Most of the international Institutions agree that bioenergy is a fundamental tool to mitigate the effects of climate change. Bioenergy accounts for three-quarters of all renewable energy use today and according to global assessments it will cover half of the most cost-effective options for doubling renewable energy use by 2030. Nevertheless, a lively debate has been going on for years in the scientific and political communities, about the greenhouse gas emission balance of different bioenergy systems and their effectiveness in reducing climate change. An example of this is the recent back and forth between Chatham House and IEA Bioenergy about woody biomass for power and heat, that appeared in the news and social media this month. Last February Chatham House released a report stating that current biomass policy frameworks require substantial changes to ensure they contribute to mitigating climate change rather than exacerbating it. A few days later IEA Bioenergy published a response signed by 125 academics saying that the report is misleading and urged Chatham House to reconsider its flawed policy recommendations (the list of signatories has been reopened a few days ago and can be signed here).
For those of you who want to know more about the many aspects of bioenergy and climate change and how the scientific community is addressing this issue, here is a list of scientific works by independent researchers that will be presented this June in Stockholm at the European Biomass Conference and Exhibition (EUBCE).
