MakeHeat

Some environmental projects are just sexier than others… [ed.]

“… Mr. Whiting noted that the House and Senate bills extend the production tax credit for three years, but “open-loop” biomass (the type typically built these days) gets only half the credits wind and geothermal would get.

“There is no policy reason why biomass (and some other technologies) should receive a smaller credit than certain favored renewables. The government shouldn’t be in the position of picking technologies,” Mr. Whiting said in an e-mail message.

Both Mr. Whiting and Mr. Gawell noted that the stimulus bills would allow their industries to access the “investment tax credit,” a 30 percent tax credit up front that is in some ways preferable to the “production tax credit.”

Currently the investment tax credit is applicable mainly to solar; the bills would broaden it to apply to other renewables. …”