THE DEVELOPMENT OF T HE ASSOCIATION OF FO R E S T R Y OWNERS IN ´EL MASSIS DEL GARRAF´ FOR THE E N E R G E T I C EXPLOITATION OF FORE ST BIOMASS. 6TH UPC INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON SUSTAINABLE TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT VILANOVA I LA GELTRÚ – 2013 International Group 1: Oriol Costa Echaniz Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain Brandon Summers Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain Stephan Maier Graz University of Technology Graz, Austria Stina Tang The Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden Nick Kerckhaert Delft University of Technology, Delft, the Netherlands TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ............................................................................................. ¡Error! Marcador no definido. Table of contents ........................................................................... ¡Error! Marcador no definido. Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 3 Methodology ................................................................................................................................................. 5 Results ............................................................................................... ¡Error! Marcador no definido. Discussion ...................................................................................................................................................... 6 Conclusions ................................................................................................................................................. 12 References ................................................................................................................................................... 14 ABSTRACT This report defines and discuss sustainable energy sources - bioenergy - in particular, regarding financial, production, distribution and consumption aspects. It also discusses community involvement by two exemplifications - the bioenergy generation at the former landfill site in El Massif del Garraf, and the The Association of Forestry Owners (APF) of el Massís del Garraf. This shows that community involvement is clearly an important factor in order to find sustainable ways to manage sustainable energy sources; because having local groups, or “grassroots” projects means having people who live close to the problematic area and experience the environmental issues in their everyday life involved in finding the solutions to the problems. INTRODUCTION The Garraf Massif is located in the Catalan Coastal Range. It occupies a triangular area between the Llobregat valley, Penedès depression and the Mediterranean, providing low mountains. Its maximum heights are around 600 metres. The Garraf Massif’s area is about 9,967 ha, ranging from sea level to La Morella, (593 meters). The Garraf Massif is a Natural Park area with a certain level of legal protection against human action. The main threats to the mountains are building new developments and the many quarries that contribute to the massive destruction of the animal and plant habitats. As a consequence many of the degraded areas are difficult to rehabilitate and resolve problems for the future. The Vall d’en Joan has been a very contaminated area during a long period, because for many years there has been one of the biggest Europe’s landfill. It was active from 1974 to 2006, during 32 years. Approximately there are 23 million tons of garbage accumulated in the tank. This landfill has contaminated the aquifers. The degassing plant and energetic use of biogas generated in the landfill will work for 25 years until they stop the gas. Community participation In 1989 the question about an integrated development of Garraf arose. Important factors to start interorganisational work was the plan and the design of the county’s development and the relationship between citizens and public services. Landscape architects planned a redesign of the Garraf landfill to restore the area simultaneously with the closing of the landfill. With this redesigned artificial area a more attractive level was created which can be used as a connecting platform for touristic visitors to the National Park (Plataforma Arquitectura) METHODOLOGY In this report, written sources and online sources have been consulted in order to gain information about sustainable energy sources, bioenergy, and the two exemplifications of community involvement. DISCUSSION 4.1 SUSTAINABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS (P.5) Usual energy systems are a heavy stricken network of financial, economical, social, mobile and distributional aspects. Expanding the use of renewable technologies such as wind, wave, hydro, solar, geothermal and biomass are steps toward a more sustainable energy profile, production, consumption and hence economy. However, the use of renewable energy entails limiting factors such as competition with food/fodder crops (biomass), restrictions due to polluted matter (nuclear), waste and incineration. Considering the world as a global energy system it is crucial to create analyzing methods on a macro scale. A study at University of Utrecht shows that it is possible to reach a 95% sustainably sourced energy supply by 2050 worldwide. (Energy Strategy Reviews, 2012) The world is steadily facing global sustainability shortages. Overproduction and overconsumption of energy has started to show human society the limits of global resources. The society’s never ending hunger for more creates fundamental crises (financial, energy, hunger, war), endangers the supply of energy/water/food and provokes global ecological changes such as climate change (e.g. problematic of greenhouse-gases (GHG), artificial micro-climate generation, temperature, natural disasters etc.). In front of this changing world, sustainable development needs basic structural and behavioural changes from energy intensive systems to sustainable cradle-to-cradle energy systems (Braungart and McDonough, 2002). In a historical view human society has been more or less constructing sustainable energy systems. Transitions of socio-ecological regimes give us a clear sight on the different quantities of energy consumption each community faces. From hunters and gatherers to agrarian in the past, from agrarian to industrial more or less on its finite depending on the different varying statuses of development of world’s communities (Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 2011; Applied Energy, 2012). Developed countries have more or less fully developed industrial economies. Keeping high technological levels is helpful and a burden to reach sustainability in energy systems at the same time. Due to the National and European Union funding the share of renewable energy should be increased as well as the efficiency by investing in green/ low carbon infrastructure/technologies (European Commission, 2013). Compared with developed countries, developing countries lack of broad access to basic energy services, they need more competitive industries for future economic growth, indigenous renewable energy industries and an improving of market/national stability. To prevent western rebound effects of exploding non-sustainable energy consumption, developing countries need elaborated accompany in issues of distribution of global resources, reducing pollution, improved public health etc. What developed and undeveloped countries have in common: global transition to clean, low carbon energy systems (TWAS, 2008). Evaluations of existing examples of sustainable energy systems demonstrate partial sustainability. Full sustainable energy systems are still out of range. The existing energy system structures need high amounts of energy for energy production itself, for industry, households, and mobility. The whole transport- and production-chain of material- energy-flows and cost intensive technologies has to be elaborated to reach a full sustainable energy system cycle. (SPI, 2013) Governmental funding (top-down) can force structural changes in sustainable energy systems as well as private investments/actions (bottom-up) can. Nonetheless next steps to reach strong sustainability in energy systems need engagement of more than pure political and financial senses. 4.2 Bioenergy (P.6) The bioenergy is a type of renewable energy from the use of organic and industrial materials formed in a biological or mechanical process of substances that constitute plants, humans, animals or their remains. The energy utilization of biomass is made directly or by conversion into other substances which can be exploited as a fuel. The different forms of biomass are fuels energy and waste, (agricultural, forestry, livestock, urban, sewage sludge and computers, plants, etc.) Natural biomass corresponds to forests, trees, shrubs, crop plants, etc. For example, logging produce lots of waste with a high energy, which are not suitable for the manufacture of furniture or paper, such as leaves and twigs, and that can be tapped as an energy source. The wood waste can be harnessed to produce energy. The "energy crops" are another form of biomass plantations and it is exploited only for energy purposes. Residual biomass however, involves obtaining energy from wood and agricultural waste, urban waste, livestock waste, manure, sewage sludge, etc.. Agricultural waste can also exploit energy. The following picture shows the primary energy production with solid biomass in the European Union (2010). Reference: www.todosbiomasa.com In the European