The Inflation Reduction Act’s green energy promise is putting Black communities at risk
A proposed tax credit for biomass energy plants could accelerate pollution in Black communities in the rural South, where forests are already being depleted for European energy demands.
Adam Mahoney reports for Capital B.
In short:
- Biomass plants, which burn wood pellets for energy, emit carcinogens and other pollutants, disproportionately affecting Black and low-income communities.
- The proposed tax credit could subsidize biomass facilities, despite evidence that these plants are more harmful to the environment than coal.
- Over a million acres of forests in the rural South are being cleared for biomass production, worsening health and environmental outcomes for local residents.
Key quote:
"Ultimately, we’re killing the Earth and each other. It’s a false climate solution that leaves Black and brown communities still bearing the brunt of the damage."
— Treva Gear, Georgia activist
Why this matters:
Communities like Adel, Georgia are left with the pollution, loss of green space and the destruction of the very forests we depend on to capture carbon. It’s an ironic twist—clean energy for Europe, while Black communities in the South bear the brunt of the damage. Read more: How Europe’s wood pellet appetite worsens environmental racism in the US South.
