Bioenergy and Land Use Issues in Asia

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Bioenergy and Land Use Issues in Asia

• N. H. Ravindranath
• Indian Institute of Science
• Bangalore

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Key Messages

• Multiple options for land use in the context of
  mitigating climate change development
• Biomass power, biofuels (liquid fuel),
  Afforestation for C-sink, timber production for
  substituting aluminum, steel, etc
• Currently Asia is not a dominant biofuel producer
  / consumer of biofuels (like Brazil, US, EU)
• However, dominant energy consumers have set
  targets for biofuels to substitute petroleum -
  thus Asia will be the key regions for biofules
• China (15 - 2020), India (10- 2020), Japan (30
  by 2030), Malaysia/Indonesia/Thailand (10 -2020)
• 4. Biofuel program in India, China, Thailand etc
  are driven by need for Energy Security
• Thus need to ensure minimal GHG emissions

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Key messages

• Area under food production has stabilized in all
  the key Asian countries- unlikely to increase
• India, China, Thailand, Malaysia, etc
• Food grain needs will be met by increasing crop
  productivity and intensity
• Large extents of degraded non-crop and marginal
  crop lands are available for
• bioenergy/ biofuel crops / Carbon sink
• Biodiesel crops such as Jatropha, oil Palm and
  tree based crops are key biofuel crops are
  critical in Asian countries
• India, China, Malaysia, Indonesia

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Key messages

• Land use for biofuel crops varies with countries
• Degraded and marginal lands for Jatropha India,
  China
• Forest lands converted for oil Palm Malaysia,
  Indonesia
• GHG implications vary with land conversions
  involved and countries
• India China degraded lands and with minimal
  energy input
• Indonesia Malaysia - forest lands with high
  carbon stocks
• India China have large biomass power programs
  for meeting decentralized power needs
• Largely using degraded lands for producing woody
  biomass with minimal energy input for production
  of feedstock
• Likely to provided large GHG benefits by
  substituting fossil fuel power generate power
  for local applications
• India has a large number of CDM projects on
  biomass power

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Land use options for climate mitigation
Biomass power Large potential (e.g., 30 GW in India) Woody biomass based Dedicated energy plantations in degraded lands crop / forest residue Large program for decentralized biopower No serious implications for food security or GHG, since vast degraded land available in most countries
Carbon Seq through Afforestation Reforestation in Degraded lands large potential large afforestation programs - India1.5Mha, China4-5 Mha No serious implications for food security since vast degraded land available in most countries Large carbon sink creation non-wood products

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Land use options for climate mitigation
Bio-Ethanol Sugarcane program being initiated sugar is the main product biofuel byproduct
Bio-Ethanol Sweet Sorghum, Maize, Cassava, etc. - Marginal scale program
Biodiesel Palm oil Large program in South east Asian countries Jatropha Large program in India, China, etc Tree species yielding oil seeds such as Pongamia, Shorea, Madhuka, etc in India No edible oil-based Biodiesel program
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Malaysian Palm Oil Production
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Malaysia

• Palm oil plantations
• lt1 Mha in the 1970s
• 4 million hectares in 2005.
• Producing 15 Mt of crude palm oil
• Target to expand to 5 Mha by 2010
• to produce 20 Mt

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Case Study of Jatropha in China

• Ethanol
• 2008 1.5 Mha
• 2012 2.4 Mha

• Jatropha Southwest China is the official
  targeted area for Jatropha
• Estimated area Current and projected in
  southwest China barren lands

Estimated current area (ha) Planned area (ha)
Guizhou 1,300 26,667
Sichuan 20,000 333,333
Yunnan 50,000 666,667
Total southwest China 71,300 1.03 million
Source World Agroforestry Centre, 2007
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Indonesia scale of biofuel program

• Biodiesel
• 2005-07 212,000 ha
• 2008 663,000 ha
• 2017 2.67 Mha
• Bio-ethanol
• 2008 50,000 ha
• 2017 54,000 ha

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India scale of biofuel program

• Biodiesel
• 2008 279,000 ha
• 2017 340,000 ha
• Bioethanol
• 2008 451,000 ha
• 2017 854,000 ha

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Trends in Land use Pattern-India
Source http//www.faostat.fao.org/site/377/defaul
t.aspx.
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Land use pattern projections
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Afforestation Rate in India
Forest Survey of India., State of Forest Report
Forest Survey of India., State of Forest Report
Source Forest Survey of India., State of Forest
Report
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Trends in Area under Forests
http//envfor.nic.in/nfap/
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Land available for biomass production for energy
(Mha)40-65 Mha is available for energy
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Overall Area Required for Biodiesel Ethanol for
2012
Target Biodiesel Biodiesel Biodiesel Ethanol Ethanol Ethanol
Demand Mt Jatropha Mha Palm Mha Demand Mt Maize S-cane
5 3.5 3.5 1.0 2 1.2 0.5
10 7.0 7.0 2.0 4 2.5 1.0
20 14.0 14.0 3.5 8 5.0 2.0
Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha Degraded Marginal crop land 40 to 55 Mha
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Biofuel Production Share of Petroleum and Diesel
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Conclusions

• Biofuel will be very important in Asia from
  energy security perspective
• Need for research and informed debate on
  implications of large-scale biofuel production /
  consumption / export
• GHG emissions
• Food security and energy security
• Socio-economic aspects
• Alternate land uses in the context of climate
  mitigation development is required
• Biomass power
• Carbon sink through afforestation
• Biofules liquid fuels
• Solid fuels charcoal and fuelwood
• Need for good database for scientifically analysis