Group of NGOs speak out – Bioenergy is not renewable When one considers the International Energy Agency’s definition for renewable energy, ‘energy derived from natural processes, like sunlight and wind, that are replenished at a faster rate than they are consumed’, one should think twice about bioenergy being fed by crops
Bioenergy and Europe’s quest for a ‘circular economy’ By Lisa Benedetti, BirdLife Europe Europe is on the move to become a ‘circular economy’ which is more competitive and resource efficient. The goal is a more circular flow of materials and energy so that Europeans use and consume in a way
Biodiesel consumption increased in 2014 Taken from the Transport & Environment Bulletin, September edition. New figures show the amount of biofuels being used for transport in the EU rose by 6.1% in 2014, but the increase is less than the fall in transport biofuels registered in 2013. The rise suggests
Global biomass accounting and the mysterious case of the missing emissions By guest author Matt Williams, Climate Change Policy Officer, RSPB Across the world, countries are increasingly turning to biomass to meet a need for low carbon energy sources. Biomass is already the largest source of renewable energy in the EU,
Seven years’ biofuels deliberations teaches us ‘put quality before quantity’ By Jos Dings, Policy Team Director at Transport & Environment April 2015 will enter history as the month in which the EU reversed course on its energy policies in transport. It adopted its long-mooted reform of biofuels policy – especially
Cap on biofuels – next cap on all bioenergy? Written by Sini Eräjää, EU Bioenergy Policy Officer for BirdLife Europe and the European Environmental Bureau. The new legislation to limit support for the use of food-based biofuels endorsed by the European Parliament today marks a milestone. It marks the closing of the
Does bioenergy fit in the vision for an Energy Union? Written by Sini Eräjää, EU Bioenergy Policy Officer for BirdLife Europe and the European Environmental Bureau. The European Commission’s strategy paper on the Energy Union, published earlier this year once again declared the Commission’s commitment to “an energy policy to make the
USA vs. Europe: the troublesome footprint of EU renewable policies Written by guest author Ginny Kreitler, Senior Energy Advisor for Audubon (BirdLife in the US). Wood pellet production for European energy markets, as practiced recently, creates a carbon debt through 2030 and fosters unsustainable timbering practices. Running power plants on imported
Reasons to change the zero-rated criteria for biomass in the EU ETS Written by Sini Eräjää, EU Bioenergy Policy Officer for BirdLife Europe and the European Environmental Bureau. The EU’s Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) is supposed to be the EU’s key tool to tackle climate change by putting a price on carbon