Abstract
Forestry is one of the key industries in Wakayama Prefecture and its promotion is an important issue for the prefectural government. In addition, wood resources are carbon-neutral and are therefore useful in preventing global warming. The use of unused thinning for energy production has been applied in many places as measure for both forestry promotion and global warming prevention. In this case study, the reduction in GHG and the economic effect of powder fuel made from unused thinning wood are examined in the area of Hidakagawa Town, central Wakayama. Most wood materials produced by thinning of 25-year-old trees are abandoned at the thinning sites in Wakayama. This study is aimed at the utilization of these abandoned wood materials. A field survey was done to get basic data for the evaluation of the performance of the powder fuel, and an input-output table for Hidakagawa Town was developed for economic analysis. As a result, the potential GHG reduction, economic effect, and job creation by the introduction of the wood power fuel were estimated to be about 550 t-CO2/years, 62 million yen/year, and 3 employees, respectively.
