Carper Seeks to Protect Renewable Energy Growth, Co-Sponsors Bill to extend Tax Credits for the Use of Poultry Waste as Energy

DOVER, DE – Senator Tom Carper today joined former Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles Grassley (R-IA) in support of the GREEN Act, which seeks to expand the use of alternative energy sources through tax credits. Most importantly to the Delmarva peninsula, the bill extends an important tax credit for those seeking to burn poultry waste as a source of energy. “The Delaware inland bays and the Chesapeake Bay receive nutrient runoff partly due to the surplus of poultry waste on the Delmarva peninsula,” Carper said, “This bill seeks to retain an important tool we have in managing this environmental challenge and also will allow some businesses in the area to lower their energy costs in this time of high fuel prices.” The Growing Renewable Energy for Emerging Needs (GREEN) Act (S. 756) extends to 2007 a tax credit provided to the owners of facilities that uses biomass, including poultry waste, to generate electricity. Without the GREEN Act, the credit would expire on January 1, 2002. If that happens, only facilities that are completely operational before that date would receive the tax credit for their efforts to use renewable resources for power. “There is real potential for the use of biomass as a renewable source of energy,” Carper said. “But any new technology takes time to implement. By limiting the credit to the end of this year, we limit the potential for real growth in this industry. By extending this incentive, we extend Delmarva’s ability to compete in the renewable energy market.” Beyond poultry waste (litter and manure), the biomass credit applies to facilities using solid wood waste (waste pallets, crates, dunnage) and agricultural sources (orchard tree crops, grains, legumes). The credit is estimated to cost less than $1 billion over ten years.