BUBE: Better Use of Biomass for Energy Background Report to the Position Paper of IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy Report Delft/Darmstadt, July 2010 Authors: CE Delft: Bettina Kampman Geert Bergsma Benno Schepers Harry Croezen Öko-Institut Uwe R. Fritsche Klaus Henneberg Katja Huenecke AidEnvironment Jan Willem Molenaar Jan Joost Kessler CIEP Stephan Slingerland Coby van der Linde Commissioned by: IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy Publication Data Bibliographical data: Bettina Kampman, Uwe R. Fritsche et al. BUBE: Better Use of Biomass for Energy Background Report to the Position Paper of IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy Delft/Darmstadt : CE Delft/Öko-Institut, July 2010 Policy / Biomass / Use / Sustainable production / Resources / Standards / Technology / Analysis Publication code: 10.3844.56 CE publications are available from www.ce.nl Commissioned by: IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy. Further information on this study can be obtained from the contact person, Bettina Kampman. CE Delft Committed to the Environment CE Delft is an independent research and consultancy organisation specialised in developing structural and innovative solutions to environmental problems. CE Delft’s solutions are characterised in being politically feasible, technologically sound, economically prudent and socially equitable. The project was guided by a steering and editorial committee consisting of Annette Schou and David de Jager from IEA RETD, Kyriakos Maniatis and Kees Kwant from IEA Bioenergy and Ralph Sims on behalf of the IEA Secretariat. For more information, see www.iea-retd.org and www.ieabioenergy.com. This publication was produced by the Implementing Agreements on ‘Renewable Energy Technology Deployment (RETD)’ and ‘Bioenergy’, which form part of a programme of international energy technology collaboration undertaken under the auspices of the International Energy Agency. 2 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy Contents Executive Summary 7 1 Introduction 11 1.1 Background 11 1.2 Aim and scope of the report 12 1.3 Biomass today and tomorrow: facts and prognoses 13 1.4 Drivers for bioenergy 19 1.5 Environmental impact: positive effects can be significant, but not for all routes 21 1.6 Security of supply: important, but hard to quantify 24 1.7 Role of biomass in global and national climate policies 25 1.8 Structure of this report 27 2 Key issue: Better supply and production 29 2.1 Introduction 29 2.2 Domestic biomass supply and global trade 29 2.3 Environmental impact of biomass production 31 2.4 Competition with food and feed and other sectors 35 2.5 Socio-economic effects in non-OECD countries 36 2.6 The crucial issue of land use change 37 2.7 Opportunities for better production of bioenergy 38 3 Key issue: Better conversion and use 45 3.1 Introduction 45 3.2 Efficiency of conversion and use 45 3.3 Maximizing GHG emission savings 47 3.4 Contribution to energy security 48 3.5 Improving local air quality with bioenergy 48 3.6 Local conversion and use? 49 3.7 Cost and cost-effectiveness 50 3.8 Learning curves and the question of alternatives 52 4 Key issue: Better policy 55 4.1 Introduction 55 4.2 Biomass and global climate policies 55 4.3 Definition of ‘better’ may vary 56 4.4 Sustainability criteria for bioenergy 58 4.5 Removing barriers to better use of bioenergy 62 5 Conclusions: Roadmap for better use of biomass for energy 65 5.1 Introduction 65 5.2 Criteria for better use of biomass for energy 65 5.3 Milestones for better use of biomass 66 5.4 Better use of biomass for energy: better practices are crucial 68 References 69 3 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy Annex A Glossary of terms and acronyms 81 Annex B Greenhouse gas emission reduction and land use change effects 87 B.1 Introduction 87 B.2 The importance of land use change for GHG emission reduction 87 B.3 GHG emission savings of bioenergy, without indirect land use change 88 B.4 Land use change: Impact on GHG emissions and sequestration 93 Annex C Energy security 99 C.1 Introduction 99 C.2 The international security of sypply discussion 99 C.3 The position of biomass in the international security of supply discussion 100 C.4 Domestic production of biomass and security of supply 101 C.5 Measuring the contribution of biomass to security of supply 102 C.6 Conclusions 102 Annex D Competition with food and feed 103 D.1 Introduction 103 D.2 Impacts of biofuel demand on food and feed 103 Annex E Socio-economic effects in non-OECD countries 107 E.1 Introduction 107 E.2 Positive social and economic effects 107 E.3 Negative social and economic effects 110 E.4 Barriers 114 Annex F Cost and cost effectiveness 117 F.1 Introduction 117 F.2 Costs of bioenergy 117 F.3 Key issues 119 Annex G Opportunities 121 G.1 Introduction 121 G.2 Residues and waste as feedstock 121 G.3 Marginal and degraded land 124 G.4 Other types of feedstock: aquatic biomass and jatropha 126 Annex H Barriers to the better use of bioenergy 129 H.1 Introduction 129 H.2 Technology barriers 129 H.3 Trade barriers 131 H.4 Political barriers 135 H.5 Practical barriers to the effective implementation of policies 136 Annex I Overview of Key Sustainability Certification Schemes 139 4 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy Annex J Relevant policies 147 J.1 Introduction 147 J.2 The UNFCCC climate conventions (COP process) 147 J.3 A global methodology for sustainability certifications 148 J.4 Global Trade regulations (WTO) 148 J.5 National/regional policies 149 J.6 Promotion of R&D 151 5 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy 6 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy Executive Summary This report aims to provide a document that gives guidance on the issue of biomass energy policies in OECD countries. The main conclusions and messages from this project were published in a joint IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy Position Paper and presented at the COP15 in December 2009. The following provides a brief summary of this report; for a more in-depth summary of the results of the study we refer the reader to the position paper (www.iea-retd.org). Better use of biomass for energy: background As the main contributor to renewable energy around the world (about 10% of total energy consumption), the term ‘biomass for energy’ covers a broad range of products, including traditional use of wood for cooking and heating, industrial process heat, co-firing of biomass in coal-based power plants, biogas and biofuels. In many OECD countries, bioenergy is deployed to reduce fossil fuel use and improve security of supply, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and/or create new employment. Modern biomass can be more expensive than its fossil competitors, however, and there is evidence that biomass, unless produced sustainably, could have significant negative environmental and socio-economic impacts. This report elaborates on how to improve the use of biomass for energy. It assesses and provides guidelines on how to make better use of sustainable biomass potential and how to increase the positive and reduce the negative impacts. This study was jointly commissioned by IEA RETD and IEA Bioenergy and carried out by a consortium consisting of CE Delft, Öko-Institut, Clingendael International Energy Programme (CIEP) and Aidenvironment. Better supply and production The first step in the biomass-to-energy chain is supply and production of the biomass. These processes can be improved by various means, the most important being: Improving domestic supply and trade: There is significant potential for increasing the supply of sustainable domestic biomass by improving the utilisation of forestry and agricultural residues. Increasing biomass cultivation sustainably typically requires a longer time period, but can provide additional feedstocks. Reducing the environmental impact of biomass production: If waste or residues are used, the environmental impact of biomass supply is typically low or even positive. There is also scope for sustainably growing biomass for energy on land which is underused or not used for other purposes. In addition, there is scope for increasing biomass supply accompanied by low environmental impact by shifting to perennial (‘multi-year’) plants, multiple cropping systems and agroforestry. The use of land for bioenergy crop cultivation and any associated direct and indirect land use changes are key to the environmental performance of bioenergy, its socio-economic impacts and competition with food and feed. 7 July 2010 3.844.1 – Better Use for Biomass for Energy Better conversion and use There is a broad choice of technologies for converting biomass into usable energy and a variety of applications for the bioenergy. The key issues for improving these steps in the biomass-to-bioenergy chain are the following: Improving the efficiency of conversion and use will lead to greater replacement of fossil fuels and, in many cases, more greenhouse gas (GHG) savings and lower costs. GHG savings can also be improved by using low-carbon auxiliary energy sources in the processes concerned, through judicious use of co-products and by displacing fossil fuels with high carbon content. Some conversion processes provide good opportunities for carbon capture and storage (CCS), which could help reduce atmospheric GHG concentrations in the future. The biomass can also be deployed in such a way that it contributes best to energy security or to air quality improvements. It may be worthwhile, moreover, to optimise biomass use to achieve the best cost-effectiveness, i.e. reduce the cost-benefit ratio to a minimum.