The article gives a good basic introduction to various aspects of biomass processing and provides a fairly balanced discussion of advantages and disadvantages.

People have used biomass energy—energy from living things—since the earliest “cave men” first made wood fires for cooking or keeping warm. Today, biomass is used to fuel electric generators and other machinery.

Balancing Biomass
The Union of Concerned Scientists helped develop A Balanced Definition of Renewable Biomass, which are practical and effective sustainability provisions that can provide a measure of assurance that woody biomass harvests will be sustainable.