[holding answer 10 March 2010]: The Government are determined to ensure that biomass, whether imported or produced in the UK: delivers real and substantive carbon dioxide savings; uses land responsibly avoiding damaging land use change; and does not undermine global food supplies or inflate prices.
We already require suppliers of transport biofuels, and electricity generators over 50 kilowatts, to report on the available information on the origins of the biomass they use and whether the biomass complied with an environmental standards scheme.
We will implement the sustainability criteria set out in the Renewable Energy Directive for transport biofuels and bioliquids for heat and electricity generation. We are currently considering the European Commission’s recommendations on sustainability requirements for the use of solid and gaseous biomass sources for heat and electricity. DECC will make an announcement later this month, setting out what actions the Government can now take to introduce sustainability standards for biomass in the UK.
The European Commission is due to report by 31 December 2010 on the impact of indirect land-use change on greenhouse gas emissions and ways to minimise that impact. We are pushing for an early resolution on this within the EU and we will continue to work hard for global sustainability standards.