WASHINGTON – American Wood Council (AWC) President and CEO Robert Glowinski and American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA) President and CEO Donna Harman issued the following statement in support of the Administration’s Energy Independence Executive Order.  

Robert Glowinski, President and CEO, AWC: 

“Despite claims of energy flexibility intended under the Clean Power Plan, EPA actually limited the types of renewable energy states can use, which included our industry’s production and use of carbon neutral biomass energy. The Clean Air Act did not give EPA the authority to impose such sweeping restrictions on existing electric utility generating utilities. The wood products industry plays an important and unique role in reducing greenhouse gases by converting manufacturing biomass residuals to energy needed to power our mills. AWC supports this Executive Order and will continue to seek clarity on EPA’s treatment of biomass to ensure it is recognized as a critical component of clean energy.”  

Donna Harman, President and CEO, AF&PA: 

“We welcome the Energy Independence Executive Order to provide states and ratepayers, including paper and wood products manufacturers, long-overdue relief from harmful regulatory overreach. The nation deserves affordable, reliable electricity, not rate hikes and competitive harm that can stem from onerous regulation such as the Clean Power Plan. On average, our industry meets about two-thirds of its energy demand through carbon neutral renewable biomass and is able to sell some energy to the grid. We plan to continue working with policy makers to provide an effective solution that recognizes the carbon benefits of biomass energy in paper and woodproducts manufacturing facilities.” 

Background: The American Wood Council and American Forest & Paper Association have supported efforts in federal court to turn back the EPA’s Clean Power Plan (CPP). They joined a petition for review of EPA’s final CPP in the D.C. Circuit Court in October of 2015; filed a joint petition for review of EPA’s treatment of biomass energy in the final CPP in December of 2015; and filed joint comments requesting EPA recognize the benefits of biomass as a fuel source in its CPP federal plan and model carbon trading rules in January of 2016.  They also joined a petition for review challenging EPA’s New Source Performance Standards filed in December 2015.