INENCO   05446
INSTITUTO DE INVESTIGACIONES EN ENERGIA NO CONVENCIONAL
Unidad Ejecutora - UE
capítulos de libros
Título:
THE BIOMASS AND ITS ROLE IN THE CLIMATE CHANGE
Autor/es:
MANRIQUE S.; FRANCO J.
Libro:
Forest Management: Technology, Practices and Impact
Editorial:
Nova Science Publishers
Referencias:
Lugar: New York; Año: 2011;
Resumen:
The increased concentration of greenhouse
gases (GHGs) into the atmosphere
(mostly due to the use of fossil fuels and deforestation and forest
degradation) is causing an overheating of the planet. In this context, the
strategic management of biomass could contribute to GHG mitigation through two
different mechanisms: i) use of the annual supply of bioenergy to replace
fossil fuels and ii) sustainable management of forests to maintain and / or
increase the carbon sequestered in their tissues.
In the Lerma Valley, in the province
of Salta, Argentina, we have identified two broad categories of biomass: i)
residual (agricultural residues and municipal solid waste) and ii) natural
(ecosystems Yungas, Chaco and shrublands), which, handled comprehensive and
strategically, could contribute -through both mentioned mechanisms- to the
mitigation of GHG into the atmosphere.
The use of energy to the supply of
biomass available annually (from all biomass resources considered: residual and
natural), would mitigate the emissions of approximately 40,000 citizens of the
Valley (considering the average carbon footprint of them), which is more than
half of the total population in this area.
Different strategies are required for
the use of natural resources and waste biomass; the category of natural biomass
is more complex and demands further study. This complexity mainly lies in the
fact that each ecosystem includes a multiplicity of different species and
characteristics, which does not happen with the residual biomass. Still, the
residual biomass resources, although their use could mean a contribution to the
mitigation of emissions, should be studied from the economics and life- cycle
aspects, in order to maximise profits.