scholarly journals Is Bioenergy Truly Sustainable When Land-Use-Change (LUC) Emissions Are Accounted for? The Case-Study of Biogas from Agricultural Biomass in Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 3260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Tamburini ◽  
Mattias Gaglio ◽  
Giuseppe Castaldelli ◽  
Elisa Anna Fano
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Biogas Production ◽  
Actual State ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Maize Silage ◽  
Regional Energy ◽  
Emilia Romagna Region ◽  
Ghg Savings

Bioenergies are considered sustainable alternatives to fossil energy sources in the European Union (EU) renewable energy targets for 2030. However, their performances in terms of greenhouse gases (GHG) savings may be affected by indirect emissions related to the required land-use-change (LUC) that should be taken into account when modelling their sustainability. The European Renewable Energy Directive (RED) introduced a number of GHG emission criteria, in comparison with fossil fuels, that bioenergy deriving from agricultural biomasses must comply with. The Emilia-Romagna region (North-Eastern Italy), the second largest Italian biogas producer, has recently issued its Regional Energy Plan (REP), which set an ambitious increase of about 40% of the current installed electric power from biogas up to 2030. The aim of this study is to assess the sustainability of Emilia-Romagna REP accounting for the required indirect land-use-change (ILUC), due to the bioenergy crop expansion, potentially needed to reach the targets. Based on regional data available on biogas production, the amount of land used for maize silage to be destined to biogas production (as a model agricultural feedstock) has been calculated for the actual state-of-the art and towards 2030 scenarios provided by the REP. Starting from average GHG emissions associated with biogas production from 100% maize silage of 35 gCO2 eq/MJ, a further contribution of 8–18.5 gCO2 eq/MJ due to LUC has been found. Our findings indicate that it is difficult to assess the global GHG savings from the bioenergy targets fixed by regional energy plans when LUC effects are considered. Careful analysis is necessary in each case to avoid creating negative impacts.

scholarly journals Observing European Union Rejection of Indonesia's Crude Palm Oil Exports from the Most Favored Nation and Quantitative Restriction Principles

2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 905
Author(s):  
Atik KRUSTIYATI ◽  
Sylvia JANISRIWATI ◽  
Novela CHRISTINE ◽  
Mokhamad Khoirul HUDA
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
European Union ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Palm Oil ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Crude Palm Oil ◽  
Most Favored Nation ◽  
Quantitative Restriction ◽  
Indirect Land Use Change

Crude palm oil is one of the main commodities exported by Indonesia to several countries, including European Union. The European Union has pushed through several laws regarding climate change, including the Renewable Energy Directive II. The regulation supplementing the Renewable Energy Directive II has also been adopted by the European Commission, making the criteria for determining the high indirect land-use change-risk feedstock in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/807. The objective of this paper is to observe if the measure taken by European Union on determining the indirect land-use change-risk feedstock has satisfied the existing WTO trade principles, the principle of most favored nation and the principle of quantitative restriction. The determining criteria in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/807 is trade restrictive and discriminating to the export of crude palm oil, as crude palm oil is the only feedstock that falls under the criteria of high indirect land-use change-risk feedstock. The regulation has impact for the consumption of crude palm oil in Member states of European Union should be gradually reduced 0% by 2030 at the latest.  As the provision on General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade embodies the principle of non-discrimination, the result of the study shows the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/807 has violated the international trade principles. Furthermore, the general exceptions of GATT 1994 contained in Article XX (b) also doesn’t justify the measure.

scholarly journals Land-Use Change Impacts from Sustainable Hydropower Production in EU28 Region: An Empirical Analysis

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. 4599
Author(s):  
Mohd Alsaleh ◽  
Muhammad Mansur Abdulwakil ◽  
Abdul Samad Abdul-Rahim
Keyword(s):  
Carbon Dioxide ◽  
Land Use ◽  
European Union ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Carbon Dioxide Emissions ◽  
Energy Production ◽  
Land Use Changes ◽  
Ordinary Least Squares ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Hydropower Production

Under the current European Union (EU) constitution approved in May 2018, EU countries ought to guarantee that estimated greenhouse-gas releases from land use, land-use change, or forestry are entirely compensated by an equivalent accounted removal of carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air during the period between 2021 and 2030. This study investigates the effect of sustainable hydropower production on land-use change in the European Union (EU28) region countries during 1990–2018, using the fully modified ordinary least squares (FMOLS). The results revealed that land-use change incline with an increase in hydropower energy production. In addition, economic growth, carbon dioxide emissions, and population density are found to be increasing land-use changes, while institutional quality is found to be decreasing land-use change significantly. The finding implies that land-use change in EU28 region countries can be significantly increased by mounting the amount of hydropower energy production to achieve Energy Union aims by 2030. This will finally be spread to combat climate change and environmental pollution. The findings are considered robust as they were checked with DOLS and pooled OLS. The research suggests that the EU28 countries pay attention to the share of hydropower in their renewable energy combination to minimize carbon releases. Politicians and investors in the EU28 region ought to invest further in the efficiency and sustainability of hydropower generation to increase its production and accessibility without further degradation of forest and agricultural conditions. The authorities of the EU28 region should emphasize on efficiency and sustainability of hydropower energy with land-use management to achieve the international commitments for climate, biodiversity, and sustainable development, reduce dependence on fossil fuel, and energy insecurity.

scholarly journals Regional Diversification of Potential, Production and Efficiency of Use of Biogas and Biomass in Poland

Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 742
Author(s):  
Grzegorz Ślusarz ◽  
Barbara Gołębiewska ◽  
Marek Cierpiał-Wolan ◽  
Jarosław Gołębiewski ◽  
Dariusz Twaróg ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Biomass Production ◽  
Biogas Production ◽  
Renewable Energy Sources ◽  
Energy Sources ◽  
Efficiency Frontier ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Production Potential ◽  
Solid Biomass ◽  
High Share

Energy obtained from renewable sources is an important element of the sustainable development strategy of the European Union and its member states. The aim of this research is, therefore, to assess the potential and use of renewable energy sources and their effectiveness from the regional perspective in Poland. The research covered the years 2012 and 2018. The diversification of production and potential of renewable energy sources was defined on the basis of biogas and biomass. Calculations made using the data envelopment analysis (DEA) method showed that, in 2012, only three voivodeships achieved the highest efficiency in terms of the use of biogas and biomass resources; in 2018, this number increased to four. Comparing the effective units in 2012 and 2018, it can be seen that their efficiency frontier moved upwards by 56% in terms of biogas and 21% in terms of to biomass. Despite a large relative increase in the production of heat from biogas by 99% compared to the production of heat from biomass by 38%, the efficiency frontier for biogas did not change considerably. It was found that the resources of solid biomass are used far more intensively than the resources of biogas. However, in the case of biogas, a significant increase in the utilization of the production potential was observed: from 3.3% in 2012 to 6.4% in 2018, whereas in the same years, the utilization of solid biomass production potential remained at the same level (15.3% in 2012, 15.4% in 2018). It was also observed that, at the level of voivodeships, the utilization of biogas and biomass production potential is negatively correlated with the size of this potential. The combined potential of solid biomass and biogas can cover the demand of each of the studied regions in Poland in terms of thermal energy. The coverage ranges from 104% to 1402%. The results show that when comparing biomass and biogas, the production of both electricity and heat was dominated by solid biomass. Its high share occurred especially in voivodeships characterized by a high share of forest area and a low potential for biogas production (Lubuskie Voivodeship, Zachodniopomorskie Voivodeship).

scholarly journals Dynamics of the land use, land use change, and forestry sink in the European Union: the impacts of energy and climate targets for 2030

2016 ◽  
Vol 138 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 253-266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Frank ◽  
Hannes Böttcher ◽  
Mykola Gusti ◽  
Petr Havlík ◽  
Ger Klaassen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
European Union ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Climate Targets

Impacts of land-use change on biodiversity: An assessment of agricultural biodiversity in the European Union

2006 ◽  
Vol 114 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pytrik Reidsma ◽  
Tonnie Tekelenburg ◽  
Maurits van den Berg ◽  
Rob Alkemade
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
European Union ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Agricultural Biodiversity ◽  
The European Union

scholarly journals Diplomasi Ekonomi Indonesia dalam Merespon RED II

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (8) ◽  
pp. 1271-1285
Author(s):  
Immara Nuur Alfianisa
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Land Use Change ◽  
Indirect Land Use Change ◽  
Joint Mission

Lahan Kelapa Sawit yang sangat luas menjadikan Indonesia sebagai pengeskpor kelapa sawit terbesar di dunia. Pada tahun 2017 kelapa sawit menyumbang devisa kepada Negara sebesar USD 23 Miliar atau setara sekitar Rp 300 Triliun, ekspor pada tahun 2017 naik 26% dari tahun sebelumnya. Pada tahun 2020 nilai ekspor kelapa sawit mencapai USD 22,97 Miliar atau setara dengan 320,5 Triliun. Pasar ekspor kelapa sawit Indonesia telah menjangkau pada Negara-Negara besar antara lain China, Uni Eropa dan India. Namun, pada tahun 2017 Uni Eropa merilis kebijakan Delegated Act on Low and High ILUC-Risk Biofuel dalam Renewable Energy Directive (RED II)  menggolongkan minyak sawit sebagai indirect land use change-risk biofuel (ILUC). Adanya kebijakan tersebut mendorong Indonesia untuk melakukan strategi diplomasi ekonomi dalam merespon kebijakan tersebut. Adapun diplomasi ekonomi yang dilakukan oleh Indonesia antara lain menghadiri pertemuan nasional maupun internasional seperti menghadiri pertemuan dengan Negara penghasil kelapa sawit, dan Joint Mission di Eropa. Mengupayakan lewat WTO, mengupayakan minyak sawit Indonesia bersertifikat berkelanjutan, mengadakan perjanjian dagang dengan Swiss dan kerjasama produksi kelapa sawit dengan Belanda.

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