Tom Hobby

How effective forest management can fuel a waste-free bioeconomy

"The new era of forestry globally is one of balancing the ecosystem."

Yosemite National Park was inhabited and cared for by the Southern Sierra Miwuk Nation for thousands of years, but beginning with the California gold rush in the 1840s, that relationship dramatically changed.

"Fast forward one hundred years and we have totally different forest that's really ready to burn."

As Tom Hobby from Yosemite Clean Energy explains, extractive practices have led to an excess of timber, making the forest more susceptible to catastrophic wildfires – but there is a solution. Sustainable forestry can restore these ecosystems while also driving a waste-free bioeconomy, generating revenue that can then be invested back into the forests themselves.

Tom Hobby is a forester, arborist and biogas specialist. He's also Chief Executive Officer at Yosemite Clean Energy, a company using gasification technology to transform wood waste into renewable green hydrogen and natural gas. At scale, these biogases can be a significant replacement for fossil fuels.

Tom's vision for sustainable forestry includes collaboration with local communities, businesses, and governments, but its impact is wide-reaching.

"The bioeconomy could replace fossil fuel with biofuel and be carbon negative, which would be a huge benefit for our carbon goals and our global climate change initiatives."

To learn more about Yosemite Clean Energy, visit their website.