Denmark proposes pathway for ‘sustainable’ biomass

(EurActiv, 8 Oct 2020) The Danish government and a majority coalition of eight parties have proposed stricter legal requirements for wood biomass used for heat and electricity in the country.

The agreed proposal will ensure biomass is produced sustainably, securing a climate-friendly transition from coal in the short run while other alternatives are being pursued in the long term.

“In the long run, we will need to use much less biomass. But in many cases we are not yet at a point where we have other alternatives to coal, which must be phased out as soon as possible,” said Dan Jørgensen, Danish Minister of Climate.

A review by the Dutch government, published earlier this summer, said that whilst biomass is “indispensable” for a circular economy, it must be phased out of electricity production as soon as possible.

“Imported biomass is a transitional fuel,” said Søren Egge Rasmussen, a lawmaker from the Red-Green Alliance in the Folketing, the Danish parliament. “It is not enough to have slightly higher requirements for imports than before. We must politically create a much better framework for geothermal and heat pumps, which must replace the imported biomass in our energy consumption.”

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EurActiv, 8 Oct 2020: Denmark proposes pathway for ‘sustainable’ biomass