EMISSION REDUCTIONS, HIGHER ENERGY SECURITY AND INDUSTRIAL COMPETITIVENESS UNDER THE MICROSCOPE
Countries are making intensive efforts to find alternative ways of cutting net greenhouse gas emmissions. This may mean a rise in production costs for European industry, but will also bring greater opportunities for new bio-based products and technological innovations. Residual forest biomass is one of the alternatives for the replacement of fossil fuels and a reduction in the dependency of Europe on energy imports.
The scientific evidence is clear: economic growth cannot continue at the expense of increasing greenhouse gas emissions. As the signs and consequences of global warming become more evident, the need to initiate active policy measures to fight climate change has been acknowledged worldwide.
In the European Union’s Climate Change and Energy Package, the EU has made a commitment to reduce its overall emissions by 30% compared with 1990 levels by 2020, provided that other nations follow suit. It has also set itself the target of increasing the share of renewable energy to 20% by 2020.
Means of meeting the targets set for greenhouse gas reduction include the development of new technology and new, cleaner forms of energy, an increase in energy efficiency and the establishment of policy measures to channel the use of natural resources. Increasing the share of renewables in energy production creates new markets for wind, solar, water, geothermal and biomass-based energy.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has recently adopted an exploratory opinion underlining the role of forests in the fight against climate change. Forests are seen as a cost-effective way to tackle the problem.
More intensive use of residual forest biomass for energy could replace 30-49 Mtoe of fossil fuels in the European Union. However, reaching the 10% target of bio-based transport fuels alone would require the mobilisation of the whole residual forest biomass potential.
It has been frequently emphasised that Europe should become more self-sufficient in its use of natural resources. For example, in 2008, the dependency ratio of EU27 countries for oil was over 80% and for gas over 60%. The use of renewable energy sources lowers Europe’s dependency on energy imports. Forests are a substantial renewable resource in Europe – particularly when the European region of Russia is included. Wood can replace the use of many non-renewable resources. Europe also has the acknowledged know-how to become a world-leading innovator in next-generation bio-based products and businesses, including fuels and energy. Evolving business opportunities can support Europe’s long-term competitiveness in sustainability and economic development.
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