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Bioenergy and Sustainability: Bridging the Gaps (SCOPE Report on Bioenergy and Sustainability)

This report is a collective effort of the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE), including contributions from 137 researchers of 82 institutions in 24 countries. It concludes that land availability is not a limiting factor to bioenergy production and that bioenergy can contribute to sustainable energy supplies even with increasing food demands, preservation of forests, protected lands, and rising urbanization.
 
The report estimates that at least 500 million hectare of land are available for bioenergy production without compromising needs such as food production. This area of land is easily greater than the projected 50–200 million hectare that are needed to provide 10%–20% of primary energy supply in 2050. If pasture intensification and the use of marginal or degraded land is considered, the total available land rises to 900 million hectares.
 
The 21 chapters of this report document how the use of land for bioenergy is inextricably linked to food security, environmental quality, and social development. Potentially positive or negative consequences to bioenergy production essentially depend on how these linkages are managed.
 
About SCOPE
The Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE) is an international nongovernmental organization founded in 1969 that connects experts and institutions around the world across disciplines and across sectors. It is recognized for its authoritative, independent, and influential scientific analyses and assessments of emerging environmental issues that are caused by or impact humans and the environment. SCOPE collaborates with inter-governmental agencies such as the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the United Nations Environment Programme, and with other partners in the development of its scientific program and outreach activities. 
 

Author(s)
Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE)
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