Source · Select Committees · Environmental Audit Committee
Recommendation 44
44
Acknowledged
Paragraph: 218
Constrain UK power sector biomass use by sustainable feedstock supply, quantified in Biomass Strategy.
Recommendation
The amount of biomass used by the UK power sector should be constrained by the supply of low-carbon sustainable feedstocks, factoring in potential domestic supply and rising trends of bioenergy use globally. The Biomass Strategy should set out and quantify the potential of different biomass sources to deliver energy and explain how sufficient sustainability sourced biomass feedstocks will be found, from where, to meet demand required by BECCS, in line with net zero pathways.
Government Response Summary
The government states the Biomass Strategy acknowledges biomass as a limited resource and presents an assessment of its potential, while noting the complexity and uncertainty in predicting future sustainable supply and prioritising uses for negative emissions.
Paragraph Reference:
218
Government Response
Acknowledged
HM Government
Acknowledged
The Biomass Strategy recognises that sustainable biomass is a limited resource, therefore its use should be prioritised where it offers the greatest environmental, economic and social benefits. The UK’s ability to gain access to sustainable feedstocks at sufficient scale and acceptable prices will ultimately determine the overall contribution of biomass to net zero. Analysis for the strategy found that future biomass supply will continue to be diverse, however, understanding future availability is complex and subject to significant uncertainties owing to various domestic and global economic factors that are difficult to predict. Considering the potential future availability of biomass and following a set of guiding principles for the best uses of biomass, the strategy also presents an assessment of the potential contribution of biomass feedstocks and technologies towards our net zero target, making it clear that biomass uses that can produce negative emissions should be prioritised in the long term.