Bioenergy and biodiversity: Key lessons from the Pan American region

Journal Article · Wed Jun 24 00:00:00 EDT 2015 · Environmental Management

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-015-0559-0· OSTI ID:1265567

Kline, Keith L. ^[1]; Martinelli, Fernanda Silva ^[2]; Mayer, Audrey L. ^[3]; Medeiros, Rodrigo ^[4]; Oliveira, Camila Ortolan F. ^[5]; Sparovek, Gerd ^[6]; Walter, Arnaldo ^[5]; Venier, Lisa A. ^[7]

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1. Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
2. UFRRJ/Conservation International Brazil, Seropedica (Brazil)
3. Michigan Technological Univ., Houghton, MI (United States)
4. Federal Rural Univ. of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
5. Univ. of Campinas, Campinas (Brazil)
6. Univ. of Sao Paulo, Piracicaba (Brazil)
7. Canadian Forest Service, Sault Ste. Marie (Canada). Great Lakes Forestry Centre

Understanding how large-scale bioenergy production can affect biodiversity and ecosystems is important if society is to meet current and future sustainable development goals. A variety of bioenergy production systems have been established within different contexts throughout the Pan American region, with wide-ranging results in terms of documented and projected effects on biodiversity and ecosystems. The Pan American region is home to the majority of commercial bioenergy production and therefore the region offers a broad set of experiences and insights on both conflicts and opportunities for biodiversity and bioenergy. This paper synthesizes lessons learned focusing on experiences in Canada, the United States, and Brazil, regarding the conflicts that can arise between bioenergy production and ecological conservation, and benefits that can be derived when bioenergy policies promote planning and more sustainable land management systems. Lastly, we propose a research agenda to address priority information gaps that are relevant to biodiversity concerns and related policy challenges in the Pan American region.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE; Work for Others (WFO)
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-00OR22725
• OSTI ID: 1265567
• Journal Information: Environmental Management, Vol. 56, Issue 6; ISSN 0364-152X
• Publisher: Springer
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
biofuel
Brazil
Canada
ecological impacts
woody biomass
forest residue