The Australian Forest Products Association wants the Federal Government to commit $50 million in funding to help turbocharge the Australian Renewable Energy Agency’s ‘Bioenergy Roadmap’. Source: Timberbiz
The Roadmap will support Australia’s movement towards a renewable biofuture, creating better environmental outcomes, new innovative products, industries and jobs, and the AFPA has made its submission to ARENA on what is needed to make the Roadmap a reality.
“When it comes to the uptake of bioenergy, Australia is in the bottom quartile of Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries with respect to bioenergy as a proportion of the country’s total energy supply,” AFPA Chief Executive Officer Ross Hampton said.
“We are seriously lagging behind and need to grasp the many opportunities.
“In Australia, biomass used to generate energy makes up around 4% of total energy consumption.
He said this stood in contrast to the European Union, where 10% of energy consumption came from biomass, Finland 24%, Denmark 22%, and Sweden 22%.
Australia was yet to fully recognise the potential of bioenergy to secure our energy future, address energy affordability, underpin manufacturing, and make a significant contribution to our emission reduction targets.
“Under the Kyoto Protocol, bioenergy is regarded as CO2 neutral,” Mr Hampton said.
“The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change also defines bioenergy as renewable, if it is produced from biomass that is sustainably managed – as Australia’s commercial forestry operations are.
“We are the seventh most forested country on the planet and our commercial forests are carefully managed and as heavily regulated as anywhere in the world.
“Sustainably managed harvesting and processing operations in Australia generate significant waste offcuts and by-products every year, and the CO2 released by the combustion of renewable wood waste is captured by new plants as they regrow in a renewable cycle.”
Mr Hampton said ARENA had undertaken a lot of great work in the development of the Bioenergy Roadmap so far.
“We now look forward to working with the Federal Government to ensure that the final Roadmap is adequately funded and implemented so that bioenergy and renewable heat from biomass achieve the recognition and supportive policies that they rightfully deserve.”
