BOSSES at Drax have defended the use of biomass amid recent calls to end financial support for companies generating electricity from burning wood.

More than 40 environmental groups from countries that export wood pellets to the UK have signed a letter to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband as campaigners turn their focus to the new Labour Government.

Drax and Lynemouth in Northumberland receive hundreds of millions a year in direct Government subsidies between them as well as multimillion-pound carbon tax breaks.

WANT MORE ON BIOMASS? 

They get this money from energy bill payers because the electricity produced from burning wood pellets is classified as renewable, however some have disputed the green credentials of biomass on imported wood. 

The campaigners from the US, Canada, Portugal, Estonia and Latvia said the power stations are burning wood from some of the world’s most biodiverse forests in their countries, with “devastating impacts on communities, wildlife and the climate”.

“We urge you not to grant any new subsidies to wood-burning power stations in the UK,” they wrote.

It comes as the current system of biomass subsidies is due to end in 2027.

However, officials at Drax have hit back at the claims, saying the use of biomass is "informed by science".

A Drax spokesperson said: “The claims made in this letter are completely at odds with internationally recognised approaches to carbon accounting and forestry management.

“Drax is committed to ensuring the biomass we source delivers positive outcomes for the climate, for nature and for the communities in which we operate, and our approach is informed by science, regulated by governments in the regions in which we operate and independently assessed so that we deliver bioenergy the right way.

Some campaigners are urging Ed Milliband to end subsidies for firm that use biomass Some campaigners are urging Ed Milliband to end subsidies for firm that use biomass

“Biomass has been critical to enabling the UK to come off coal over the last decade and is now essential to the country’s energy security.

“When the wind doesn’t blow or the sun doesn’t shine, Drax Power Station keeps the country’s lights on with reliable renewable power.”

Proponents of biomass say that it can create carbon-neutral energy because trees and other plants first absorb carbon, then are burnt and release the same carbon back into the atmosphere.

However, critics say this assumes the companies only use sustainable wood in their boilers.

Investigations by the BBC and others alleged that Drax has used wood from environmentally important forests across the world.

Drax has said it is confident its biomass is sustainable and legally harvested.