Bioenergy is the use of plant-based material or waste as a source of renewable energy.
The bioenergy sector is expanding rapidly, driven by national policies, international targets and EU legislation. It already affects land-use in the UK. This impact will continue to accelerate, with serious implications for woods and their wildlife.
Bioenergy includes
- biomass, the degradable part of crops and residues from agriculture and forestry, to produce heat or power
- biofuels (liquid fuels like bio-diesel and bio-ethanol), produced mainly from conventional arable crops such as wheat, maize and oilseed rape
In theory, the carbon emitted in production of bioenergy is balanced by that taken in by the crops grown, making it a good source of renewable energy. In practice, when harvesting, transport and processing are taken into account, the actual carbon savings are variable.
Research shows the greatest greenhouse gas savings are derived from burning woodchip to provide heat and gasification of biomass to produce electricity. Production of liquid biofuels from conventional arable crops such as wheat and maize is less effective.
The Trust is part of a group of NGOs that have commissioned a report calling for policy measures to ensure biomass energy is implemented in a sustainable way in the UK.
Securing biomass for energy - developing an environmentally responsible industry for the UK now and into the future
Developing a sustainable bioenergy sector
The Woodland Trust believes developments in bioenergy offer some positive opportunities for woodland biodiversity.
For instance, an expanded woodfuel market could stimulate restoration of Plantations on Ancient Woodland Sites.
New native woodland and short-rotation coppice could buffer existing woods if planted next to them. They could provide improvements in soil and water quality, and flood management.
But there are also serious environmental risks. Demand for bioenergy crops, especially for biofuels, could displace other important land-uses: food production, land for nature conservation and recreation, and lead to further intensification of our landscape.
The Woodland Trust supports the development of bioenergy where it provides genuine greenhouse gas savings, without other negative impacts on the environment, and preferably where it can provide wider environmental benefits.
In order to achieve this we believe bioenergy must be subject to a system of assurance or certification.
Read more in the Woodland Trust's position statement on bioenergy in the UK.