University of Iowa
IN-1: Innovation 1

Saving Iowa’s Remaining Natural Jewels – an ecological restoration and renewable energy partnership The University of Iowa and the Johnson County Conservation Board (JCCB) partnered to make 27 acres of natural prairie restoration possible. Non-native conifer trees were planted on 20 acres in a high-use county park (F. W. Kent Park) as a conservation and wildlife habitat measure in the 1970s. The trees were planted at a very high density (6’ x 6’), but mechanical thinning never took place. Thus, the forty-year old, sunlight-starved trees had an average DBH (diameter breast height) of only 8 inches. The trees were dead and dying. Long-term plans for the park called for the re-establishment of native prairie in that area. However, because the trees offered no commercial value as timber or mulch, the conservation board could not afford such a large harvest and had to consider delaying plans for natural habitat restoration. Wildlife habitat managers were concerned that leaving the dying, non-native trees in place would encourage the establishment of invasive species. In the past year, the JCCB also acquired Ciha Fen, 80 acres of sand prairie, wetlands and savanna where over 225 native species have been identified to date, many of them classified as rare, endangered or threatened. Ciha Fen is one of only two nutrient-poor fens in Iowa – an extremely rare native habitat. Four acres of the area has been invaded by black locust and eastern red cedar trees. Removing the trees is an important part of re-establishing the delicate natural balance in this rare habitat that hosts several of Iowa’s “Species of Greatest Conservation Need.” The University of Iowa has been co-firing biomass since 2003 to displace coal in its boilers. Knowing the UI’s history of alternative fuel use, Johnson County officials contacted the UI to see if there was interest in using the trees. The UI Facilities Management staff saw a tremendous opportunity to 1) procure additional locally available fuel; 2) expand the use of renewable biomass fuel and 3) learn how to use wood chips for fuel in the UI Main Power Plant. Through the harvest, over 3,000 tons of wood chips were generated for the biomass fuel project. The University of Iowa’s goal for this project was to learn how to use wood from ecological timber stand improvement projects as a biomass fuel to meet the 2020 Sustainability Target #2: achieve 40% renewable fuel by 2020 (http://sustainability.uiowa.edu/vision-2020-the-university-of-iowa-s-sustainability-targets/). Expanding the use of biomass in the UI Main Power Plant solid fuel boilers has the potential to 1) increase the on-site production of renewable energy and 2) reduce reliance on coal. The University of Iowa is already recognized as a leader in the innovative use of biomass: • EPA Top 20 On-Site Green Power Producers, four years in a row: http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/toplists/top20onsite.htm • American Council of Engineering Companies, 2013 Grand Place Award, Energy Production Category: http://now.uiowa.edu/2013/05/engineering-excellence There is no mature market for biomass fuel in Iowa. An active forest products industry does not exist in southeast Iowa, so the use of wood as biomass fuel at the UI Main Power Plant has never been previously pursued. However, there are significant timber stands in Eastern Iowa and a number of operations that generate clean wood waste (land clearing, timber stand improvement, storm damaged trees, dead and dying trees from insects and diseases). Currently, the majority of wood waste goes into an already-saturated mulch market. While the use of biomass as a fuel is controversial to some, UI officials feel using sustainably-harvested, locally available wood as renewable energy can offer significant environmental benefits compared to fossil fuels. The UI Office of Sustainability has established a Biomass Partnership to develop the basis for increased biomass use and to address: the issues of fuel procurement; pricing; logistics and fuel yard needs; fuel preparation; the availability of industrial wood and fiber residuals, timber stand improvement, and invasive species removal for fuel sources; impact on ecological services; and policy implications. Team members include representatives from US Fish & Wildlife, Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA), US Forestry Service (USDA), Iowa State University, University of Northern Iowa, the JCCB, the Amana Society, Iowa Farm Bureau, John Deere, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. http://sustainability.uiowa.edu/biomass/ The JCCB seeks to provide natural recreation opportunities for citizens and to secure the ecological restoration of valuable, local natural resources. Iowa ranks among the very lowest tier of states in publically-owned recreation land and is considered the most altered state in terms of land use (almost all natural habitat has been transitioned to agricultural production). While the state was once covered with tall grass prairie, less than 0.1% of Iowa's original prairie remains. Re-establishment of this native land cover offers a glimpse of what Iowa once was and provides critical wildlife habitat to those endangered plant and animal species specifically tied to a (diminishing) prairie habitat. In November 2011, the Director of the JCCB approached the UI Office of Sustainability to ask if the UI could use wood generated from the proposed restoration projects as a source of renewable fuel. UI officials were intrigued with the idea of a trial use of wood and were interested in the idea that the partnership would not only help the UI move toward its 2020 Sustainability Target of 40 percent renewable energy but assist the JCCB in achieving important wildlife habitat restoration goals. In January 2012, the UI Principal Engineer on Renewables, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources’ District Forester and Johnson County Conservation staff conducted a cruise of the proposed restoration sites to determine a volume estimate of the standing trees in cords. The District Forester then converted that estimate into tons. In Spring, 2012, the UI Utilities and Energy Management staff analyzed how the wood chips would be used in the Main Power Plant, how the chips would flow through the material-handling system and what percentage of chips would be used in the fuel mixture. UI staff also had to obtain approval from the Iowa Department of Natural Resources for a trial burn of the wood chip mixture. During the summer of 2012, the UI developed and issued a request for proposals to engage a contractor to harvest, grind into chips and deliver the estimated 2,000 tons of wood biomass from the two JCCB sites. The resulting chips would be transported to a facility where they would be blended with coal and returned to the UI Main Power Plant to fire two steam boilers and another at the UI Research Park. At their July 18, 2012, meeting, the JCCB voted to enter into agreement with the UI for this biomass harvest project. In October, the UI bid for biomass harvest was awarded, the UI and JCCB agreement was finalized and the harvest commenced in January 2013. Harvesting continued into February 2013. All trees from restoration area at Kent Park were removed. At that point, officials realized that the volume of wood chips had been underestimated. Typically, a timber cruise is conducted to determine usable board-feet; the tree canopy is not included in the estimate. In this instance, the entire tree was to be used for fuel, something the forester had not anticipated. His calculations resulted in a 30% underestimate of the harvest. Instead of 2,000 tons of wood chips anticipated from the entire project, almost 3,000 tons of wood chips had been removed by the end of the Kent Park harvest, with the Ciha Fen harvest still remaining. Because space to stockpile the wood chips at the fuel mixing facility was limited at this point, the harvest was halted for the season. This would give time to decrease the wood chip pile through fuel use and provide more space for additional chips when the Ciha Fen harvest resumed after the ground freeze in winter 2013. The timeline of the project was: • November 2011: JCCB approached UI about concept of using wood from ecological restoration project as a renewable energy fuel source. • January 18, 2012: timber cruise to estimate amount of wood that would be produced from timber clearing. • Spring 2012: UI Utilities and Energy Management staff evaluated the feasibility of wood chip use in the Main Power Plant and solicited approval from Iowa DNR for trial burn • Summer 2012: UI issued RFP for timber harvest. • July 2012: JCCB meeting was held to approve the concept of UI hiring logger and removing timber for fuel. • August and September 2012: Pre-bid site visits were conducted. • September 2012: Bids were evaluated. • October 2012: Agreement was negotiated with current coal supplier to receive, store, blend, and deliver wood chip blended fuel. Bid for harvest was awarded. • November 2012: UI and JCCB finalized a formal agreement and trial burn approval from Iowa DNR was received. • January 2013: Timber harvest at Kent Park commenced. • February 2013: Timber harvest at Kent Park completed. Miller Logging delivered 142 semi-truck loads, or 3,217 tons of wood chips, to River Trading Muscatine facility. The decision was made to postpone harvest at Ciha Fen to winter 2013. • March 2013: River Trading begins delivery of a 20% by volume blend of wood chips and coal for co-firing in UI Main Power Plant. The budget of the project was: The project was financed using funds from The University of Iowa, Utilities & Energy Management enterprise operating budget. Bid costs per unit: • Miller Logging: $46.50/ton for cutting, chipping and transporting to River Trading • River Trading: $13.50/ton for receiving, storing, blending and delivering to UI Main Power Plant Total costs Kent Park Harvest Harvest $45.00/ton 3217 tons $144,765.00 Fuel management $13.50/ton 3217 tons $43,429.50 Total $188,194.50 Ciha Fen Harvest, expected December, 2013 Harvest $45.00/ton 200 tons $9,300.00 Fuel management $13.50/ton 200 tons $2,700.00 Total $12,000.00 TOTAL HARVEST COST 3,417 tons $199,984.50 Net cost (savings) Total harvest cost $199,895 Equivalent stoker coal cost ($167,870) Net UI cost (savings) $32,024 Air Quality Benefits Stoker coal sulfur Lbs. SO2/MMBtu 2.5 SO2 avoided emissions tons 39 Over 20 acres at Kent Park in Johnson County, Iowa is being restored to native tall grass prairie habitat through the removal of non-native conifer trees. An additional four acres at Ciha Fen Preserve will be restored to xeric prairie, protecting one of the rarest and most delicate natural habitats remaining in the state and several of Iowa’s “Species of Greatest Conservation Need.” Invasive species impact in both locations was and will be minimized. http://sustainability.uiowa.edu/assets/Biomass-Fuel-Project/Kent-Park-harvest/Pages-from-Conservation-Fall-2012-Newsletter.pdf http://thegazette.com/2013/01/17/university-of-iowa-turning-dying-johnson-county-pines-into-biofuel/ The wood chips produced by this harvest are being used in a trial burn at The University of Iowa Main Power Plant. Valuable data regarding the management and performance of woody biomass is being gained and will be shared through this effort. This information will be used to help forward the UI’s progress toward its 2020 Sustainability Target #2 of 40 percent renewable energy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPG6-5m6baQ&feature=youtu.be The net cost of the project for the University of Iowa was roughly $32,000 because the UI was able to avoid the use of $167,870 of stoker coal. The UI officials felt this was a justifiable expense given the tremendous experiential learning opportunity. JCCB avoided the costs of tree harvest at both the park and preserve by partnering with the University of Iowa. There were environmental benefits on both sides: important ecological restoration occurred and air quality benefits were realized from the use of biomass fuel as a substitute for stoker.