Berlin -– More than 100 participants gathered for the German Day on Biomass organized at the 19th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition. “We can cover the electrical demand with renewable energies in Germany by 2050”, said Jochen Flasbarth, President of the Federal Environment Agency, underlining the leading role that Germany plays in stimulating the development of ambitious energy and environmental policies in the EU and worldwide. He emphasized that in order to achieve this transition to a low carbon economy the role of bioenergy is fundamental and an effort to mobilize all biomass streams in a sustainable way is necessary.

Birger Kerckow, Agency of Renewable Resources, pointed out that research is focused on ligno-cellulosic crops, alternative energy crops and syngas projects. According to Daniela Thrän, German Biomass Research Center, by 2020 bioenergy could deliver up to 120 exajoules of renewable energy, a value close to that estimated by the IPCC in its recent report on the contribution of renewable energy sources for climate change mitigation. She emphasized that in addition to the forest and waste sectors, agriculture and energy crops are poised to play a great role in supplying the increasing world biomass demand; there is a big potential for the expansion of energy crops in the Russian Federation, Brazil and U.S. whereas China and India have also large untapped potentials for the use of animal and human wastes.

A roundtable organized in the second half of the day highlighted the need to further develop and harmonize the many sustainability schemes already in place for biomass and bioenergy, as well as to raise the awareness of the public on the options available to ensure sustainability along biomass supply chains and avoid negative social impacts and competition with alternative usages. The role of international trade of biomass will be more and more important.

Quelle: ETA-Florence Renewable Energies

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