Bioenergy and Land Use Issues in Asia N. H. Ravindranath Indian Institute of Science Bangalore.

Bioenergy and Land Use Issues in Asia

N. H. RavindranathIndian Institute of Science

Bangalore

Key Messages

1. 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

2. Currently Asia is not a dominant biofuel producer / consumer of biofuels (like Brazil, US, EU)

3. 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

Key messages

4. 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

5. Biodiesel crops such as Jatropha, oil Palm and tree based crops are key biofuel crops are critical in Asian countries

India, China, Malaysia, Indonesia

Key messages7. Land use for biofuel crops varies with countries

Degraded and marginal lands for Jatropha; India, China Forest lands converted for oil Palm; Malaysia, Indonesia

8. 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

9. 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

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;

- India=1.5Mha, China=4-5 Mha-No serious implications for food security since vast degraded land available in most countries

-Large carbon sink creation + non-wood products

Land use options for climate mitigation

Bio-Ethanol

-Sugarcane – program being initiated

– sugar is the main product – biofuel byproduct- 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

Malaysia

Palm oil plantations <1 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

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

Jatropha; Southwest China is the official targeted area for Jatropha

Estimated area; Current and projected in southwest China – barren lands

Ethanol

2008 = 1.5 Mha

2012 = 2.4 Mha

Source: World Agroforestry Centre, 2007

Indonesia; scale of biofuel program

Biodiesel 2005-07 = 212,000 ha 2008 = 663,000 ha 2017 = 2.67 Mha

Bio-ethanol2008 = 50,000 ha

2017 = 54,000 ha

India – scale of biofuel program

Biodiesel

2008 = 279,000 ha 2017 = 340,000 ha

Bioethanol

2008 = 451,000 ha 2017 = 854,000 ha

Source: http://www.faostat.fao.org/site/377/default.aspx.

Land use pattern projections

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

http://envfor.nic.in/nfap/

Land available for biomass production for energy (Mha)

40-65 Mha is available for energyStudy Land categories and land availability (Mha) Total area

(Mha) Degraded land quoted in Planning Commission (1992)

Degraded forest—36, Degraded non-forest—94 130

Chambers et al. (1989) Land available for tree planting

Cultivated land—13, Strips and boundaries—2, Uncultivated, degraded land—33, Degraded forest land—36

84

Kapoor (1992) Land available for tree planting

Agricultural land—45, Forest land—28, Pasture land—7, Fallow land (long and short)—25, Urban land-1

106

Ministry of Agriculture (1992)

Forest land with < 10% tree crown cover—11, Grazing land—12, Tree groves—3, Culturable land—15, Old fallow—11, Current fallow—14

66

Sudha and Ravindranath (1999)

Cultivable land under agro-ecological zones—26.1, Land not suitable for cultivation---13.6, Pasture land- 2.9

42.6

Ravindranath et al (2001) Short Rotation (SR) - 38.2, Long Rotation (LR) – 14.0, Forest regeneration – 11.0,

63.2

NRSA (1995)

Forest degraded land—16.27, Wasteland—38.11, Other category—11.07

65.45

NRSA (2004) 55.2 NRSA (2005) 41.0

Target

Biodiesel Ethanol

Demand Mt

Jatropha Mha

PalmMha

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

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