Bioenergy¶
Discourage or encourage the use of trees, forest waste, and agricultural crops to create energy. Bioenergy is energy produced from the burning, or combustion, of living organic material such as wood, algae, or agricultural crops. There are a variety of bioenergy sources, some of which can be sustainable and others which can be worse than burning coal.
Examples¶
- Government incentives and/or targets to convert land into growing biofuel feedstocks.
- Research, development, and investment into new technologies that can produce new forms of biofuels and into vehicles and industry that can use/support these biofuels.
Slider Settings¶
| highly taxed | taxed | status quo | subsidized | highly subsidized | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Change in price per barrel of oil equivalent (boe) | +$30.00 to +$15.00 | +$15.00 to +$5.00 | +$5.00 to -$5.00 | -$5.00 to -$15.00 | -$15.00 to -$30.00 |
| Cost increase or decrease | +60% to +30% | +30% to +10% | +10% to -10% | -10% to -30% | -30% to -60% |
Key Dynamics¶
- As bioenergy is subsidized or taxed, notice that the temperature changes very little. Changes in bioenergy shift the amount of other energy sources, which can mean more coal if bioenergy is taxed or less renewables if bioenergy is subsidized.
- Bioenergy is only zero carbon if the feedstock is regrown to account for the carbon emitted. In some areas, trees are being used for bioenergy, which will take decades to regrow to make up for the carbon released when burned.
Big Message¶
- Bioenergy is not a high leverage response to climate change – while using a renewable resource, it still emits large amounts of carbon dioxide.
Model Structure¶
This sector tracks several stages of bioenergy installations, or “energy supply capacity”
- capacity under development, under construction, and actually producing energy, including delays between each stage.
Potential Co-Benefits of Discouraging¶
- Crops and arable land are freed for other uses, such as food production.
- Producing biofuels can be water intensive and lead to contaminated runoff; reducing biofuel production can improve water quality and protect biodiversity.
- A reduction in biomass burning can improve indoor and outdoor air quality from reduced soot and particulates.
Equity Considerations¶
- Bioenergy can accelerate deforestation through dependence on wood for fuels or through the expansion of bioenergy crops, particularly in the tropics.
- Land used for bioenergy crops can reduce land availability for food production and compromise food security.
- Farmer livelihoods can be severely impacted by shifting agriculture markets, so steps should be taken to help workers and farmers transition to shifting crop demands.