Biomass Plant Technicians
Control and monitor biomass plant activities and perform maintenance as needed.
Most important skills
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Monitoring
- Critical Thinking
- Judgment and Decision Making
- Reading Comprehension
- Active Listening
- Writing
Key knowledge
- Mechanical
- Chemistry
- English Language
- Production and Processing
- Engineering and Technology
- Education and Training
- Computers and Electronics
- Mathematics
What the work involves
- Measure and monitor raw biomass feedstock, including wood, waste, or refuse materials.
- Operate valves, pumps, engines, or generators to control and adjust production of biofuels or biomass-fueled power.
- Perform routine maintenance or make minor repairs to mechanical, electrical, or electronic equipment in biomass plants.
- Assess quality of biomass feedstock.
- Calculate, measure, load, or mix biomass feedstock for power generation.
- Calibrate liquid flow devices or meters, including fuel, chemical, and water meters.
- Inspect biomass power plant or processing equipment, recording or reporting damage and mechanical problems.
- Operate biomass fuel-burning boiler or biomass fuel gasification system equipment in accordance with specifications or instructions.
Strongest interest areas (O*NET): Realistic, Conventional, Investigative.
Qualifications and licensing
- Most common education
- High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED) (46.5% of respondents)
- Related experience
- Over 4 years, up to and including 6 years (26.1%)
- On-the-job training
- Over 4 years, up to and including 10 years (39.1%)
- Preparation level
- O*NET job zone 2: Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Licensing
- Not yet verified. Check your state licensing board.
Check before planning
- Licensing for Biomass Plant Technicians is not yet verified for any state: check the state licensing board before planning.
- Projection education uses SOC 51-8013 (detailed_parent); it may describe a broader group.
Limits
- Distributions show what current workers or occupational experts report, not legal minimums.
- Requirements vary by employer and state; time to qualify is not estimated.
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database (USDOL/ETA, CC BY 4.0); BLS Employment Projections · dataset 2026.10.8 · method e3-qualification-1.0.0
Work environment
How the typical conditions of this occupation compare with 911 occupations in O*NET (very low = the lowest fifth).
Levels are relative. Most occupations involve a lot of contact with people, for example, so “very low” can still mean regular contact; the last column shows what workers actually reported.
| Condition | Level | Compared with other occupations | Most common answer (O*NET survey) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact with others | Moderate | Lower on contact with others than 59% of occupations compared | 61% of surveyed respondents chose “Constant contact with others” |
| Dealing with the public | Very low | Lower on dealing with the public than 85% of occupations compared | 33% of surveyed respondents chose “Not important at all” |
| Teamwork | High | Higher on teamwork than 66% of occupations compared | 60% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely important” |
| Freedom to make decisions | High | Higher on freedom to make decisions than 78% of occupations compared | 65% of surveyed respondents chose “A lot of freedom” |
| Time pressure | Low | Lower on time pressure than 79% of occupations compared | 37% of surveyed respondents chose “Every day” |
| Conflict situations | Low | Lower on conflict situations than 62% of occupations compared | — |
| Dealing with unpleasant or angry people | Moderate | Higher on dealing with unpleasant or angry people than 58% of occupations compared | 46% of surveyed respondents chose “Once a year or more but not every month” |
| Consequence of error | Very high | Higher on consequence of error than 94% of occupations compared | 63% of surveyed respondents chose “Extremely serious” |
Work-pressure profile
- Time pressure: low
- Conflict situations: low
- Dealing with unpleasant or angry people: moderate
- Consequence of error: very high
Each part is shown on its own. There is no combined stress score, and conditions vary by employer and role.
Full answer distributions
Contact with others
- No contact with others: 0%
- Occasional contact with others: 13.66%
- Contact with others about half the time: 7.51%
- Contact with others most of the time: 17.36%
- Constant contact with others: 61.46%
n = 47, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with the public
- Not important at all: 32.74%
- Fairly important: 19.07%
- Important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Very important: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Extremely important: 0.2%
n = 46, Incumbent 08/2020
Teamwork
- Not important at all: 0%
- Fairly important: 5.7%
- Important: 4.13%
- Very important: 29.89%
- Extremely important: 60.28%
n = 47, Incumbent 08/2020
Freedom to make decisions
- No freedom: 0%
- Very little freedom: 9.39%
- Limited freedom: 0.75%
- Some freedom: 24.54%
- A lot of freedom: 65.33%
n = 47, Incumbent 08/2020
Time pressure
- Never: 10.65%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 19.37%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 20.59%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 11.9%
- Every day: 37.49%
n = 46, Incumbent 08/2020
Conflict situations
- Never: 8.6%
- Once a year or more but not every month: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Once a month or more but not every week: 6.06%
- Once a week or more but not every day: suppressed by O*NET (low precision)
- Every day: 0%
n = 43, Incumbent 08/2020
Dealing with unpleasant or angry people
- Never: 6.11%
- Once a year or more but not every month: 45.72%
- Once a month or more but not every week: 14.36%
- Once a week or more but not every day: 17.32%
- Every day: 16.49%
n = 44, Incumbent 08/2020
Consequence of error
- Not serious at all: 0.7%
- Fairly serious: 10.15%
- Serious: 13.46%
- Very serious: 12.22%
- Extremely serious: 63.47%
n = 47, Incumbent 08/2020
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O*NET-SOC 51-8013.03 · SOC 51-8013 (detailed_parent, medium confidence) · dataset 2026.10.8