The Charcoal Project

PAPER: Congo’s woodfuel use needs urgent policy attention

A recent paper calls for immediate policy intervention around the Congo’s woodfuel demand.

Published in Cifor’s brief, it says, “The Congolese government needs to immediately improve management of the sector, in collaboration with stakeholders. The national Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) programme creates momentum for this.”

Continue reading

Is a forest a carbon sink or a source of low-carbon energy?

A number of new scientific studies have been released examining whether and how forests, forest management practices, forest products, and bioenergy from forests either contribute to or help mitigate climate change through carbon sequestration and emissions.

One report states that “growing more forests and keeping forests as forests are only part of the solution, because focusing solely on the sequestration benefits of the forests misses the important (and substantial) carbon storage and substitution GHG benefits of harvested forest products, as well as other benefits of active forest management.”

Continue reading

Greenpeace Canada: Biomass energy is a real “Biomess”

Greenpeace Canada just released a report that questions the country’s current wood energy industry, its practices, and its impact on the environment and climate change. The report suggests that “burning woody biomass on an industrial scale could severely harm Canada’s public forests and further contribute to the global climate crisis.” 

Read the report and tell us what YOU think!

Continue reading