GREENWOOD, S.C. — For decades, Ronnie Powell said he was happy with his home on the northeast side of Greenwood, South Carolina. Then came the dust and the noise.
“We have wood dust powder falling on top of our houses, staining the shingles, keeping our cars filthy,” he said. “We run a fan and an air conditioner in our bedroom to drown out the noise.”
He said it started around 2016, when the Enviva wood pellet plant started operations less than half a mile away.
“The first four years it wasn’t that bad, and I guess as their business has grown,” he said. “With their increased production, it has increased the amount of pollution to go with it so it’s just a nuisance and a problem for our community.”
Burning wood to ‘fight climate change’
Enviva is the world’s top producer of woody biomass. Biomass is an umbrella term that can apply to a number of different types of organic fuels but in Enviva’s case, the biomass the company produces is made up of densely concentrated wood pellets that are burned for electricity. Every year, millions of tons of these pellets are sourced from forests in the southeastern United States, manufactured at facilities like Greenwood’s and then shipped across the Atlantic.
The U.K. and European Union consider this a form of renewable energy and, in fact, woody biomass accounts for the largest source of renewable energy on the continent. A number of environmental groups, including the Southern Environmental Law Center, take issue with that renewable label.
Supporters of using biomass as a form of renewable energy argue it works as a carbon-neutral source of power. When the trees are cut and the wood fuel they create is burned, it releases CO2 into the atmosphere, roughly equal to the amount of CO2 the tree absorbed throughout its life. Additionally, if replacement trees are planted, they absorb CO2 as they grow, maintaining forest carbon sinks and further offsetting the emissions from burning.
Enviva points to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which allows for CO2 emissions from the combustion of biomass to be reported as zero. However, the guidelines also state they should not be interpreted to automatically consider or assume biomass used for energy is carbon neutral, “even in cases where the biomass is thought to be produced sustainably.” The IPCC biomass definition also includes a variety of different fuel types such as farm waste and captured methane as well as forest-derived wood.
SELC Senior Attorney Heather Hillaker argues the idea that growing new trees cancel out emissions relies on assumptions that are nearly impossible to prove. Additionally, even if all of the forests are sustainably replanted to mitigate climate change, the entire process from harvesting the trees, to bringing them to the plant, to converting the wood into pellets and then shipping them across the ocean is highly emissive.
“Apart from the fact that there’s no guarantee that the trees will be regrown, even if you assume that they are automatically replanted and regrown, there’s a time lag between the initial pulse of CO2 emitted when you burn it,” she said. “When you are claiming that you’re using biomass to reduce carbon emissions and mitigate climate change, the time period really matters.”
Enviva’s responsible sourcing policy on its website states the company uses wood sourced from “sustainably-managed” forests that were marked for harvest anyway and they require any primary suppliers to replant their forests.
Dust, noise and pollution
Whether the biomass industry can help reduce CO2 emissions on a global level, Hillaker said the industry has a massive impact locally.
There are currently 28 wood pellet plants operating in the Southeast, including seven in the Carolinas. Six of those seven Carolina facilities have histories of violating state environmental regulations.
Over the past seven years, the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality has issued three fines against Enviva’s wood pellet plant in Sampson County for exceeding pollution limits.
South Carolina’s Department of Environmental Services fined the Greenwood facility $13,000 in 2020 for failing to manage its dust.
In a statement to WSOC, Enviva responded to questions about these fines by emphasizing its cooperation with state regulators, local leaders and community members. The statement went on say: “All of our plants operate in locations currently designated as ‘in attainment’ with all national ambient air quality standards.’”
Enviva also clarified that the violation at the Greenwood facility has been resolved and all “actionable items were completed, prior to the required deadlines.” According to the SCDES that includes creating a new dust management plan focused on increased control and maintenance of material and equipment and mitigating dust from going beyond property boundaries.
Dr. ErNiko Brown, who lives near Greenwood and has been organizing communities across the Southeast against these wood pellet plants. She said those who live near the these plants see the fines and violations as a slap on the wrist.
“They have these fines, but the community never sees a dime of that money,” she said. “The money goes to the state. It doesn’t go to help the people that are impacted.”
In partnership with the Dogwood Alliance, the SELC released a survey about the impact of these facilities on their neighbors in 2024. Brown helped gather responses in Greenwood.
The survey found that 67% of households living within half a mile of a pellet mill report experiencing dust daily and 58% of households report one or more health concerns such as sinus or throat irritation.
Brown believes the placement of these facilities is intentional, predominantly in rural, low-income communities. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, one in six people in Greenwood County lives in poverty.
“If you go into these low-income communities talking about jobs,” Brown said. “They don’t have an opportunity to ask you about how this will impact me because, I’m needing to pay bills.”
Some nearby residents like Powell have had to make changes. He said so much dust and debris gathered in his above ground pool every day, it wasn’t worth trying to keep up. He got rid of it last year.
His neighbor, Elizabeth Cullens, said she spends less time outside now to avoid breathing whatever’s in the air. She said she’s spoken about the issues to anyone who will listen, but nothing changes.
“We’ve done called everybody and talked to everybody we know,” she said. “I don’t reckon nothings been done to them. It’s still there.”
A growing industry
Burning wood pellets for energy is only economical in countries that subsidize the industry as a renewable energy. Under the Biden Administration’s final Clean Energy Tax credit rules, it’s unlikely the wood pellet industry would qualify for even a fraction of the credits wind, solar or even nuclear get.
Overseas, however, the global market for biomass is spreading. Asia is currently ramping up its demand and the SELC expects that will mean more pellet plants across the southeast and the rest of the country.
“We are starting to see more proposed pellet mills cropping up in Washington, Oregon, California,” Hillaker said.
After years of living in the shadow of the Greenwood facility, Cullens said she has advice for anyone who hears about one of these plants coming to their area.
“Go as far as you can to stop it because there’s going to be problems,” she said.
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