Widespread production of bioenergy: land and water availability factors

Abstract

Widespread production of bioenergy appears to be a potential candidate to counteract fossil fuel depletion and environmental degradation challenges. However, the competing role of bioenergy with food and feed in the use of land and water resources intrinsically causes numerous social and environmental challenges, which translate into sustainability factors for bioenergy. This paper evaluates the status and prospects of land and water resources in terms of sustainability factors concerning widespread production of bioenergy. Four major factors that broadly connect with sustainability of bioenergy are evaluated in this work: land availability, soil erosion, nutrients and biodiversity losses, and water availability. This work has found that although widespread production of bioenergy is subject to several limitations and constraints associated with land and water resources, these two resources are still sufficient at the global level. Globally, available land for biomass production is expected to remain within the range of 1.17 to 2.18 Gha by 2050, which will not compete with food and feed production. Recognising the limits of using land and water resources against regional disparity and competing applications, as well as employing rational practices, could enable the attainment of extensive production of bioenergy.