Institutional portal - Municipality of Milan

Milan, 21 December 2020 – Municipality of Milan and the Environment and Territory Mobility Agency (AMAT), in collaboration with the Italian Association of Agroforestry Energy (AIEL) and Carbotermo SpA, a leading Milanese company in biomass thermal solutions, and with the specialist support of the Polytechnic of Milan and the Water & life lab, will carry out an investigation to experimentally quantify the emissions deriving from some types of woody biomass civil heating systems. The investigation, commissioned by the Municipality, was born from a comparison with operators in the sector and is aimed at collecting, with an experimental approach, the real emission data of some high-efficiency heating systems present in the city.

“With this study we want to work together on the topic of using woody biomass for heating – declares Marco Granelli, Councilor for Mobility –. We believe that a scientific and technical approach will allow us to delve deeper into the real emission performance of the biomass plants present in the city in terms of quality and quantity and make all the necessary assessments on the impact they have on the air we breathe".

The study, coordinated by AMAT and launched in recent days, will concern the field measurement of emissions of the main pollutants that affect air quality: primary particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, total organic compounds deriving from civil biomass plants. Furthermore, with a life cycle assessment (LCA) study carried out by the Polytechnic of Milan, the climate-changing emissions (CO₂eq). The objective of the experimentation is to carry out a comparison between the performance of boilers powered by woody biomass with those of systems powered by liquid and gaseous fuels and other renewable sources (for example heat pumps).

With this methodological approach, the Municipality of Milan intends to take stock of the issue of the use of woody biomass for energy production in geographical contexts in which compliance with the limits on air quality is a critical aspect, identifying performance requirements (independent from the fuel used) documentable and compatible with local policies. The performance requirements may be even more stringent than those provided for by national and regional legislation if comparable with those produced by other energy sources.

The study aims to identify technological and plant solutions compatible with the urgency of reducing atmospheric particulate emissions and therefore identify solutions that stimulate research and technological innovation to produce biomass heating systems that are increasingly efficient from an environmental point of view, making use of the contribution of a renewable energy source also for the fight against climate change.

“By joining this project, AIEL wanted to affirm once again that the biomass heating sector wants to make its contribution to improving air quality and for this reason it makes itself available to the institutions to be put in the conditions of pursue this objective. We are in fact convinced that it is possible to achieve a considerable improvement in air quality, even by applying very severe and restrictive measures, but which do not damage one of the leading, and often overlooked, economic sectors of the national renewable energy economy - states the president by AIEL Domenico Brugnoni.