INVITED SPEAKER: PAUL TEMPLE, National Farmers Union, Stoneleigh Park, Warwickshire, UK 

Following on from the last AAB conference held on this topic in 2001, this conference will provide an opportunity to gain a progress update in this rapidly developing sector where there have been significant policy and technology developments in the interim.  Significantly, there have been moves to large-scale commercialisation of processes for conversion of biomass to energy in response to policy actions generated to deliver both the EU’s and the UK Governments objectives for development of renewable energy sources as a means of both reducing green house gas emissions and  increasing fuel security.

  There have been significant moves in use of woody biomass, straw and energy grasses for electricity generation, but also in use of conventional arable crops for production of biodiesel and ethanol as transport fuels.  These developments have not come without criticism of the impact such developments could have in terms of competition with food crops and impacts on food prices. Similarly, the environmental credentials of such technologies have been questioned in terms of their green house gas savings and wider environmental footprint.  The impact of market pressures to develop oil crops to feed the growing biofuel market have been blamed for deforestation, thereby undermining potential green house gas savings.

  Clearly the benefits of use of biomass lies in their Life Cycle Analysis in terms of cradle to grave impacts on greenhouse gas emissions and other environmental and socio-economic factors. Increasing biomass productivity and utilisation can significantly improve the results of such analyses.

  This conference will provide academics, policy makers, NGO’s, environmental organisations and industry interests with an opportunity to hear about the research, policies and issues affecting developments in use of conventional and perennial crops for energy and transport fuels, how productivity and efficiency might be improved, the wider environmental impacts associated with expansion of energy crops, how such impacts might be reduced and how different approaches or feedstocks compare.  In addition, issues associated with the use of biomass in next generation technologies and other added value uses for biomass will be discussed.