bioenergy Archives - Page 4 of 8 - Resilient Landscapes (RL)

Calophyllum inophyllum: A viable prospect for green energy and landscape restoration?

Indonesia has approximately 14 Mha of degraded lands. These lands have potential for growing biofuel species to meet needs for energy security, income generation and land restoration. One promising species, Calophyllum inophyllum, is suitable for growing on 5.7 Mha of degraded land in Indonesia, and could contribute to green energy production and restoration of this degraded land. During its early growth stage, the species can grow by up to one metre per year and is tolerant to harsh environmental conditions. Its seeds provide high levels of non-edible oil, thus making it ideal for biodiesel production. In addition, waste and by-products from the biodiesel production process can be used as raw materials in the pharmaceuticals and cosmetics industries, and as compost for soil enrichment. Growing various cash crops together with Calophyllum inophyllum in agroforestry systems can provide extra income for farmers, thus creating added value for Calophyllum inophyllum cultivation.

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Growth performance of Calophyllum inophyllum in bioenergy trial plots in Bukit Soeharto Forest, East Kalimantan

The Indonesian government has committed to providing its entire population with energy through the National Energy Policy, which highlights the importance of diversification, environmental sustainability, and enhanced deployment of domestic energy resources. The contribution of new and renewable energy (NRE) to the nation’s energy supply is mandated to reach 23% by 2025, with bioenergy an important NRE alternative. If developed and deployed appropriately, bioenergy plantations have potential to restore degraded land and enhance biodiversity and environmental services while supporting rural livelihoods. As a potential biofuel tree species suited to the tropics, Calophyllum inophyllum (nyamplung) is being tested across wide-ranging degraded forest conditions in Indonesia. Nyamplung is a potential biodiesel alternative as it grows well in harsh environmental conditions, produces non-edible seed oil, has high amounts of kernel oil and fruits profusely. Here we report growth performance in plantation trial plots established in February 2018, on previously burned land in Mulawarman University’s Bukit Soeharto Research and Educational Forest. Growth of this two-year old plantation is strong compared to other Indonesian sites, with average survival rate above 90% on Ultisol soil, which is classified as low fertility and acidic. The findings reveal that different doses of fertilizer applications and slope gradient have no significant effects on growth performance. In addition, trees have already started to flower and fruit, and are colonized by bird species and insects, including bees and butterflies.The study indicates that nyamplung adapts well to different land and soil types. Bioenergy plantations on degraded land are a promising approach for land restoration, and enhance native biodiversity and environmental services while providing a source of renewable energy.

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Potential energy yields of bioenergy crops in the tropics

Bioenergy can produce at least 25% of the global energy demand to combat climate change through reducing emissions in the energy sector. However, information on the bioenergy production potential of woody species and their suitability for silviculture on various soils in the humid tropics is limited. This slightly revised version of a short note published by Borchard et al. (2018) aims to identify tree species suitable for bioenergy production under these conditions. Data were compiled from 241 publications and nine freely available databases to assess environmental and silvicultural information on tropical tree species. Energy yield was derived from the estimated productivity of the reviewed species equivalent to an energy yield ranging between 2 and 444 GJ ha¯¹ yr¯¹. As such, these bioenergy yields are within the range reported for the lignocellulosic biomass of energy crops cultivated in Europe, the USA and Brazil. Our review identified some highyielding species (e.g., Dyera polyphylla (Miq.) Steenis, Metroxylon sagu (Rottb.), Pongamia pinnata (L.)) and leguminous species that could be beneficial in mixed stands (e.g., Elaeis oleifera (Kunth) and Pongamia pinnata) or are suitable species to grow on wet or re-wetted peatland (Dyera polyphylla). However, there are limitations to cultivating woody bioenergy species on wet peatland. Sustainable methods for managing and harvesting forests on wet or re-wetted peatland need to be developed.

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An introduction to bioenergy and landscape restoration

Land degradation is becoming a global challenge, with Indonesia being no exception. Rising populations and their associated food and biomaterial demands have accelerated the conversion of forests for other land uses; a trend that persists in many parts of the world. Forest landscape restoration (FLR) is being promoted as a means for reversing land degradation while providing multiple products and services, including bioenergy. FLR using biofuel-friendly trees under climate smart agroforestry practices and utilizing fruits, nuts and biomass for energy could solve multiple issues by turning unproductive degraded lands into productive landscapes; preventing further conversion of natural vegetation for other uses; compensating for the high initial investments required for FLR; and providing multiple ecosystem services, including climate regulation. The chapters in this book investigate multiple issues associated with FLR and bioenergy, such as policy analysis, geospatial assessment for identifying land suitability, farmers’ perceptions and species-specific details useful for land managers, planners and policymakers.

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Bioenergy for landscape restoration and livelihoods: Re-creating energy-smart ecosystems on degraded landscapes

Land restoration and bioenergy are leading solutions for climate change and sustainable development. But restoration is often perceived as “going back to the past” and bioenergy development is not devoid of controversies over its impacts on land use and communities. This book shows how, under the right conditions, the two objectives of land restoration and bioenergy production are not antagonistic, but synergetic. It provides evidence and lessons from six years of pioneering initiatives in Indonesia to combine these objectives in a people-centred focus. It will be very useful for a range of stakeholders in the land and energy sectors to expand a modern and ecological agenda.

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Ensuring monetary, human capital and natural capital returns in biomass production: Lessons from the Mentawai biomass gasification power plant project

Primary energy demand in Indonesia is growing rapidly due to urbanization, economic development and population growth. The Government of Indonesia has mandated that new and renewable energy should contribute 23% of the national energy mix by 2025. Indonesia’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) stresses five sectors in which greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are to be reduced, with land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) and energy being the highest priorities. While Indonesia is committed to addressing climate change through the LULUCF sector, there are clear contextual challenges that must be confronted to create the enabling conditions for REDD+, the main mechanism for carbon revenues, to contribute to landscape restoration in Indonesia. This chapter argues that biomass production for power plants in remote and isolated areas could become an additional agent of change in tackling this difficult problem. Using a case study from the Mentawai islands in Indonesia, we describe a methodology for rural electrification using a community- and biomass-based power generation system. The Mentawai model not only shows that biomass power plants can be used as the backbone for electricity generation in remote and isolated settings, but it can also be valuable tools to help alleviate poverty in underdeveloped regions in Indonesia as well as help finance the restoration of degraded and marginal lands. Replicating this system—one which results in biomass production, land restoration, affordable electricity and local economic growth—could improve the contribution of renewable energy to the energy mix and to the overall prosperity of Indonesians in rural and remote areas.

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Optimum plant density and harvest age for maximizing productivity and minimizing competition in a Calliandra short-rotation-coppice plantation in West Java, Indonesia

To produce large volumes of biomass for implementing its green energy policy, the Government of Indonesia has issued a short rotation energy plantation program for a number of tree species including Calliandra calothyrsus (Meissn.). Optimum density and prompt harvesting are needed to maximise productivity, but information regarding both factors is insufficient. This study aimed to investigate the optimum growth spacing and ideal felling age to produce the largest volumes of biomass both economically and sustainably. Experiments were arranged on one hectare of land, which was divided into four plots with different plant spacing treatments (1 × 1.5 m; 1.5 × 1.5 m; 2 × 1.5 m; and 2 × 2 m). Growth and yield observations were carried out on plants aged 12, 18, and 24 months in each plot, with 30 sample trees left for growth observations and ten sample trees cut at each of the three ages after planting. This resulted in a total of 240 samples from the 2,710 trees planted. Trees were felled at 50 cm from the soil surface, and the resulting stools were left to regrow. A year after felling, resulting coppices, were observed and cut. Growth, productivity and calorific value were studied for both ‘primary’ and ‘coppiced’ wood. Study results demonstrate that competition between plants strongly determines the growth and productivity of ‘primary’ wood. The plot with the densest plant spacing had the lowest nutrient content for almost all soil nutrients. Higher plant density showed higher competition index values, and resulted in fewer and smaller diameter stems emerging from stools, and lower biomass productivity. Competition index values, which increased with plant age, can be used as an indicator for determining harvest timing. Productivity increased by up to 15% following development as a coppice plantation. Optimum wood productivity and greatest economy came from parent stands with plant spacing of 2 × 2 m, harvested at 18 months old and coppiced. This treatment yielded an average biomass/tree of primary wood 7.2 kg and coppice wood 8.22 kg, respectively, with lignin content of approximately 22%, and calorific value of around 18,807 kJ. These values match biomass energy requirements for feedstock for electricity generation. Harvesting at 24 months showed no significant increases in productivity, lignin content, or calorific value.

FTA Highlight No.8 – Biomass, Bioenergy and Biomaterials

The demand for woody biomass for energy and biomaterials is increasing rapidly in line with the global population rise and changing consumption patterns for sustainable resources. Central to meeting this demand is the question of how woody biomass production and use can be reconciled with biodiversity protection, climate change resilience and mitigation, and inclusive prosperity for local communities. Modern, efficient and sustainable forms of bioenergy and biomaterial production and use can play a key role in combating climate change while providing social, economic and environmental benefits to rural communities and critical industries, but these forms are not available to everyone. Thus, attention to social inclusion in the development agendas related to sustainable biomass production, use and trade is vital. Over the last decade, the CGIAR Research Program on Forests, Trees and Agroforestry (FTA) has undertaken basic and applied research on multiple dimensions of woody biomass production and use for energy and materials, such as sustainable production, value chains and investments, enterprise development, and green growth through forest and tree-based circular economies. This highlight discusses the key outputs and findings from FTA work on biomass production and use for bioenergy and biomaterials, in particular woody biomass production in forests and plantations and on farms; the use of biomass; and related value chains. It also considers work on policies that promote sustainability in the sector and discusses the requirements for a shift to a forest- and tree-based bioeconomy.

From Theory to Practice: The Circular Bioeconomy in Action

Tamanu (Calophyllum inophyllum) growth performance on different types of degraded peatlands in Central Kalimantan

To achieve its national goals in climate and landscape resilience, including bioenergy production, the Government of Indonesia has launched an initiative to restore 14 million hectares of degraded land, including 2 million hectares of peatlands, by 2030. Here we present early findings on tamanu adaptability and tree growth (height, diameter and branches) on two types of degraded peatlands in Central Kalimantan. The paper reports peatland type and tamanu tree growth and adaptability in a 3-ha plantation trial plot over three years and a 2-ha plot over two years in Kalampangan and Buntoi villages. Results show survival rates of 82% in the plot on ombrogenous peat in Kalampangan and 81% on topogenous peat in Buntoi. Furthermore, the growth performance of 2-year-old tamanu trees on topogenous peat in Buntoi with an average height of 1.74 m and diameter of 3.97 cm at 5 cm above ground level and 15 branches was better than on ombrogenous peat in Kalampangan with an average height of 0.68 m and diameter of 1.43 cm at 5cm above ground level and five branches. While initial survival and tree growth results are promising, further monitoring of flowering and fruiting is necessary to determine tamanu’s viability for biodiesel production on degraded peatlands.

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