16 January 2012: The Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP) has published a report titled “The Global Bioenergy Partnership Sustainability Indicators for Bioenergy,” which represents the first global, government-level consensus on sustainability indicators for bioenergy. Publication of the report was announced at the opening of the World Future Energy Summit (WFES) and the launch of the International Year of Sustainable Energy for All, in Abu Dhabi, UAE.
The report introduces 24 economic (eg. price and supply of food, change in income, jobs, productivity, energy balance, infrastructure), ecological (eg. emissions, soil quality, water use, biodiversity, land-use change) and social indicators (eg. unpaid time of women and children, injury and illness, training, land allocation and tenure) pertinent to the sustainability of bioenergy. One chapter is dedicated to each indicator, describing the measurement units, relevance, scientific basis, methodological approach, anticipated limitations, data requirements, knowledge gaps, relevant international processes, and references.
Corrado Clini, GBEP Co-Chair and Italian Minister for the Environment, Land and Sea noted that the report’s uniqueness lies in that the fact that “it is a product of the only multilateral initiative that has built consensus on the sustainable production and use of bioenergy among a wide range of national governments and international organisations.”
GBEP and its Partners comprise 23 countries and 13 international organizations and institutions: Argentina, Brazil, Canada, China, Colombia, Fiji, France, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Japan, Mauritania, Mexico, Netherlands, Paraguay, Russian Federation, Spain, Sudan, Sweden, Switzerland, Tanzania, UK, US, Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), European Commission, FAO, IDB, IEA, UNCTAD, DESA, UNDP, UNEP, UNIDO, UN Foundation, World Council for Renewable Energy (WCRE) and European Biomass Industry Association (EUBIA). Twenth-two countries and 11 international organizations and institutions are participating as Observers. [GBEP Press Release] [GBEP Sustainability Indicators for Bioenergy]