Supply chain transparency and the origin of solid biomass for electricity generation in the Netherlands
The production of solid biomass for electricity generation also carries with it several other social and environmental risks related to issues such as forest degradation, loss of biodiversity, land tenure/rights violations, and human rights abuses. Detailed knowledge about the origin of the supply of solid biomass used for electricity generation is thus essential for determining whether biomass-based electricity generation is genuinely contributing to sustainable development.
Given the potential direct and indirect social and environmental impacts of solid biomass production, it is crucial that civil society, regulators, consumers and companies themselves have sufficient and specific information about from where the biomass entering the Netherlands one of the worlds largest consumers of biomass comes: where it is produced, what the feedstock is, and who is responsible for importing it. The question From whence (i.e. from where) the wood? has never been more relevant.
This report aims to improve the social and environmental conditions under which solid biomass is produced. By examining the degree of biomass supply chain transparency provided by the six largest individual consumers of solid biomass for electricity generation in the Netherlands electric utilities E.ON, Eneco, EPZ (DELTA), GDF Suez, RWE/Essent, and Vattenfall/Nuon the report aims to increase the public and political pressure on electricity companies to take responsibility for ensuring that minimum social and environmental standards are respected throughout the biomass supply chain.
- From Whence the Wood?.pdf (Size 1.9 MB)