Opportunities and problems of Bioenergy: The future

Bulletin of Science, Technology & Society, 2009

In light of the recently developed European Union (EU) Biofuels Strategy, the 24 literature is reviewed to examine: (1) the coherency of biofuel production with the EU non-25 industrial vision of agriculture, and (2) given its insufficient landbase, the implications of a 26

2006

The aim of this publication is to give a comprehensive overview of the opportunities for and barriers to bioenergy development in Europe. The study carried out within the Bioenergy Network of Excellence “Overcoming Barriers to Bioenergy” (Bioenergy NoE) covers EU policy issues and their implementation in Europe, biomass availability and technology development aspects, and RTD goals to overcome the barriers to bioenergy development. Important European targets have been set for 2010, such as the White Paper targets of doubling the share of renewables to 12%, and tripling the use of biomass to 135 Mtoe (5.7 EJ) compared to 1997, the RES-E Directive target of a 21% share of green electricity, and the Biofuels Directive target of 5.75% of transport fuels to be supplied with biofuels. Recently, a Biomass Action Plan was launched. Further, a biofuels target of 20% substitution by 2020 has been proposed, and the maximum of 35% for the share of MSW to be landfilled has been set for the year ...

Environmental Development, 2015

The European Commission has set a long-term goal to develop a competitive, resource efficient and low carbon economy by 2050. Bioeconomy is expected to play an important role in the low carbon economy. This paper provides a review of the policy framework for developing a bioeconomy in the European Union covering energy and climate, agriculture and forestry, industry and research. The Europe has a number of well-established traditional bio-based industries, ranging from agriculture, food, feed, fibre and forestbased industries. This paper proposes an analysis of the current status of bioeconomy in the European Union and worldwide until 2020 and beyond. We estimate the current bio economy market at about € 2.4 billion, including agriculture, food and beverage, agroindustrial products, fisheries and aquaculture, forestry, wood-based industry, biochemical, enzymes, biopharmaceutical, biofuels and bioenergy, using about 2 billion tonnes and employing 22 million persons. New sectors are emerging, such as biomaterials and green chemistry. The transition toward a bioeconomy will rely on the advancement in technology of a range of processes, on the achievement of a breakthrough in terms of technical performances and cost effectiveness and will depend on the availability of sustainable biomass.

2006

What are the perspectives for producing biomass for energy In principle we categorise biomass into three categories: energy crops on current agricultural land; biomass production on marginal lands; and residues from agriculture and forestry, dung and organic wastes. As we show below, we estimate that globally, these categories may supply 200 EJ, 100 EJ and 100 EJ, respectively. [1 EJ = 10 18 J] Clearly, biomass production requires land. The potential for energy crops therefore largely depends on land availability, which must account for growing worldwide demand for food, nature protection, sustainable management of soils and water reserves and a variety of other environmental services. Given that a major part of the future biomass resource for energy and materials depends on these intertwined, uncertain and partially policy dependent factors, it is impossible to present the future biomass potential in one simple figure. A review of the literature on future biomass availability carried out in 2002 (17 studies in total) revealed that no complete integrated scenario assessments were available [Berndes et al., 2003]. These studies include those by IPCC, US EPA, World Energy Council, Shell, and Stockholm Environmental Institute, and arrived at varying conclusions on the possible contribution of biomass to the future global energy supply (e.g., from less than 100 EJ yr-1 to above 400 EJ yr-1 in 2050). Table 1 provides a summary of the biomass categories and biomass supply ranges as a result of various approaches and methods used by different studies. The major reason for the differences is that the two most crucial parameters-land availability and yield levelsare uncertain, and subject to widely different opinions (e.g., the estimates for 2050 plantation supply ranges from less than 50 EJ yr-1 to almost 240 EJ yr-1). In addition, the expectations about future availability of forest wood and of residues from agriculture and forestry vary substantially among the studies. In theory, with projected technological progress and without jeopardising the world's food supply, energy farming on current agricultural land could contribute over 800 EJ. Organic waste and residues could possibly supply another 40-170 EJ, with uncertain contributions from forest residues and potentially a very significant role for

2010

Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change, 2000

Changes towards environmental improvements are becoming more politically acceptable globally, especially in developed countries. Society is slowly moving towards seeking more sustainable production methods, waste minimisation, reduced air pollution from vehicles, distributed energy generation, conservation of native forests, and reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Modern biomass, when used to supply useful bioenergy services, has a role to play in each one of these environmental drivers at both the large and small scales. This paper describes recent developments in biomass supply and the technologies for its conversion to bioenergy including biofuels for transport. It examines the economic, environmental and social benefits and identifies barriers to bioenergy project implementation. Future opportunities for biomass as a carbon (C) sink, a C offset and a potential source of renewable hydrogen are discussed. Whether or not a bioenergy project is economically viable, as well as being truly renewable, sustainable and environmentally sound, is determined mainly by the source of biomass. The social benefits from using biomass are also valuable, though they are often not clearly presented when proposing new bioenergy projects or conducting analyses of existing plants. Employment rates per MWh or per GJ exceed those when using fossil fuel supplies to provide the same energy service. 'Ownership' by stakeholders and local communities at an early stage in the development process is the key to successful project development in order to share the benefits. Bioenergy has a significant global role to play in the mitigation of atmospheric GHG concentrations.

This publication highlights the potential contribution of bioenergy to world energy demand. It summarises the wide range of biomass resources available and potentially available, the conversion options, and end-use applications. Associated issues of market development, international bioenergy trade, and competition for biomass are also presented. Finally, the potential of bioenergy is compared with other energy supply options. ABSTRACT Biomass is a versatile raw material that can be used for production of heat, power, transport fuels, and bioproducts. When produced and used on a sustainable basis, it is a carbon-neutral carrier and can make a large contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Currently, biomass-driven combined heat and power, co-firing, and combustion plants provide reliable, efficient, and clean power and heat. Production and use of biofuels are growing at a very rapid pace. Sugar cane-based ethanol is already a competitive biofuel in tropical regions. In the medium term, ethanol and high-quality synthetic fuels from woody biomass are expected to be competitive at crude oil prices above US$45 per barrel. Feedstocks for bioenergy plants can include residues from agriculture, forestry, and the wood processing industry, as well as biomass produced from degraded and marginal lands. Biomass for energy may also be produced on good quality agricultural and pasture lands without jeopardising the world's food and feed supply if agricultural land use efficiency is increased, especially in developing regions. Revenues from biomass and biomass-derived products could provide a key lever for rural development and enhanced agricultural production. Certification schemes are already established to ensure sustainable production of forest biomass and could be adopted to guide residue recovery and energy crop production. Biomass utilisation will be optimised by processing in biorefineries for both products and energy carriers. Given these possibilities, the potential contribution of bioenergy to the world energy demand of some 467 EJ per year (2004) may be increased considerably compared to the current 45-55 EJ. A range from 200-400 EJ per year in biomass harvested for energy production may be expected during this century. Assuming expected average conversion efficiencies, this would result in 130-260 EJ per year of transport fuels or 100-200 EJ per year of electricity.

Energies

One of the bases of the European policy and energy strategy is the biomass and bioenergy obtained from it. It is estimated that by 2023, the annual demand for biomass will have increased from the current level of 7 EJ to 10 EJ. There are significant differences between estimates of the bioenergy potential due to the fact that the authors of publications do not use consistent methodology and assumptions. Forest biomass, agricultural residues, and energy crops are the three main sources of biomass for energy production. Energy crops are likely to become the most important source of biomass. Land use and its changes are a key issue in the sustainable production of bioenergy as the availability of biomass determines its potential for energy security. This article is a review of the latest publications on the bioenergy potential of the member-states of the European Union. The consumption of energy and its potential were presented, with a special focus on renewable sources, especially bio...

Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 2014

Biomass is expected to be a major player in the energy transition toward low-carbon economies, in response to the pressing challenges of climate change and dwindling fossil resources. Meeting the ambitious recently set for bioenergy development worldwide involve a several-fold increase in biomass production, and poses major challenges for feedstock supply chains in terms of competitiveness, reliability and sustainability.