • Switchgrass
    • Miscanthus

  • Agricultural Residues

  • • Barley Straw
    • Corn Cobs
    • Corn Stover
    • Fruit Pits
    • Grass Screenings
    • Malting Byproducts
    • Oat Hulls
    • Rice Hulls
    • Soybean Stover
    • Sugarcane Bagasse
    • Wheat Straw
    • Wheat Midds
    • Other Straws

  • Used Livestock Bedding

  • • Animal Bedding


• Do you have any demos of how to use this site?
  Send us an email using the ‘Contact Us’ page, and describe the type of biomass you would like to list. We’ll contact you if we need any additional information.


• Do you have any demos of how to use this site?
  Sure do. Check out demos here.


• Is there a charge for items listed on this web site?
  There is no fee to use the listing platform.


• Why register?
  Anyone can view the exchange listings without registering. In order to contact biomass suppliers and buyers, you must register. At their discretion, biomass suppliers and buyers can then exchange contact information through our private messaging service. Otherwise contact information remains private as a service to our users.


• Do you provide transportation options?
  Not at this time.


• Quality control – how do I ensure that the biomass listed will meet my specifications/requirements?

  Understanding the quality of the biomass you intend to purchase or sell and ensuring consistency can be important, depending on your intended use. Prospective buyers and sellers can request that a sample of the biomass be sent to an independent quality control laboratory for analysis, and the results can be passed on to the interested party. See the list of quality control labs below for a few examples.

  
  

  Note that Heating the Midwest does not recommend or endorse the labs listed – instead, these are provided as an example. If you would like your lab added to the list, please email us using the ‘Contact Us’ page.

  → Go to Quality Control


• International trade
  Please see the list of international trade contacts in each state for more information and assistance on how to complete transactions with buyers or sellers outside the U.S.A. and Canada.
  → Go to International Trade