Low-Input High-Diversity systemen: Potentieel voor biomassa- en bio-energieproductie

Because of climate change and the finiteness of fossil fuels, the interest in alternative energy strongly increases. Besides wind and solar energy, biomass is an important source of renewable energy. To date, the focus of biomass production for bioenergy lies primarily on woody vegetation and energy crops. However, the sustainability of these systems can often be questioned. This dissertation examines the possibilities of using biomass from Low-Input High Diversity (LIHiD) systems in Flanders for the production of green energy. Until now, the biomass of these systems is rarely used as a source of bioenergy. To determine the possibilities for using the LIHiD biomass, the potential yield and energy value willbe examined. The clippings from the management of nature reservesand road verges will be the focus of this project. We will develop arapid and reliable method to determine the biomass yield by using estimates of the cover and height of the vegetation. Then, the determination of the energy value of biomass of different vegetation types, will allowus to evaluate the energy potential derived from LIHiD systems. The scaling up of these data in GIS provides a spatio-temporal analysis of the harvestable biomass in Flanders. The final result of this step is an information system for LIHiD biomass in Flanders. Subsequently, the resultsof the study will be tested in two case studies where biomass is already used in the production of bioenergy.nrpages: 236status: publishe