Fortunately, for our forests and ecosystem, wood as a heat source is not a feasible means for the masses. For the few who are able and willing though, not only can wood be harvested in a way which is beneficial to the environment, it can be done very inexpensively as well. Here's how:

• If you don't already have one, purchase a chainsaw and process your own firewood. Commercially purchased wood typically needs to be split smaller any way and is some times needlessly harvested from national forests. As a plus, cutting, hauling, splitting & stacking is nice exercise & adds a new level of appreciation for embodied energy.

  This photo depicts a very common scene anywhere there is development. A winters worth of heat for an efficient home, these trees await their ride to the landfill after being ripped out of the ground & piled in a corner to make room for a subdivision. Though the fate these trees have met is sad, salvaging them was an excellent way to obtain a stored energy that would have otherwise gone to waste in an overburdened landfill. All it takes is a watchful eye and willingness to ask. I found these less than 2 miles from my house.

• Get free wood by scrounging for it locally. Innumerable amounts of wood goes to the landfill or is burned in open fields due to development, construction waste and natural causes. Since 1992, I have not paid for a single piece of firewood, driven more than 20 miles to get it or cut a live tree down that wasn’t slated for removal. Trees, lumber waste (as long as it’s not laminated or treated) and pallets… free wood abounds if you watch for it.
• Remember too that the smaller & more energy efficient a home is, the less wood it'll take.

As a primary heat source, how inexpensive can wood heating be? Below is my cost breakdown based on a 4.5 month burn season over 15 years and, 1300 square feet at 43 degrees north latitude.

• ten gallons gas for chainsaw & compact pickup combined = $25/yr
• two-stroke pre-mix for chainsaw = $2.50/yr
• one gallon canola oil for chainsaw bar/chain lube = $5/yr
• professional mid-size chainsaw = $475 over 15/yr divided by 50% firewood usage = $15.83
• chainsaw maintenance = $20 over 15/yr divided by 50% firewood usage = $.67
• splitting maul & ax = $45 over 15/yr = $3
• pickup maintenance = $20 divided by 5% firewood usage = $1/yr
• salvaged firewood = $0

Total Cost = $53.00/year or $11.78/month. For a similarly sized home heated passively with the sun, this cost could very easily be cut in half.

12.10.07