Wood Energy Not 'Green' Enough, Says Mass. Originally published
on Mon August 20, 2012 6:02 pm AUDIE CORNISH, HOST: When it
comes to renewable energy, wind and solar get a lot of
attention. But wood actually creates more power in the U.S., and
Massachusetts state officials are scaling back their efforts to
encourage wood power. It may be a renewable resource, they say,
but that doesn't mean it's good for the environment. NPR's
Elizabeth Shogren has that story. ELIZABETH SHOGREN, BYLINE:
Power plants that turn wood into electricity aren't anything
new. They're called biomass plants. They've become more popular
as states have tried to reduce the use of fossil fuels. The idea
is wood is a renewable resource. You can always grow more, but
the state of Massachusetts decided it wasn't enough to be
renewable. It wants climate-friendly fuel, so it kicked most
power plants that burned wood out of a program that helps
renewable electricity plants earn more revenue. Mark Sylvia is
commissioner of the Massachusetts Depar