Study on impacts on resource efficiency of future EU demand for bioenergy

Improving resource efficiency is perceived as a valuable way forward to maintaining and increasing the EU's global competitiveness, while also offering opportunities to stimulate sustainable use of our natural resources. However, the impact of bioenergy demand in the European Union (EU) on the use and availability of resources and other trade impacts on competing sectors is not sufficiently well understood. This is especially true for the integrated perspective on policies and strategies impacting land use, biomass production, trade, and consumption and strategies geared to optimising the overall GHG emissions as well as associated impacts on biodiversity and other ecosystem services. The objective of this study is to improve our understanding of the likely implications for resource efficiency of different future trajectories of increased EU use of bioenergy for electricity and heat. Launched in January 2014, the study was commissioned by the European Commission (DG Environment), is set to run for 18 months and is led by the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA).