Spring 2012 Newsletter
Getting to Know Geoff Chinnock, Morrison & Company Principal Geoff Chinnock has been a principal at Morrison & Company since January 2011. He joined the company in February 2007. Geoff, a certified public accountant, is skilled in short- and long-range planning, cost controls, systems improvement, and finance and accounting efficiency. He has served several Morrison & Company clients as an interim Chief Financial Officer. Geoff previously worked in the finance and accounting department of Feather River Hospital in Paradise, California, part of the 18 hospital Adventist Health system. There he played an integral part in the hospital’s financial management; Geoff previously served with local and regionally based CPA firms, providing advisory, tax, audit, and financial services to independent business clients. Here’s a little more about Geoff: Family: Wife Joelle, children Jake (5), Abby (3) and Caleb (1) College Major: Accounting Favorite Hobby: Recreational trap and target shooting Dream vacation destination: Canadian Rockies Best part of working at Morrison & Company: The variety of projects and people we work with. Always changing, always challenging, always learning, and always teaching. I get to use and develop skills in so many ways that have nothing at all to do with accounting. Geoff can be reached at gchinnock@morrisonco.net or 530-893-4764, ext. 204
Seeking Energy Solutions with Biomass Working Group Millions of tons of biomass are left after America’s crops are harvested but few commercially viable uses have been developed. At a time when the country is seeking alternatives to traditional energy sources, could this untapped supply be the answer? Biomass Working Group, LLC, was organized as a multistate effort to find biofuel and other commercial uses for residues from corn, wheat, soybeans, and other major crops. Morrison & Company was engaged to research potential uses, determine markets for related products, research the availability and readiness of technologies to produce possible products, and determine the financial viability of producing such products. Completed in December 2011, the project explored technologies and markets for biomass feedstocks (e.g., pellets), cellulosic ethanol, syngas, coal substitutes, biopower, and activated carbon. We also assessed crop residue availability and sustainability (e.g., how much crop residue can be removed without interfering with good agricultural practices), storage and transportation issues, regulatory drivers, and available government programs.
Brent Morrison with bio-oil made from wheat straw
Biomass Working Groups’ founding members operate in South Dakota, Kansas, Indiana, Nebraska, and Illinois; significant participation and funding was provided by National Farmers Organization and the South Dakota Farmers Union. To assist with the technical aspects of the project, Morrison & Company engaged and managed the assistance of private technology companies and researchers, universities, and the US Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory, our major partner for technology assessment. While much progress has been made in alternative energy technologies, significant challenges remain. It is possible to make bio-oil, ethanol, Continued on inside