Kerry McCarthy – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Energy and Climate Change

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kerry McCarthy on 2014-04-10.

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, pursuant to his Answer of 14 January 2013, Official Report, column 481W, on biofuels, is biomass feedstock origin recorded in the renewable energy planning database; and what his policy is on the use of biomass feedstock sourced from outside the UK.

Michael Fallon

Biomass feedstock origin is not recorded in the renewable energy planning database but this information is required to be submitted as part of the reporting requirements for biomass and bioliquids under the Renewables Obligation and is published annually by Ofgem.

With regards to bioliquids, the Renewable Energy Directive sets out the sustainability requirements which must be complied with in order to receive financial support. The key considerations of land use criteria and greenhouse gas balance are required to be met by both domestic and imported feedstock.

In the case of solid and gaseous biomass, the UK has established its own criteria which include a minimum of 60% greenhouse gas (GHG) lifecycle saving against the average EU fossil electricity grid intensity. Transport related carbon emissions as well as any direct land use change, whether in the UK or elsewhere, are considered as part of the GHG lifecycle assessment for biomass electricity.