Photosynthesis is the original solar panel, perhaps nature’s greatest creation. The ability to harvest the energy of the sun to create a rich and diverse planet that sustains us. Some of the energy captured by nature’s solar panel is stored into one of natures short term batteries, wood and other biomass. 

In wet climates microbes tend to actively consume biomass, converting it into other forms that tend to be more biologially available. In this way, nature seems to make better use of this biomass in the wet climates by keeping it in the life/soil cycle. 

In our dryer climates, natures army of microbes struggle with less moisture and biomass is more lively to accumulate and slowly be chemically converted back into the atmosphere by oxidation and other reactions. Dead grass or wood turning grey is a sign of this slow oxidation. Oxidation also happens quickly in the form of fire which rabidly converts the accumulated biomass back into the atmospheric gases it came from, releasing the stored energy of the sun as heat and releasing the small amount of minerals that were provided by the soil back in the form of ash. 

Fire poses a serious and growing threat to our settlements and sustainability in general. Destruction of assets and loss of life is both traumatic and a massive waste of resources. Disposing of these natural batteries is becoming a much more significant problem for governments and individuals alike. 

We see nature’s batteries as part of the solution, rather than the problem. Through the application ecological forestry principles and exisiting technologies, we are demonstrating how biomass energy can simultaneously contribute to our renewable energy transition, improve the fire safety of our settlements and support our forests to mature beyond destructive fire cycles into their full potential.