BALANCE BETWEEN BIOMASS SUPPLY AND DEMAND IN THE RED CERAMICS SECTOR OF RIO GRANDE DO NORTE, BRAZIL

Illegal deforestation in Caatinga sometimes corresponds to supplying the local energy demand, even though legalized firewood options are available on the market. Studies show that the red ceramic industry is the largest consumer of firewood in Rio Grande do Norte (RN), Brazil. Considering the firewood from the Sustainable Forest Management Plans as a viable alternative to supplying this sector, the objective was to analyze the current offer of forest biomass in RN, in line with the demand for this resource in the industry of red ceramics. The number, area and volume of the current management plans were obtained by the agency responsible for state forest management. The Annual Operational Plans were analyzed to acquire the amount of wood available in one year. The survey found 22 sustainable management plans with authorization for exploration valid for the year of 2019, distributed in 20 cities in the state, adding up to an area of 988.99 hectares. A current supply of available firewood for the energy of 26,223.13 tMS.year-1 was calculated. It is noticed that the supply of firewood from the management plans meets only 5.5% of the energy demand in the state ceramics sector. In contrast, the potential supply of firewood available in Caatinga remnants of the state exceeds the sector's demand by more than six times. It is concluded that there is a need for reinforcement in the governmental sphere, to propose measures that stimulate the use of the forest resource in a legalized manner in proportion to the current consumption