Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment he has made of the implications of his Department's report on the Life Cycle Impacts of Biomass Electricity published in July 2014, for the life cycle assessment of the Renewable Energy Directive; and if he will make a statement.

The Department has recently tendered a research contract to assess the plausibility of scenarios in the report with the highest potential net greenhouse gas emissions occurring in the period to 2030 that result from increased demand from the UK biomass electricity sector.

DECC is committed to supporting sustainably produced biomass, that delivers real greenhouse gas savings, is cost effective, takes account of wider impacts across the economy and manages possible risks such as to food security and biodiversity. The Department is seeking to bring forward proposals for mandatory sustainability requirements this year. The UK has been at the forefront of developing criteria to ensure that biomass used in energy generation is sustainable and we will have some of the toughest sustainability criteria in the world.