Pellet plants saddle Southerners with nonstop noise, pollution - Southern Environmental Law Center

A new, first-of-its-kind study surveyed families living near biomass wood pellet plants in the South, shining a light on the significant and long-lasting harm these facilities have on nearby communities.

These facilities turn forests into wood pellets that are then shipped overseas and burned at utility scale for power – a process called biomass energy. While biomass energy companies claim this produces clean energy, in reality it releases more climate-warming carbon than burning coal.

While local activists have long spoken up about the dangerous air pollution, disruptive noise, and concerning health impacts of these facilities, there has been little research into pellet plant’s effect on nearby communities, which are often communities of color and lower-wealth communities that have faced long histories of environmental injustice.

That’s why SELC teamed up with the University of North Carolina Environmental Justice Action Research Clinic, Dogwood Alliance, the People’s Justice Council, Greater Greener Gloster, Gaston Youth, and Organized Uplifting Resources & Strategies Communities to survey areas around pellet mills. The anonymous survey responses clearly show that pellet plants have a significant and harmful impact on people living close by.

“The results of this groundbreaking survey confirm what we have known for years: biomass wood pellet plants do incredible amounts of harm to nearby communities, which are more often than not communities of color or lower wealth communities,” SELC staff attorney Jasmine Washington said. “Families shouldn’t have to live in fear of what pellet plants are pumping into the air next door.”

The coalition surveyed people living within two miles of five pellet mills in the South:

The surveys were led by community members who have been working on the ground to push back on the biomass energy industry.

Wood pellet facilities release huge amounts of harmful air pollution, including dust and hazardous chemicals like acrolein and methanol. More than 67 percent of people living within a half-mile of pellet mills experience dust every day and a majority of respondents, no matter how far they live from the facility, said air pollution concerns prevent them from regularly doing things outdoors.

“[It’s] very noisy and stuff constantly flying in the air, it’s hard for my grandkids to play outside,” a resident near the Enviva plant in Greenwood, South Carolina, told surveyors.

The dust and air pollution can cause significant health problems, including asthma, respiratory diseases, and even cancers. In four of the five surveyed communities, 86 percent of households reported at least one family member diagnosed with a disease associated with or exacerbated by pellet mill pollution.

“I’m not outside a lot. I used to walk around a lot but stopped once the mill came down. I was recently given an asthma pump for breathing problems,” a resident near Drax’s Amite plant, said.

The most commonly reported symptoms from households near pellet plants were sinus irritation and eye irritation.

“My eyes burn. I also have mucus in my throat every morning when I wake up,” a person living near the Enviva Sampson plant said. “Dry throat is a constant.”

Pellet plants also frequently violate their permits, making them even more dangerous for people living nearby.

People living near pellet mills are also forced to deal with constant traffic and noise. Nearly 80 percent of families living a half-mile from wood pellet facilities reported daily noise that some described as “loud booms,” a “grinding noise,” and “banging” that “sounds like thunder.” Many people said the noise was all day long – including at night – making it difficult to sleep.

I’m not able to go outside because of the dust [or] sleep because of the noise

Trucks carrying trees to pellet mills also cause traffic problems on the area’s roads. 67 percent of people within a half-mile of a pellet mill reported daily traffic. People also associated noise, poor road conditions, and frequent roadside woody debris with truck traffic.

This report comes at a critical time as biomass wood pellet plants have seen explosive growth in the South. Currently, there are 28 pellet plants across the region, with active proposals for six additional plants.

Biomass energy companies like Enviva and Drax are also looking to wrongly take advantage of federal clean energy tax incentives recently created or expanded by Congress. Giving our tax dollars to dirty and dangerous biomass energy corporations would supercharge the growth of this harmful industry and open the doors for even more polluting pellet plants across the South. It is critical that our federal leaders do not make the mistake of categorizing biomass energy as carbon-neutral or clean energy.

At the same time, state regulators must ensure that existing pellet mills use the best available technology to minimize the facilities’ impacts on nearby communities. SELC and our allies have fought for years to get commonsense protective measures installed at pellet mills, scoring important victories in communities throughout the region.