Skip to main content
    • Sign-in
    • Contact Us
  • Connect:
  • Key Topics
    • Billion-Ton Vol1
    • Billion-Ton Vol2
    • High Octane Fuel
    • Sustainability
    • SGI
    • SGI Crop
    • Billion-Ton Update (2012)
  • Overview
  • Tools & Apps
  • Map
  • Bioenergy Library
  • Sustainability Home
  • Standards
    • Certification
  • Indicators
    • Indicator Checklist
  • BioSTAR
  • Glossary
  • Literature
  • About

Filter by DOE Funded:

  • DOE Funded 29

Filter by Bioenergy Category:

  • Feedstock Production 2 Apply Feedstock Production filter
  • Feedstock Logistics 1 Apply Feedstock Logistics filter
  • Biofuel Production 66 Apply Biofuel Production filter
  • Biofuel Distribution 5 Apply Biofuel Distribution filter
  • Supporting Data 1 Apply Supporting Data filter

Filter by Keywords:

  • Remove sustainability standards filter sustainability standards
  • biodiversity 1 Apply biodiversity filter
  • bioenergy 1 Apply bioenergy filter
  • Bioenergy sustainability 1 Apply Bioenergy sustainability filter
  • biofuel 1 Apply biofuel filter
  • Cellulosic Ethanol 1 Apply Cellulosic Ethanol filter
  • ecosystem services 1 Apply ecosystem services filter
  • fossil fuel 1 Apply fossil fuel filter
  • indicators 1 Apply indicators filter
  • land management 1 Apply land management filter
  • sustainability 1 Apply sustainability filter

Filter by Publication Year:

  • 2019 5 Apply 2019 filter
  • 2018 12 Apply 2018 filter
  • 2017 4 Apply 2017 filter
  • 2016 6 Apply 2016 filter
  • 2015 2 Apply 2015 filter
  • 2014 7 Apply 2014 filter
  • 2013 9 Apply 2013 filter
  • 2012 2 Apply 2012 filter
  • 2011 3 Apply 2011 filter
  • 2010 6 Apply 2010 filter
  • 2009 13 Apply 2009 filter
  • 2008 3 Apply 2008 filter
  • 2006 2 Apply 2006 filter
  • 2005 1 Apply 2005 filter
  • 2004 1 Apply 2004 filter
  • 2001 1 Apply 2001 filter
  • 1997 1 Apply 1997 filter
  • 1996 1 Apply 1996 filter

Filter by Organization:

  • DOE 14 Apply DOE filter
  • USDA 2 Apply USDA filter

Filter by Lab:

  • ORNL 14 Apply ORNL filter

Bioenergy Sustainability Literature Search

Influences of nitrogen fertilization and climate regime on the above-ground biomass yields of miscanthus and switchgrass: A meta-analysis☆
Perennial grasses are touted as sustainable feedstocks for energy production. Such benefits, however, may be offset if excessive nitrogen (N) fertilization leads to economic and environmental issues. Furthermore, as yields respond to changes in climate, nutrient requirements will change, and thus...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Huaihai Chen , Zhongmin Dai , Henriette I. Jager , Stan D. Wullschleger , Jianming Xu , Christopher W. Schadt
Avoiding Conflicts between Future Freshwater Algae Production and Water Scarcity in the United States at the Energy-Water Nexus
Sustainable production of algae will depend on understanding trade-offs at the energy-water nexus. Algal biofuels promise to improve the environmental sustainability profile of renewable energy along most dimensions. In this assessment of potential US freshwater production, we assumed sustainable...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Henriette I. Jager , Rebecca A. Efroymson , Latha M. Baskaran
Designing bioenergy landscapes to protect water quality
Practicing agriculture decreases downstream water quality when compared to non-agricultural lands. Agricultural watersheds that also grow perennial biofuel feedstocks can be designed to improve water quality compared to agricultural watersheds without perennials. The question then becomes which...
Organization: University of Tennessee
Authors: Jasmine A.F. Kreig , Herbert Ssegane , Indrajeet Chaubey , Maria C. Negri , Henriette I. Jager
Can upstream biofuel production increase the flow of downstream ecosystem goods and services?
Advanced biomass feedstocks tend to provide more non-fuel ecosystem goods and services (ES) than 1st-generation alternatives. We explore the idea that payment for non-fuel ES could facilitate market penetration of advanced biofuels by closing the profitability gap. As a specific example, we discuss...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Henriette I.Jager , Rebecca A. Efroymson
Risk and resilience in an uncertain world
Ecological disturbances are occurring with greater frequency and intensity than in the past. Under projected shifts in disturbance regimes and patterns of recovery, societal and environmental impacts are expected to be more extreme and to span larger spatial extents. Moreover, preexisting...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Virginia H Dale , Henriette I Jager , Amy K Wolfe , Rebecca A Efroymson
Impacts of oil price shocks on the United States economy
Policy makers are interested in estimates of the potential economic impacts of oil price shocks, particularly during periods of rapid and large increases that accompany severe supply shocks. Literature estimates of the economic impacts of oil price shocks, summarized by the oil price elasticity of...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Gbadebo A.Oladosu , Paul N.Leiby , David C.Bowman , Rocio Uría-Martínez , Megan M.Johnson
A multi-scale comparison of environmental effects from gasoline and ethanol production
Understanding the environmental effects of alternative fuel production is critical to characterizing the sustainability of energy resources to inform policy and regulatory decisions. The magnitudes of these environmental effects vary according to the intensity and scale of fuel production along...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Parish ES , Kline KL , Dale VH , Efroymson RA , McBride AC , Johnson TL , Hilliard MR , Bielicki JM
Potential land competition between open-pond microalgae production and terrestrial dedicated feedstock supply systems in the U.S.
To date, feedstock resource assessments have evaluated cellulosic and algal feedstocks independently, without consideration of demands for, and resource allocation to, each other. We assess potential land competition between algal and terrestrial feedstocks in the United States, and evaluate a...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Langholtz, M. , A. M. Coleman , L.M. Eaton , M. S. Wigmosta , Chad Hellwinckel , Craig C. Brandt
A causal analysis framework for land-use change and the potential role of bioenergy policy
We propose a causal analysis framework to increase understanding of land-use change (LUC) and the reliability of LUC models. This health-sciences-inspired framework can be applied to determine probable causes of LUC in the context of bioenergy. Calculations of net greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Efroymson RA , Kline KL , Angelsen A , Verburg PH , Dale VH , Langeveld JWA , McBride A
Status and prospects for renewable energy using wood pellets from the southeastern United States
The ongoing debate about costs and benefits of wood‐pellet based bioenergy production in the southeastern United States (SE USA) requires an understanding of the science and context influencing market decisions associated with its sustainability. Production of pellets has garnered much attention as...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Virginia H. Dale , Keith L. Kline , Esther S. Parish , Annette L. Cowie , Robert Emory , Robert W. Malmsheimer , Raphael Slade , Charles Tattersall (Tat) SMITH Jr
Reference scenarios for evaluating wood pellet production in the Southeastern United States
Wood pellet exports from the Southeastern United States (SE US) to Europe have been increasing in response to European Union member state policies to displace coal with renewable biomass for electricity generation. An understanding of the interactions among SE US forest markets, forest management,...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Esther S. Parish , Virginia H. Dale , Keith L. Kline , Robert C. Abt
Reconciling food security and bioenergy: priorities for action
Understanding the complex interactions among food security, bioenergy sustainability, and resource management requires a focus on specific contextual problems and opportunities. The United Nations’ 2030 Sustainable Development Goals place a high priority on food and energy security; bioenergy plays...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Kline KL , Msangi S , Dale VH , Woods J , Souza G , Osseweijer P , Clancy J , Hilbert J , Mugera H , McDonnell P , Johnson F
Uncertainty in Estimates of Bioenergy-Induced Land Use Change
Published in Bioenergy and Land Use Change (pp. 141–153). John Wiley & Sons, Inc. While many data sets are increasingly available to describe land cover characteristics, these data require careful analysis and supplemental research before conclusions can be drawn about the scope, magnitude, and...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Nagendra Singh , Keith L. Kline , Rebecca A. Efroymson , Budhendra Bhaduri , Bridget O'Banion
Compatibility Assessment of Fuel System Infrastructure Plastics with Bio-oil and Diesel Fuel
Bio-oil derived via fast pyrolysis is being developed as a renewable fuel option for petroleum distillates. The compatibility of neat bio-oil with 18 plastic types was evaluated using neat diesel fuel as the baseline. The plastic materials included polyphenylene sulfide (PPS), polyethylene...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Michael D. Kass , Christopher J. Janke , Raynella M. Connatser , Samuel A. Lewis Sr. , James R. Keiser , Katherine Gaston
Environmental limitation mapping of potential biomass resources across the conterminous United States
Several crops have recently been identified as potential dedicated bioenergy feedstocks for the production of power, fuels, and bioproducts. Despite being identified as early as the 1980s, no systematic work has been undertaken to characterize the spatial distribution of their long‐term production...
Organization: Oregon State University
Authors: Christopher Daly , Michael D. Halbleib , David B. Hannaway , Laurence M. Eaton
An economic evaluation of alternative biofuel deployment scenarios in the USA. AIMS Energy, 5(3)
Energy market conditions have shifted dramatically since the USA renewable fuel standards (RFS1 in 2005; RFS2 in 2007) were enacted. The USA has transitioned from an increasing dependence on oil imports to abundant domestic oil production. In addition, increases in the use of ethanol, the main...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Gbadebo Oladosu
Cost of Oil and Biomass Supply Shocks under Different Biofuel Supply Chain Configurations
This analysis estimates the cost of selected oil and biomass supply shocks for producers and consumers in the light-duty vehicle fuel market under various supply chain configurations using a mathematical programing model, BioTrans. The supply chain configurations differ by whether they include...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Rocío Uría-Martínez , Paul N. Leiby , Maxwell L. Brown
Energy security role of biofuels in evolving liquid fuel markets
We explore the role of biofuels in mitigating the negative impacts of oil supply shocks on fuel markets under a range of oil price trajectories and biofuel blending mandate levels. Using a partial equilibrium model of US biofuels production and petroleum fuels trade, we discuss the adjustments in...
Organization: ORNL
Authors: Uría-Martínez, R. , Leiby, P. N. , Brown, M. L.
Criteria and Indicators for Assesing the Sustainability of Forest Management: Conservation of Biodiversity.
The need for new criteria and indicators for the assessment of biodiversity conservation as part of sustainable forest management of tropical forests has been identified as a priority by many international organisations. Those biodiversity criteria and indicators which formed part of a much broader...
Authors: Stork, N.E. , Boyle, T.J.B. , Dale, V. , Eeley, H. , Finegan, B. , Lawes, M. , Manokaran, N. , Prabhu, R. , Soberon, J.
Good policy follows good science: using criteria and indicators for assessing sustainable biofuel production
Developing scientific criteria and indicators should play a critical role in charting a sustainable path for the rapidly developing biofuel industry. The challenge ahead in developing such criteria and indicators is to address the limitations on data and modeling.
Authors: Alan D. Hecht , Denice Shaw , Randy Bruins , Virginia Dale , Keith Kline , Alice Chen
Good policy follows good science: Using criteria and indicators for assessing sustainable biofuels production.
Developing scientific criteria and indicators should play a critical role in charting a sustainable path for the rapidly developing biofuel industry. The challenge ahead in developing such criteria and indicators is to address the limitations on data and modeling.
Authors: Alan D. Hecht , Denice Shaw , Randy Bruins , Virginia Dale , Keith Kline , Alice Chen
Indicators to support environmental sustainability of bioenergy systems
Indicators are needed to assess environmental sustainability of bioenergy systems. Effective indicators will help in the quantification of benefits and costs of bioenergy options and resource uses. We identify 19 measurable indicators for soil quality, water quality and quantity, greenhouse gases,...
Organization: Center for Bioenergy Sustainability, Environmental Sciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Allen C.McBride , Virginia H. Dale , Latha M. Baskaran , Mark E. Downing , Laurence M. Eaton , Rebecca A. Efroymson , Charles T. Garten Jr. , Keith L. Kline , Henriette I. Jager , Patrick J. Mulholland , Esther S. Parish , Peter E. Schweizer , John M. Storey
Environmental indicators of biofuel sustainability: What about context?
Indicators of the environmental sustainability of biofuel production, distribution, and use should be selected, measured, and interpreted with respect to the context in which they are used. The context of a sustainability assessment includes the purpose, the particular biofuel production and...
Organization: ORNL
Authors: Rebecca A. Efroymson , Virginia H. Dale , Keith L. Kline , Allen C. McBride , Jeffrey M. Bielicki , Raymond L. Smith , Esther S. Parish , Peter E. Schweizer , Denice M. Shaw
Environmental and socioeconomic indicators for bioenergy sustainability as applied to Eucalyptus.
Eucalyptus is a fast-growing tree native to Australia and could be used to supply biomass for bioenergy and other purposes along the coastal regions of the southeastern United States (USA). At a farmgate price of $66 dry Mg−1, a potential supply of 27 to 41.3 million dry Mg year−1 of Eucalyptus...
Organization: ORNL
Authors: Virginia H. Dale , Matthew H. Langholtz , Beau M. Wesh , Laurence M. Eaton
Take a Closer Look: Biofuels Can Support Environmental, Economic and Social Goals.
INTRODUCTION The U.S. Congress passed the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) seven years ago. Since then, biofuels have gone from darling to scapegoat for many environmentalists, policy makers, and the general public. The reasons for this shift are complex and include concerns about environmental...
Organization: Michigan State University
Authors: Bruce E. Dale , James E. Anderson , Robert C. Brown , Steven Csonka , Virginia H. Dale , Gary Herwick , Randall D. Jackson , Nicholas Jordan , Stephen Kaffka , Keith L. Kline
Bioenergy sustainability: how to define and measure it
Goal: Enable long- term supply of sustainable feedstock & bioenergy – Identify key indicators of how bioenergy production affects environmental, social & economic sustainability – Determine how those effects can be quantified – Demonstrate quantitative approach to assessment of progress...
Forecasting changes in water quality in rivers associated with growing biofuels in the Arkansas-White-Red river drainage, USA
Excess nutrients from agriculture in the Mississippi River drainage, USA have degraded water quality in freshwaters and contributed to anoxic conditions in downstream estuaries. Consequently, water quality is a significant concern associated with conversion of lands to bioenergy production. This...
Organization: ORNL
Authors: Henriette I. Jager , Latha M. Baskaran   , Peter E. Schweizer   , Anthony F. Turhollow   , Craig C. Brandt  , Raghavan Srinivasan
Risks to global biodiversity from fossil-fuel production exceed those from biofuel production
Potential global biodiversity impacts from near-term gasoline production are compared to biofuel, a renewable liquid transportation fuel expected to substitute for gasoline in the near term (i.e., from now until c. 2030).  Petroleum exploration activities are projected to extend across more than 5....
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Virginia H. Dale , Esther S. Parish , Keith L. Kline
Global economic effects of US biofuel policy and the potential contribution from advanced biofuels
Background: This study evaluates the global economic effects of the current US RFS2, and the potential contribution from advanced biofuels. Results & discussion: Our simulation results suggest that these mandates lead to an increase of 0.21% in the global gross domestic product in 2022,...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Keith L Kline , Rocio Martinez , Paul N. Leiby , Virginia H Dale , Maggie Davis , Laurence M Eaton , Mark Downing
Debate: Can bioenergy be produced in a sustainable manner that protects biodiversity and avoids the risk of invaders?
Weighing contrasting evidence is an integral element of science (Osborne 2010). The dominant forum for doing this and for scientific exchange in general is the peer-review and publication process. It tends to be slow because of the time required to conduct critical reviews. Rapid exchange and...
Organization: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Authors: Ridley, CE , HI Jager, , RA Efroymson , C Kwit , DA. Landis , ZH Leggett , DA Miller , CM Clark
Sustainability Certification for Biofuels
Poorly developed biofuels pose severe environmental risks. Procurement officials and risk managers should use only the most stringent and protective certification standards available. Yet assessing how different certification systems rank across the product life cycle is a complex undertaking. That...
Organization: Lands Division, Nature Program, NRDC
Authors: Debbie Hammel
Sustainability criteria: their indicators, control, and monitoring (with examples from the biofuel sector)
Background: The purpose of the article is to research and analyze the notion of sustainability criteria in their function of an emerging tool to promote and safeguard sustainable products and their sustainable production. The article addresses critical issues, which are important for deeper...
Authors: Evgenia Pavlovskaia
Legal Harvesting, Sustainable Sourcing and Cascaded Use of Wood for Bioenergy: Their Coverage through Existing Certification Frameworks for Sustainable Forest Management
The first objective of this paper was to provide an inventory of developments of certification schemes for sustainable biomass production, following recent EU legislation (both formalized and under development). One main pillar is the EU Timber Regulation for legal harvesting; a second one is the...
Authors: Richard Sikkema , Martin Junginger , Jinke van Dam , Gerben Stegeman , David Durrant , Andre Faaij
Sustainability Criteria and Indicators for the Bio-Based Economy in Europe: State of Discussion and Way Forward
There is a strong interest in the EU to promote the bioeconomy sector within the EU 2020 strategy. It is thus necessary to assure a sound sustainability framework. This paper reviews international and European sustainability initiatives mainly for biomass for bioenergy. The basic and advanced...
Authors: Uwe R. Fritsche , Leire Iriarte
Aviation Biofuel Sustainability Scorecards
The aviation industry has committed to hold its carbon emissions steady after 2020 and cut net carbon emissions to half of the 2005 level by 2050. Achieving these goals will require low-carbon fuels, and aviation must drive technology and policy advances to build an aviation biofuel industry with...
Organization: Natural Resources Defense Council
Authors: Debbie Hammel
Biofuel sustainability performance guidelines
This document was prepared to help address these questions by proposing guidelines that define a suite of voluntary biofuel sustainability performance indicators and can be used to inform best-value procurement decisions. These guidelines propose a sustainability framework composed of pillars,...
Biofuel: Policy, Standardization and Recommendation for Sustainable Future Energy Supply
As a promising alternative energy source, biofuel imparts a remarkable role for the sustainability and security in energy sector. Strategies, including policy recommendations have been set to put forward the development and implementation of biofuel by different countries. Recent exploitation of...
Betting on best quality: A comparison of the quality and level of assurance of sustainability standards for biomass, soy and palm oil.
Foreword: Governments and the private sector are increasingly aware of the need to pursue sustainability for biomass. Over the past decades many criteria have been drawn up, mandatory or criteria in voluntary standard systems or in public-private agreements. As pressure on the earth’s ecosystems is...
Searching for Sustainability: Comparative Analysis of Certification Schemes for Biomass used for the Production of Biofuels
This study analyses and compares all standards and certification schemes for biofuels production that were approved to comply with the EU RED requirements. The study compared all of the EU-recognized schemes for certifying the sustainability of biofuels which had been established as of June, 2013....
Biomass sustainability and certification
The major challenges for humanity include energy security, food security, climate change, and a growing world population. They are all linked together by an instinctive, and yet increasingly complex and evolving concept, that of sustainability. Industrial biotechnology is seen as part of the...
Organization: Science and Technology Policy Division, Directorate for Science, Technology and Industry, OECD
Authors: Krishna C. Pavanan , Roeland A. Bosch , Rob Cornelissen , Jim C. Philp
Participatory selection of sustainability criteria and indicators for bioenergy developments
This paper presents a generic approach for selecting sustainability criteria and indicators (C&I) by using a participatory methodology. Selecting appropriate C&I to assess the sustainability of projects or developments is crucial and significantly influences the assessment results. The...
Organization: University of Abertay Dundee
Authors: Thomas Kurka , David Blackwood
How effective are the sustainability criteria accompanying the European Union 2020 biofuel targets?
The expansion of biofuel production can lead to an array of negative environmental impacts. Therefore, the European Union (EU) has recently imposed sustainability criteria on biofuel production in the Renewable Energy Directive (RED). In this article, we analyse the effectiveness of the...
Organization: International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
Authors: Stefan Frank , Hannes Böttcher , Petr Havlík , Hugo Valin , Aline Mosnier , Michael Obersteiner , Erwin Schmid , Berien Elbersen
Overview of recent developments in sustainable biomass certification
The objective of this paper is to give a comprehensive review of initiatives on biomass certification from different viewpoints of stakeholders, including national governments (such as The Netherlands, the UK, Belgium and Germany), the EC, NGOs, companies, and international bodies up until October...
Organization: Copernicus Institute for Sustainable Development, Utrecht University Heidelberglaan
Authors: Jinke van Dam , Martin Junginger , André Faaij , Ingmar Jürgens , Gustavo Best , Uwe Fritsche
Recent developments of biofuels/bioenergy sustainability certification: A global overview
The objective of this paper is to provide a review on the latest developments on the main initiatives and approaches for the sustainability certification for biofuels and/or bioenergy. A large number of national and international initiatives lately experienced rapid development in the view of the...
Organization: European Commission, Joint Research Centre, Institute for Energy
Authors: Nicolae Scarlat , Jean-François Dallemand
Trends and sustainability criteria of the production and use of liquid biofuels
Environmental impacts associated with the use of fossil fuels, rising prices, potential limitations in supply and concerns about regional and national security are driving the development and use of biomass for bioenergy, biofuels and bioproducts. However, the use of biomass does not automatically...
Organization: Lithuanian Energy Institute Laboratory of Renewable Energy
Authors: A. Markevičius , V. Katinas , E. Perednis , M. Tamašauskienė
Criteria and indicators for sustainable forest fuel production and harvesting: A review of current standards for sustainable forest management
Forest biomass is increasingly being considered as a source of sustainable energy. It is crucial, however, that this biomass be grown and harvested in a sustainable manner. International processes and certification systems have been developed to ensure sustainable forest management (SFM) in general...
Organization: Forest & Landscape Denmark, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Authors: Inge Stupak , Brenna Lattimore , Brian D. Titus , C. Tattersall Smith
Certification Criteria for sustainable Bio-Mass for energy
Rising energy prices, geopolitics as well as concerns over increasing oil prices, national security, and the impacts of greenhouse gas emissions on global climate change are driving large-scale efforts to implement bioenergy alternatives. Biomass fuels offer many new opportunities, but if not...
Authors: Svetlana Ladanai , Johan Vinterbäck
Criteria for sustainable bioenergy infrastructure and lifecycle
The biofuel boom has raised great expectations regarding renewable, domestic and carbon-free bioenergy sources but at the same time has led to concerns about the adverse environmental and socio-economic implications such as land-use competition, deforestation and market distortions. In this context...
Authors: Jürgen Scheffran
Sustainability standards for bioenergy—A means to reduce climate change risks?
The paper discusses the importance of standards for sustainable bioenergy production. Sustainability of bioenergy production is crucial if bioenergy is supposed to contribute effectively to climate change mitigation. First, a brief overview of current bioenergy policies and of initiatives and...
Organization: ETH Zurich
Authors: Renate Schubert
From the global efforts on certification of bioenergy towards an integrated approach based on sustainable land use planning
This paper presents an overview of 67 ongoing certification initiatives to safeguard the sustainability of bioenergy. Most recent initiatives are focused on the sustainability of liquid biofuels. Content-wise, most of these initiatives have mainly included environmental principles. Despite serious...
Organization: Department of Science, Technology & Society, Copernicus Institute, Utrecht University
Authors: J. van Dam , M. Junginger , A.P.C. Faaij
Biofuel and the conundrum of sustainability
Sustainable energy is the problem of the 21st century. If biofuels want to be part of the solution they must accept a degree of scrutiny unprecedented in the development of a new industry. That is because sustainability deals explicitly with the role of biofuels in ensuring the well-being of our...
Organization: Institute on the Environment, University of Minnesota
Authors: John J Sheehan
A greenhouse gas indicator for bioenergy: some theoretical issues with practical implications
The expectations with respect to biomass as a resource for sustainable energy are sky-high. Many industrialized countries have adopted ambitious policy targets and have introduced financial measures to stimulate the production or use of bioenergy. Meanwhile, the side-effects and associated risks...
Authors: Jeroen B. Guinée , Reinout Heijungs , Ester van der Voet
Environmental factors in wood fuel production: Opportunities, risks, and criteria and indicators for sustainable practices
Bioenergy from sustainably managed forest ecosystems could provide a renewable, carbon-neutral source of energy in many nations and communities throughout the world. In order for forest bioenergy to be an ecologically sustainable fuel source, woodfuel procurement systems must not adversely impact...
Organization: Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto
Authors: B. Lattimore , C.T. Smith , B.D. Titus , I. Stupak , G. Egnell
Sustainability criteria for bioenergy systems: results from an expert survey
Environmental impacts associated with the use of fossil fuels, rising prices, potential limitations in supply and concerns about regional and national security are driving the development and use of biomass for bioenergy, biofuels and bioproducts. However, the use of biomass does not automatically...
Organization: State University of New York, College of Environmental Sciences and Forestry (SUNY-ESF), Department of Forest and Natural Resource Management
Authors: Thomas Buchholz , Valerie A. Luzadis , Timothy A. Volk
Review on multi-criteria decision analysis aid in sustainable energy decision-making
Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) methods have become increasingly popular in decision-making for sustainable energy because of the multi-dimensionality of the sustainability goal and the complexity of socio-economic and biophysical systems. This article reviewed the corresponding methods in...
Organization: School of Energy and Power Engineering, North China Electric Power University
Authors: Jiang-Jiang Wang , You-Yin Jing , Chun-Fa Zhang , Jun-Hong Zhao
Multi Criteria Analysis for bioenergy systems assessments
Sustainable bioenergy systems are, by definition, embedded in social, economic, and environmental contexts and depend on support of many stakeholders with different perspectives. The resulting complexity constitutes a major barrier to the implementation of bioenergy projects. The goal of this paper...
Organization: Department of Forest and Natural Resources Management, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Authors: Thomas Buchholz , Ewald Rametsteiner , Timothy A. Volk , Valerie A. Luzadis
Steps to discern sustainability criteria for a certification scheme of bioethanol in Brazil: Approach and difficulties
Taking Brazilian bioethanol as an example, this paper presents possible sustainability criteria for a certification scheme aimed to minimize negative socio-ecological impacts and to increase the sustainable production of biomass. We describe the methods that have led us to the identification of a...
Organization: Institute for Food and Resource Economics, University of Bonn
Authors: R. Delzeit , K. Holm-Müller
A greenhouse gas indicator for bioenergy: some theoretical issues with practical implications
The expectations with respect to biomass as a resource for sustainable energy are sky-high. Many industrialized countries have adopted ambitious policy targets and have introduced financial measures to stimulate the production or use of bioenergy. Meanwhile, the side-effects and associated risks...
Authors: Jeroen B. Guinée , Reinout Heijungs , Ester van der Voet
The power of bioenergy sustainability-related standards to protect biodiversity
The sustainable production of bioenergy is vital to avoiding negative impacts on environmental goods such as climate, soil, water, and especially biodiversity. We propose three key issues that should be addressed in any biodiversity risk-mitigation strategy: conservation of areas of significant...
Authors: K. J. HENNENBERG , C. DRAGISIC S. HAYE , J. HEWSON , B. SEMROC , C. SAVY , K. WIEGMANN , H. FEHRENBACH , U. R. FRITSCHE
Risk governance guidelines for bioenergy policies
These Notes from the Field summarise the governance guidelines developed by the International Risk Governance Council (IRGC) to address the key challenges that policy-makers face when designing and implementing policies and regulations for the increasing production, trade and use of bioenergy. The...
Organization: International Risk Governance Council
Authors: Marie Valentine Florin , Christopher Bunting
EU Support for biofuels and bioenergy, Environmental Sustainability Criteria and Trade Policy
To produce, trade on or use agricultural products as fuel—a practice as old as human history—has become a policy riddle spawning emotional debate and multiple, sometimes competing and conflicting, measures and actions. Today, many see fuel derivatives from agricultural produce and forests as a new...
Bio energy policies in a global context
Against the background of an increasing global demand for bio-energy, the need for sustainability standards and a certification system ensuring sustainable production and trade has grown rapidly. Nevertheless, there is currently no specific forum for discussions on how to deal with biomass trade at...
Organization: CEPS, Centre for European Policy Studies
Authors: Eleni A. Kaditi
Criteria for sustainable bioenergy use on a global scale
The German Biokraftstoffquotengesetz, the EU Biofuel Directive and other policy making initiatives lead to promote the production and use of bioenergy, liquid biofuel for transportation in particular. Such an increase requires a reliable verification on compliance with sustainability principles on...
Authors: H. Fehrenbach , J. Giegrich , G. Reinhardt , J. Schmitz , U. Sayer , M. Gretz , E. Seizinger , K. Lanje
Local and global consequences of the EU renewable directive for biofuels: testing the sustainability criteria
Current biofuels do not add to the sustainability of transport: This report assesses the impact of the European Commission"s proposal for a new Renewable Directive, focusing on the specific target for the transport sector, which is 10% in 2020. The Commission proposes criteria to guarantee the...
European Union Policy on Bioenergy and the Role of Sustainability Criteria and Certification Systems
The EU has set ambitious targets to raise the share of renewable energies, particularly biofuels. With an increasingly controversial public debate and more scientific evidence about the downsites of biofuels, recently the European Unions biofuel targets have been bound to the condition that they...
Authors: Stephanie Schlegel , Timo Kaphengst
Steps towards the development of a certification system for sustainable bio energy trade.
It is expected that international biomass trade will significantly increase in the coming years because of the possibly lower costs of imported biomass, the better supply security through diversification and the support by energy and climate policies of various countries. Concerns about potential...
Organization: Copernicus Institute for Sustainable Development and Innovation, Department of Science, Technology and Society (STS), Utrecht University
Authors: I. Lewandowski , A.P.C. Faaij
Using multi-criteria analysis and visualization for sustainable forest management planning with stakeholder groups
While there is an increasing demand for active public involvement in forestry decision-making, there are as yet few successful models for achieving this in the new sustainable forest management (SFM) context. This paper describes the special needs of forest managers conducting participatory SFM...
Organization: Collaborative for Advanced Landscape Planning (CALP), Department of Forest Resources Management and Centre for Landscape Research, University of British Columbia
Authors: Stephen R.J. Sheppard , Michael Meitner
Growing fuel: a sustainability assessment of willow biomass crops
Global energy use projections predict that biomass will be an important source of renewable energy in the coming decades. Short-rotation woody crops will be the prime source of this biomass. However, the sustainability of woody crops has been questioned. Using internationally accepted forest...
Authors: Timothy A. Volk , Theo Verwijst , Pradeep J. Tharakan , Lawrence P. Abrahamso , Edwin H. White
Criteria and Indicators for sustainable forest management
There is increasing pressure on the forestry industry to adopt sustainable practices, but a lack of knowledge about how to facilitate this, and how to measure sustainability. This book reviews current thinking about scientifically based indicators, and sustainable management of natural forests and...
Authors: Robert John Raison
Testing criteria indicators for assessing the sustainability of forest management: genetic criteria and indicators
This working paper contains proposals for specific genetic criteria and indicators (C&I) which are expected to be part of a more general set of biological C&I. These proposals are intended for use in guiding tropical forest management but the indicators and verifiers we describe are not in...
Authors: Namkoong, G. , Boyle, T.J.B. , Gregorius, H.-R. , Joly, H. , Savolainen, O. , Ratnam, W. , Young, A.
Environmental sustainability assessment of bioeconomy value chains
Bioeconomy has gained political momentum since 2012 when the European Commission adopted the strategy “Innovating for Sustainable Growth: A Bioeconomy for Europe”. Assessing the environmental performance of different bioeconomy value chains (divided in three pillars: food and feed, bio-based...
Organization: European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Institute for Environment and Sustainability (IES)
Authors: Jorge Cristóbal , Cristina T. Matos , Jean-Philippe Aurambout , Simone Manfredi , Boyan Kavalov
Food security criteria for voluntary biomass sustainability standards certifications
With the shift from petroleum-based to biomass-based economies, global biomass demand and trade is growing. This trend could become a threat to food security. Though rising concerns about sustainability aspects have led to the development of voluntary certification standards to ensure that biomass...
Organization: Center for Development Research, ZEF, University of Bonn
Authors: Anna Mohr , Tina Beuchelt , Rafaël Schneider , Detlef Virchow
Sustainability Protocols and Certification Criteria for Switchgrass-Based Bioenergy
Production of bioenergy from cellulosic sources is likely to increase due to mandates, tax incentives, and subsidies. However, unchecked growth in the bioenergy industry has the potential to adversely influence land use, biodiversity, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and water resources. It may have...
Authors: Pralhad Burli , Pankaj Lal , Bernabas Wolde , Janaki Alavalapati
Quantifying the climate effects of bioenergy – Choice of reference system
In order to understand the climate effects of a bioenergy system, a comparison between the bioenergy system and a reference system is required. The reference system describes the situation that occurs in the absence of the bioenergy system with respect to the use of land, energy, and materials. The...
Organization: Technical Research Centre of Finland
Authors: Koponen K , Soimakallio S , Kline KL , Cowie A , Brandão M
Indicators of the U.S. Biobased Economy
The biobased economy is playing an increasingly important role in the American economy. Through innovations in renewable energies and the emergence of a new generation of biobased products, the sectors that drive the biobased economy are providing job creation and economic growth. To further...
Organization: East Carolina University
Authors: Jay S. Golden , Robert Handfield , Janire Pascual-Gonzalez , Ben Agsten , Taylor Brennan , Lina Khan , Emily True
Visualizing feedstock siting in biomass production: Tradeoffs between economic and water quality objectives
New domestic, renewable energy resources must be considered to increase energy security in the U.S. Ethanol production through second-generation (cellulosic) feedstocks will help the U.S. meet the legislative Renewable Fuel Standard, which mandates 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022....
Organization: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Authors: David E. Gorelick , Latha M. Baskaran , Henriëtte I. Jager
Spatially explicit modelling of biological productivity and economic attractiveness of short rotation woody crops.
Despite of the key role that short rotation woody crops (SRWC) play in supporting bioenergy and the bioeconomy, questions arise about the sustainability of bioenergy. Is it net energy efficient? Is bioenergy carbon neutral? Do SRWC plantations adversely affect food security by competing for land...
Authors: Stanturf J. , T. M. Young , J. H. Perdue
Stochastic Optimization of Cellulosic Biofuel Supply Chain under Feedstock
on environment friendly and socio-economically sustainable renewable energy sources. However, commercial production of bioenergy is constrained by biomass supply uncertainty and associated costs. This study presents an integrated approach to determining the optimal biofuel supply chain considering...
Authors: Sharma, B. P. , T. E. Yu , B. C. English , C. Boyer , J. A. Larson
Genetic variation and expected per cycle biomass yield gain in lowland switchgrass.
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.), a native of the North American prairies, has been selected for bioenergy research. With a focus on biomass yield improvement, this study aim (i) to estimate the genetic variation in biomass yield and important agronomic traits in ‘Alamo’, (ii) to determine...
Authors: Dalid, C. , A. M. Saxton , F. L. Allen , V. R. Pantalone , S. Nayak , H. Bhandari
Effect of Land Use Change for Bioenergy Production on Feedstock Cost and Water Quality.
Producing renewable fuel from dedicated energy crops, such as switchgrass, has the potential to generate localized environmental benefits. This study uses high-resolution spatial data for west Tennessee to quantify the effects of producing switchgrass for cellulosic ethanol on the grey water...
Organization: University of Tennessee, Knoxville
Authors: Zhong, J. , T. E. Yu , C. D. Clark , B. C. English , J. A. Larson , C. L. Cheng
U.S. Department of Energy
Contact Us
Security & Privacy
  • Main menu
    • Home
  • Search
  • User menu
    • Sign-in
    • Contact Us
    • My Account
      • My Notebook
  • Navigation
    • Key Topics
      • Billion-Ton Vol1
      • Billion-Ton Vol2
      • High Octane Fuel
      • Sustainability
      • SGI
      • SGI Crop
      • Billion-Ton Update (2012)
    • Overview
    • Tools & Apps
    • Map
    • Bioenergy Library