New sustainability criteria have been introduced by the government aimed at a 70 percent saving on greenhouse gases by the biomass sector compared to fossil fuels. From April 2015, the biomass industry in the UK, currently worth over £1 billion in new investment while supporting over 3,000 jobs, will be required to demonstrate the sustainability of fuel or lose financial support.
“The Coalition is committed to delivering clean, affordable and secure energy for consumers" said Energy Minister Greg Barker. “This includes an important role for biomass power as part of the UK’s energy mix. The new criteria will provide the necessary investor certainty and, crucially, ensure that the biomass is delivered in a transparent and sustainable way.”
The tough new criteria for sustainable forest management are based on a range of issues including sustainable harvesting rates, biodiversity protection and land use rights for indigenous populations. Organisations who fail to comply with the criteria will risk losing financial support provided under the Renewables Obligation (RO), which would cover around 98 percent of all biomass operations in the UK.
In addition, the government will require generators of 1MW capacity and above to provide an independent sustainability audit with their annual sustainability report. The government believes that the measures it has announced will help to bring forward transitional biomass technologies such as coal to biomass conversions which are one of the quickest and most cost effective ways in which to help decarbonise the UK electricity supply. The government will also help to ensure certainty for investors by ensuring that no further changes to the criteria will be made before April 2027.
Meanwhile, the Renewable Energy Association (REA) has reacted to the announcement, welcoming the criteria which the REA says will ensure that only projects with strong ecological protections and high carbon savings can be supported under the RO. However the REA is still appealing to the government not to withdraw support for new biomass plants under the forthcoming Contracts for Difference (CfD) regime.
“Biomass power can help bridge the energy gap because it is affordable, helps to meet base load power needs and is relatively quick to build. It can also help economic recovery by creating jobs in construction and the ongoing operation of the plants” said Dr Nina Skorupska, the REA's Chief Executive. “It is absolutely right that biomass should only be supported if it can be proven to be good for the environment. These criteria enable industry to do exactly that. They are challenging, but not unattainable. Generators are actually incentivised to over-achieve on greenhouse gas savings in order to minimise the risk of non-compliance. I invite the NGOs who have concerns about biomass to work with us to iron out the details of implementing these standards. If we get it right, which I’m sure we will, the UK will be reinforcing the highest standards of sustainable forestry for trade partners around the world. That is a worthy goal to aim for.”
Further information:
Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC)
