Trade-offs of different land and bioenergy policies on the path to achieving climate targets

Journal Article · Wed Oct 16 04:00:00 EDT 2013 · Climatic Change

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-013-0897-y· OSTI ID:1158455

Calvin, Katherine V. ^[1]; Wise, Marshall A. ^[1]; Kyle, G. Page ^[1]; Patel, Pralit L. ^[1]; Clarke, Leon E. ^[1]; Edmonds, James A. ^[1]

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1. Joint Global Change Research Inst., College Park, MD (United States)

Many papers have shown that bioenergy and land-use are potentially important elements in a strategy to limit anthropogenic climate change. But, significant expansion of bioenergy production can have a large terrestrial footprint. In this paper, we test the implications for land use, the global energy system, carbon cycle, and carbon prices of meeting a specific climate target, using a single fossil fuel and industrial sector policy instrument—the carbon tax, but with five alternative bioenergy and land-use policy architectures. We find that the policies we examined have differing effects on the different segments of the economy. Comprehensive land policies can reduce land-use change emissions, increasing allowable emissions in the energy system, but have implications for the cost of food. Bioenergy taxes and constraints, on the other hand, have little effect on food prices, but can result in increased carbon and energy prices.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 1158455
• Report Number(s): PNNL-SA--91566; KP1703030
• Journal Information: Climatic Change, Journal Name: Climatic Change Journal Issue: 3-4 Vol. 123; ISSN 0165-0009
• Publisher: Springer
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

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54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES