undp, preliminary assessment of bioenergy production in the caribbean, 12-2009
TRANSCRIPT
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Preliminary Assessment of Bioenergy
Production in the Caribbean
United Nations Development Programme
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United Nations Deelopment Programme (UNDP) Barbados and the OECS, December 2009
This publication or parts o it may be reproduced or educational or non-prot purposes without special permission
rom the United Nations Deelopment Programme, proided acknowledgement o the source is made.
Citation: UNDP (2009) Preliminary Assessment o Bioenergy Production in the Caribbean. United Nations
Deelopment Programme, Barbados and the OECS
The iews epressed in this publication are those o the author and do not necessarily represent those o the
United Nations, including UNDP, or its Member States.
Author: Danielle Eanson
Editing and prooreading: Daid A. Taitt
Design and layout: Blueprint Creatie, Barbados
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Preliminary Assessment o Bioenergy
Production in the Caribbean
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UNDP is the UNs global development network, advocating or change and connecting
countries to knowledge, experience and resources to help people build a better lie. We are
on the ground in 166 countries, working with them on their own solutions to global and
national development challenges. As they develop local capacity, they draw on the people
o UNDP and our wide range o partners.
Energy and environment are essential or sustainable development. The poor are
disproportionately aected by environmental degradation and lack o access to clean
aordable energy services. These are global issues as climate change, loss o biodiversity and
ozone layer depletion cannot be addressed by countries acting alone. UNDP helps countries
strengthen their capacity to address these challenges at global, national and community
levels, seeking out and sharing best practices, providing innovative policy advice and linking
partners through pilot projects that help poor people build sustainable livelihoods.
Energy andEnironment
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FOREWORD 4
PREFACE 6
ACRONYMS 8
UNITS AND NOMENCLATURE 10
1. INTRODUCTION 11
1.1. ADVANTAGES OF BIOENERGY 13
1.2. DISADVANTAGES OF BIOENERGY 15
1.3. OTHER ISSUES AND UNCERTAINTIES 15
1.4. BIOFUELS, ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE 161.4.1. Land use change and intensication 16
1.4.2. Habitat destruction and biodiversity loss 17
1.4.3. Water and soils 18
1.4.4. Climate change 18
1.5. WHY SHOULD BIOENERGY BE CONSIDERED FOR THE CARIBBEAN REGION? 19
Table o Contents
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2. BIOETHANOL 23
2.1. INITIATIVES IN THE CARIBBEAN 26
2.2. INITIATIVES IN LATIN AMERICA 29
3. BIODIESEL 31
3.1. INITIATIVES IN THE CARIBBEAN 32
3.2. INITIATIVES IN LATIN AMERICA 34
4. BIOGAS AND SOILD FUELS 35
4.1. INITIATIVES IN THE CARIBBEAN 36
4.1.1. Biogas 36
4.1.2. Biomass cogeneration 37
4.1.3. Fuelwood 39
4.2. INITIATIVES IN LATIN AMERICA 39
4.2.1. Biogas 39
4.2.2. Biomass cogeneration 40
5. ECONOMIC COMPARISON 41
6. LESSONS LEARNED 45
6.1. UTILIZATION OF AVAILABLE FUNDING MECHANISMS AND OTHER RESOURCES 45
6.2. APPROPRIATE NATURE OF ACTIVITIES 47
6.3. INTERAGENCY COORDINATION AND RESOURCE SHARING 47
6.4. GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION AND INCENTIVES 47
6.5. PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT 49
6.6. PRIVATE SECTOR SUPPORT 49
6.7. MARKET LIBERALIZATION 50
7. OTHER RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES IN THE CARIBBEAN 51
7.1. WIND ENERGY 51
7.2. SOLAR POWER 53
7.3. GEOTHERMAL ENERGY 54
7.4. HYDROELECTRICITY 55
8. SECOND GENERATION BIOFUELS 56
8.1. THE FISCHER-TROPSCH PROCESS 56
8.2. LIGNOCELLULOSIC BIOETHANOL 58
9. CONCLUSIONS 59
REFERENCES 63
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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List o Figures
Figure 1: Energy and environmental balances or various crops
used in ethanol production 24
Figure 2: Restructuring and diversication o the Barbados cane industry 26
Figure 3: Fuel station in Brazil displaying prices or ethanol (at top) and
conventional gasoline 29
Figure 4: Energy and environmental balances or various crops used in
biodiesel production 32
Figure 5: Biodiesel manuacture rom waste cooking oil in Barbados 32
Figure 6: Distribution o CDM applications among countries o Latin America
and the Caribbean submitted between January 2005 and April 2008 46
Figure 7: Active volcanic centres o the Lesser Antilles 55
List o Tables
Table 1: Potential biouel crops as petroleum substitutes 12
Table 2: Countries in the Caribbean identied as having good or excellent
potential or bioenergy development 21
Table 3: Sugar cane area under cultivation, production and yield or countries
in Latin America and the Caribbean 24
Table 4: Ethanol production potential or various countries in Latin America
and the Caribbean to ull demand or E10 25
Table 5: Comparative eciency o boilers in energy production rom cane 38
Table 6: Select demographic and energy statistics or selected countries in
Latin America and the Caribbean 41
Table 7: Projected or existing capacity or bioethanol production or selectedcountries in Latin America and the Caribbean 42
Table 8: Projected capacity or biodiesel production in Brazil and Barbados 43
Table 9: Projected or existing capacity or production o energy rom solid
biomass or selected countries in the Caribbean 43
Table 10: Projected or existing capacity or production o energy rom landll
gas in Jamaica and Barbados 44
List o Boxes
Box 1: The case or bioenergy in the Caribbean 20Box 2: Operation o the FICFB gasication system 57
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Foreword
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is the UNs global develoment
network, an organisation advocating or change and connecting countries to knowledge,
experience and resources to help people build a better lie. The sub-regional oce located
in Barbados serves the ten countries o Barbados and the Organisation o Eastern Caribbean
states (OECS). These small island developing states (SIDS), which have to contend with
the challenges o open and undiverisied economies, continuing social inequities, a high
incidence o poverty and HIV/AIDS and vulnerability to a variety o natural hazards, such
as volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, hurricanes, oods and landslides, and climate change,
also need to nd ways to address their almost complete dependence on imported uel, and
to put in place a sustainable energy sector that can help drive the transormation o their
economies. .
Bioenergy in the Caribbean: Supporting Policy Dialogue on Sustainable Energy Services
or Small Island Developing States through South-South Cooperation was a project
implemented through UNDP with unding assistance rom the United Nations Foundation.
It was designed to assist Caribbean SIDS identiy avenues and practices to help improve their
energy security and access to sustainable energy services. Specic objectives ocused on
enhancing knowledge management or the renewable energy sector, identiying capacity
needs and subsequently addressing these needs, and intra-regional dialogue and sharing
toward a sustainable energy path.
National ocus group consultations were hosted in ve islands to ascertain the state and
needs o their energy sectors. Training workshops were held or science teachers and
electrical and technicians engineers rom various countries to enhance their knowledge
and skills in renewable energy and its applications. An impact assessment was conducted
across nine countries to study the degree o change caused by energy projects in the
last decade in terms o improving energy security and sustainability through reduced
dependence on ossil uel imports and increasing use o indigenous renewable energy. It
also identied remaining gaps and barriers in the industry, and oered recommendations
or a way orward. Alongside CARICOM and the Caribbean Renewable Energy DevelopmentProgramme (CREDP), the project supported development o an interactive online regional
knowledge management hub the Caribbean Inormation Platorm on Renewable Energy
(CIPORE: www.cipore.org). This site is a central hosting point or all data and inormation on
renewable energy activities in the region, and allows communication between, and learning
amongst, stakeholders. Also, this document, an output under the project, examines the
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easibility o bioenergy production in the Caribbean, to be used as an aid in developing
ollow on plans o action.
UNDP is committed to, and actively supports, initiatives that seek to reduce poverty and
vulnerability. Renewable energy can provide access to clean, aordable energy services or the
poor and rural communities. Bioenergy can help improve agricultural livelihoods and produce
valuable energy rom waste, thus improving waste treatment and reducing use o landlls.
Sustainable bioenergy production is not a panacea or all energy challenges, and aces
debates surrounding its impact on ood markets and whether it can be truly sustainable and
lessen greenhouse gas emissions. Nevertheless, it represents a potential solution or reviving
agriculture, diversiying local energy markets and improving energy security.
Related climate change mitigation and adaptation measures assist in sustainable
management o water resources, reduction o air pollution, conservation o biodiversity, and
ecosystem protection. Ultimately, human settlements are dependent on such environmental
goods and services. Climate change, disaster risk, and poverty are inextricably intertwined,
and UNDP continues to strive to strengthen the capacity o developing countries to charta low-emissions path because current patterns threaten to halt and even reverse the
development gains o the last ew decades, and reduce the likelihood o achieving the
Millennium Development Goals by 2015. Climate change adaptation and attainment o a
sustainable energy path demand that uture development be done dierently.
Michelle Gyles-McDonnough
UNDP Resident Representative
Barbados and the OECS
FOREWORD
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Preace
This paper gives a brie overview o bioenergy technology and applications and represents
a summary compilation o work done by various bodies, reerenced at the end o the
document, throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.
An extensive technical report on the economics and easibility o biouels in the Caribbean
region entitled Technical, Social and Economic Aspects of Agro-energycan be requested rom:
Inter-American Institute or Cooperation on Agriculture
St. Lucia Country Oce
P.O Box 1223
Castries
St. Lucia
Tel: +1 758 451 6760/1
Fax: +1 758 451 6774
Email: [email protected]
This document details experiences rom around the globe, including the Philippines,
Australia, Cuba, Brazil, and India. It also analyses challenges to and opportunities or
developing an agro-energy industry in the Caribbean, including requirements or policy
and legal rameworks, investment capital, hardware and inrastructure, national capacity
and public ownership. The accompanying Strategy for the Development of an Agro-energy
Programme for the Caribbean Region was presented at a regional high-level seminar on
expansion o sustainable bioenergy opportunities in August 2007. It outlines strategies and
programmes to enable the Caribbean to develop a sustainable bioenergy production sector,
and the role o IICA in realizing this goal.
The World Bank has also assembled a policy research working paperReview of Environmental,
Economic and Policy Aspects of Biofuels which deals with these issues rom a global
perspective. Further, the World Bank has developed a RE Toolkit: a resource for renewable
energy development which analyses grid-connected and stand-alone systems, barriers to
their implementation, and means to overcome them, as well as an overview o the various
renewable technologies, including bioenergy.
The International Institute or Energy and Development (IIED) published a paper on Biofuels
production, trade and sustainable development: emerging issues covering such topics as
market development, trade barriers, WTO and GATT rules, and sustainability questions
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relating to economic aspects such as energy diversication, environmental issues such as
greenhouse gas mitigation, and social implications such as ood security.
Further, in 2008 FAO in its annual publication The State of Food and Agriculture ocused on the
subject o biouels prospects, risks and opportunities. With a global outlook, the document
examines a number o issues, including economic and policy drivers, markets, and impacts
on poverty, ood security and the environment.
Finally, the International Union or Conservation o Nature (IUCN) produced a guide or
toolkit entitled Implementing Sustainable Bioenergy Production: A Compilation of Tools and
Approaches suggesting ways to reduce, manage and mitigate the risks associated with
biouels. It targets a variety o stakeholders, including communities, civil society, project
developers, businesses, land owners and government ministries.
PREFACE
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Acronyms
AFD Agence Franaise de Dveloppement (French Development Agency)
B2 2% biodiesel mixture with conventional diesel
BAMC Barbados Agricultural Management Company Ltd
BL&P Barbados Light and Power Company Ltd
BNOCL Barbados National Oil Company Ltd.
CARICOM Caribbean Community
CARILEC Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation
CBI Caribbean Basin Initiative
CCGT Combined cycle gas turbine
CDB Caribbean Development Bank
CDM Clean Development Mechanism
CER Certied emission reductions
CIDA Canadian International Development Agency
CREDP Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme
E10 10% ethanol mixture with conventional gasoline
ECLAC Economic Commission or Latin America and the Caribbean
EIA Environmental impact assessment
EU European Union
FFEM Fonds Franais pour lEnvironnement Mundial (AFD)
FFV Flex-uel vehicle
GEF SGP Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme
GHG Greenhouse gas
GMO Genetically modied organism
GRENLEC Grenada Electricity Services Ltd
GTZ Deutsche Gesellschat r Technische Zusammenarbeit (German Agency or
Technical Cooperation)
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IADB Inter-American Development Bank
IICA Inter-American Institute or Cooperation on Agriculture
IIED International Institute or Energy and Development
IPCC Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change
IUCN International Union or Conservation o Nature
JPSCo Jamaica Public Service Company
LCA Lie cycle analysis
LFG Landll gas
LPG Liqueed petroleum gas
MTBE Methyl tertiary-butyl ether
MDG Millennium Development Goals
MOU Memorandum o understanding
MSW Municipal solid waste
NGO Non-governmental organization
OAS Organization o American States
OLADE Organizacin Latinoamericana de Energa (Latin American Energy Organization)
OPEC Organization o the Petroleum Exporting Countries
OUR Oce o Utilities Regulation, Jamaica
PIA Power interchange agreement
PNPB Programa Nacional de Produo e Uso de Biodiesel (National Biodiesel Production and Use
Programme)
PPA Power purchase agreement
SRC Scientic Research Council, Jamaica
UNDP United Nations Development Programme
UNFCCC United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change
VINLEC St. Vincent Electricity Services Ltd
VOC Volatile organic compounds
VOME Vegetable oil methyl ester nits and Nomenclature Introduction
ACRONYMS
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Units and Nomenclature
bbl barrels
cal calories
CH4
methane
CO carbon monoxide
CO2
carbon dioxide
t eetG giga (109)
gal gallons
ha hectares
H2O water/water vapour
HFCs hydrouorocarbons
J Joules
k kilo (103)
km kilometres
l litres
lpd litres per day
M mega (106)
m3 cubic metresN Newtons
N2O nitrous oxide
NO2
nitrogen dioxide
O3
ozone
PFCs peruorocarbons
SF6
sulphur hexauoride
tCO2
tonnes o CO2
toe tonnes o oil equivalent
W Watts
Wh Watt-hours
C degrees Celsius
Euros
$ United States dollars (unless otherwise stated)
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Biological energy (bioenergy) is derived rom non-ossil
organic (living or recently living) matter and its metabolicby products.
Further distinction can be made, where biouels are liquid or gaseous uels
rom biomass which can be used to replace natural gas and some petroleum
derivatives, e.g. diesel, gasoline/petrol, LPG1. However these terms are oten used
interchangeably.
Typically starchy and cereal crops are used to produce ethanol by ermentation. Biodiesel is
extracted rom oily plants and seeds, animal ats and waste vegetable oils. Biogas, which is
mostly composed o methane, is generated during the anaerobic decomposition o organic
matter, usually municipal solid waste (MSW) and sewage. Other organic by-products o
industrial and manuacturing processes could also be considered biouels when used or
energy or electricity, e.g. black liquor produced rom paper and pulp production. These areconsidered rst generation biouels.
Selection o bioenergy crops, and thus the success o biouel development, is inuenced by
a number o actors, including:
agro-industrial productivity (litres o uel per hectare);
1 IUCN, 2008a
Introduction
1
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1 INTRODUCTION
power generation eciency (kWh/tonne);
technological availability (access and aordability);
energy balance (energy contained/delivered : energy used in production);
environmental impact o production;
competition with ood production; and
incentives and barriers.
A wide array o crops is available or use as biouel eedstock or petroleum substitution, and
some are still being researched. Some o these are outlined in Table 1.
Second generation biouels use a broader range o cellulosic biomass, including grasses,
woody perennials and agricultural wastes, and are converted using more advanced
biochemical and thermochemical processes. Third generation biouels consist o potential
uture uels rom energy-designed eedstocks or much improved production and
conversion eciencies.2
Bioenergy is not new. Statistics rom the International Energy Agency (IEA) in 2007 indicated
that bioenergy accounted or 10 percent o total primary energy and 78 percent o all
renewable energy in 2005. In some developing countries it constitutes up to 80 percent o
primary energy supplies. Due to recent rapid expansion o the sector, judicious planning and
adaptation o existing knowledge to local contexts are necessary to maximize opportunities
while minimizing environmental risks and social inequalities.3
2 IUCN, 2008a
3 IUCN, 2008a
TABLE 1: POTENTIAL BIOFUEL CROPS AS PETROLEUM SUBSTITUTES
Plant Fuel substitution Primary biomass
yield
Secondary
biomass yield
jatropha
castor
diesel transport, power generation seeds -
cassava gasoline starch tubers -
coconut diesel transport, power generation oil shells
oil palm diesel transport, power generation oil shells
ast growing trees diesel or uel oil power generation wood -
ast growing legume
trees
diesel or uel oil power generation
LPG
leaves wood
sugar cane gasoline
diesel transport
diesel or uel oil power generation
sucrose bres and cane
trash
energy cane gasolinediesel transport
diesel or uel oil power generation
bres and canetrash
sugars
Source: Adapted rom IICA, 2006b
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1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 Adantages o bioenergyMany waste products can be converted into a useul resource by extracting uels rom them.
This conversion will also lessen the burden on waste treatment and disposal processes or
serve as a treatment system in itsel and, consequently, also minimize pollution o land,
groundwater and aquatic environments. Biomass residue rom the processing o rice,
soybean, sugarcane, used vegetable oils and organic MSW are all very valuable resources
that can be converted to energy.
Indigenous and renewable energy sources, coupled with energy eciency measures,
signicantly enhance a countrys energy security and sustainability by reducing the
importation o increasingly expensive and nite ossil uels. Price volatility and resource and
market monopolization all ampliy the risk o supply decits to non-oil-producing countries.
Developing states in particular are heavily reliant on imports to sustain their small and ragile
economies, and are spending greater proportions o their oreign exchange reserves on uel
imports. Thus, locally produced energy sources will translate into annual savings o millions
in oreign exchange on uel importation bills.
Using local energy sources oers opportunities or vast improvements in energy eciency
compared to standard practices due to the requisite new inrastructure that is required,
which one expects to be the best reasonably available. Due to the higher capital costs
and desire to shorten payback times, production capacity and eciency would also be
optimized. Additionally, because o pre-existing attributes such as a well-established and
organised sugar industry and market, as well as the technological developments already
available on the market, capital costs relating to areas such as research and land acquisition
are averted.
Bioenergy production can increase agricultural productivity and rural development and
assist in poverty alleviation. Sustainable industries mean sustainable jobs. Job creation woulddepend on the particular crop and its level o mechanization, and there is also employment
potential in the construction sector and technical specializations.
The value added and associated potentials or diversication o agricultural products beyond
the traditional outputs can help stabilize the cost o produce and prevent gluts in the market
because the crop is utilized more eciently. This added value increases when there is the
capacity to convert the crop to uel rather than simply growing eedstock or export. Further,
bioenergy production could help stabilize or revive the agricultural sector, specically the
sugar industries in the region, shielding them rom volatility in prices and export demand4.
Ethanol and biodiesel can be blended with conventional uels in internal combustion
engines with no need or modication. Biodiesel can be introduced directly into dieselengines. A blend o up to 10 percent o ethanol with gasoline (E10) is possible without engine
alteration. These uels have comparable mileage perormances. Flex-uel vehicles (FFVs)
4 Loy and Coviello, 2005
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1 INTRODUCTION
permit any blend o the uels, even complete substitution,
and are able to operate on conventional ossil uels when
biouels are not available. Ethanol is an excellent oxygenate
(reduces carbon monoxide (CO) emissions) and raises the
octane number (acts as an anti-knocking agent) o uel,
and can substitute or the petrochemical uel additive
MTBE (methyl tertiary-butyl ether) which has been shown
to pollute groundwater.
Biouels can be substituted or traditional cooking uels,
such as kerosene, wood and charcoal, which are typically
used in poor and/or rural households. This would reduce
pressure on orest resources as well as improve indoor air
quality by reducing particulates and pollutant gases within
the home. By extension this improves the health o those
more routinely exposed and more vulnerable to such
conditions, such as women, children and the elderly, andlessens the risk o developing respiratory problems.
Some energy crops can help to restore marginal and
degraded lands and thus increase agriculturally productive
land area without encroaching on other uses. Jatropha is
drought-resistant, needs minimal inputs and helps stabilize
soil and retain moisture. It starts producing ater less than
a year and as a perennial it does not require uprooting the
plant to reap the crop. The land could also be potentially
used or intercropping.
Bioenergy supplies valuable commodities or the exportmarket, particularly targeting Annex I countries5 that
have specic reduction GHG targets in accordance with
the Kyoto Protocol o the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). This opens
avenues or developing countries to pursue Clean
Development Mechanism (CDM) unding oered under
the UNFCCC. It will allow them to secure scal support or
the development o the industry, mitigate climate change,
make progress in achieving the Millennium Development
Goals (MDGs) and earn revenue rom carbon credits.
5 Annex I Parties to the UNFCCC are: Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia,
European Community, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania,
Luxembourg, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russian Federation, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain,
Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom o Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States o America
Denition: CLIMATE CHANGE
Change in the state o the climate that can be
identied by changes in the mean and/or ariability
o its properties that persists or an etended
period, typically decades or longer, whether due to
natural ariability or human actiity. (IPCC, 2007)
Change in climate attributed directly or indirectly
to human actiity that alters the composition o
the global atmosphere and which is in addition
to natural climate ariability obsered oer
comparable time periods. (UN, 1992)
Climate change is anticipated to hae many aderse
impacts, including sea leel rise, melting o the polarice caps, altered precipitation patterns and seasons,
increased requency and intensity o etreme weather
eents (e.g. droughts, oods, storms), migration
and etinction o species, epanded range o some
ector-borne diseases (e.g. malaria). These hae
repercussions or social systems such as reduced
reshwater aailability due to saltwater intrusion
into aquiers, decline in agricultural productiity, and
displacement o settlements.
Some o the eects are already being eperienced in
places around the world, most pointedly in low-lying,
small islands and in poor communities.
The principal cause is accepted to be global warming
o the earths surace and lower atmosphere resulting
rom rising greenhouse gas concentrations (e.g. CO2,
CH4, N
2O, O
3, SF
6, HFCs, PFCs, H
2O). These emissions
are rom anthropogenic actiities such as industries,
transport, agriculture, waste incineration and
deorestation, with eidence indicating that signicant
changes began during the Industrial Reolution o
the 1700s. CO2
is responsible or about 60% o this
enhanced greenhouse eect.
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1 INTRODUCTION
Disadantages o bioenergy
Competing land uses must be addressed. Growing energy crops may reduce the amount
o land available or growing ood, thus raising ood prices, which has been identied as
a contributor to the current ood crisis. It may also impact on housing needs, encroach
on protected ecosystems, and encourage deorestation. Land ownership, land tenure and
access to land play an important role and where these structures are weak or ill-dened the
poor may become marginalized as large agri-businesses expand their production.
The oreited revenue rom imports must be taken into account. Fuel import duties also
constitute substantial earnings or governments and lessening the quantity o oil imported
automatically reduces this income source.
The nancial competitiveness o bioenergy is highly variable. Inuential actors include
the biouel under consideration, the type and place o origin o eedstock used, and the
technology used. For instance, sugar cane yields more ethanol per ha than maize. Financial
viability also depends heavily on world oil prices. OPEC (Organization o the PetroleumExporting Countries) prices saw a 53 percent increase rom January 2008 to the peak six
months later at $140/bbl in July 2008. This was ollowed by a rapid crash to 2005 levels with
the daily price alling below $40/bbl at least 15 times between December 2008 and February
20096. Thus the viability and appeal o renewables have also uctuated.
Initially bioenergy generation, particularly production and distribution inrastructure, is
very capital intensive. Private sector investment is a critical component in mobilizing such
ventures.
Trade barriers and subsidies distort the market and decrease the market access and
competitiveness or developing countries where bioenergy can be produced more eciently,
as demonstrated by Brazil. Tari systems tend to encourage developing countries to exportunprocessed eedstock to the developed countries o Europe and the US where the majority o
demand resides, thus circumventing possibilities to gain rom value added products.
Other issues and uncertainties
There are a number o other actors accompanying development o bioenergy that may lead
to positive and/or negative environmental and socioeconomic impacts, which need to be
analysed comprehensively.
For instance, the need or new inrastructure such as processing plants, and possibly roads
and mass transportation mechanisms, is benecial in terms o providing employmentand increasing skills o the work orce. However consideration must be given to where
this inratructure is being placed, or instance whether it will displace settlements, cause
deorestation, or be in a hazard-prone area. Introduction o genetically modied crop varieties
(GMOs) can improve crop yields, reduce the use o agrochemicals and improve resistance
to pests and disease. Alternatively, it is eared that GMOs could destroy local biodiversity
6 http://www.opec.org/home/basketDayArchives.aspx
1.2
1.3
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1 INTRODUCTION
and be detrimental to small armers because o the high costs o seeds and monopolized
manuacture. The need or economies o scale to increase production eciency can be a
drawback or small armers. In another light, armers could orm cooperatives and pool
resources to maximize output and keep themselves competitive.
Another aspect is the introduction o incentives to promote the adoption o alternative uels
by industry and the public. These may include tax allowances or establishing production
acilities, reduced uel taxes on biodiesel and ethanol compared to traditional uels, subsidies
or purchasing FFVs, and rebates or tax waivers on production or conversion equipment.
As the Brazilian ethanol and Barbados solar water heater experiences demonstrate, such
measures can prove overwhelmingly successul to catalysing the widespread uptake o
renewable energy in a country.
On the downside they can deplete scarce resources, take ecologically important lands, and
increase pollution i not comprehensively planned. Developers must take due consideration
o the types, nature and quantities o co-products and waste products that will be generated
during the production process and how they will be treated. For instance, i chemicals arebeing used to scrub cooling towers the efuent cannot be mixed into a biological treatment
system designed or the organic components o the waste. But there are treatment systems
which eectively remove contaminants such that the wastewater can be reused in processing.
Biological systems may also release methane that can be captured or electricity generation.
Biouels, enironment and climate change
1.4.1. Land use change and intensifcation
Competition or land will intensiy as the market demand or and the production o bioenergy
expand. Pressures on orests and human developments are increasing. In many countries,or example, the USA, more agricultural land is being segregated to grow maize and other
crops or ethanol production as opposed to human consumption. This trend has led to the
increase in prices o grain and staple oods in the region, as well as in eed prices or livestock,
thus jeopardizing the ood security o many in terms o quantity and aordability o ood.
There is also the potential to increase landlessness as rural communities and indigenous
people dependent on orest resources and ecosystem services are displaced. Deensive
arguments include the act that marginal lands can be used to grow energy crops; biouels
are not envisioned as completely replacing ossil uels; and ood shortages are more related
to inequitable distribution and high unemployment, thereore the betterment o livelihoods
through bioenergy development will increase disposable income.
Land use conversion is a critical actor in assessing the greenhouse gas and energy balanceso biouels through lie cycle analysis (LCA). This process compares the amount o energy
used in the production o biouels, the energy content o the biouel, and the amounts and
types o GHGs emitted at various stages o the process (cultivation, harvest, processing,
transport, etc). Land use conversion to biouel production can also trigger GHG release. For
instance, the conversion o grassland to energy crops can release 300tCO2(tonnes o carbon
dioxide) per ha per year; or orests it can be as much as 600-1,000tCO2
per ha per year. This
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1 INTRODUCTION
compares to 1.8tCO2
per ha per year saved by ethanol rom maize, and a possible 8.6tCO2
per
ha per year saved using second generation crops. Some research even indicates that over a
30-year period more CO2
would be sequestered (removed rom the air) by employing orest
conservation and restoration alongside uel eciency rather than by using biouels.7
Growth in bioenergy demand ar outstrips the historic rate o growth in crop yields. Whether
this demand will be met by increased productivity, expansion in cultivated area, new crop
varieties and technologies or improved practices determines the sustainability o the
industry, the greenhouse gas balance, and environmental impacts. Previously non-viable
plots may become protable as commodity prices rise; this may lead to the conversion o
unsuitable lands, or reintroduction o ormer agricultural lands to production. Adoption o
integrated pest management, irrigation, new research and other means may be incorporated
in order to increase yields on lands currently in production.8 However, the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fourth Assessment Report (4AR) surmises that even with
relatively modest temperature increases (1-2C) crop yields in tropical areas are expected to
decrease9. By 2050 yields or various crops can decline in the region o 3-7 percent 10. There
are also issues o land rights and the seizing o traditional lands rom local and indigenouscommunities to expand agriculture.
1.4.2. Habitat destruction and biodiversity loss
Furthermore, deorestation is again on the rise because lands are being cleared or agriculture,
e.g. in Indonesia and Malaysia or the cultivation o palm trees or conversion o palm oil to
biodiesel. Protesters argue that the entire lie cycle o biodiesel manuacture would result in
a net increase in greenhouse emissions rom slash and burn clearance methods, burning o
sugar cane beore harvesting, removal o dense orest cover and other damaging practices.
Expansion into non-agricultural land may adversely impact provision o ecosystem services
(e.g. water provision and ltration, ood, medicine, carbon sequestration) and biodiversityloss. Displacement o ood crops may also lead to relocation o those crops in natural
habitats which may displace wild species, introduce chemicals and pests, among other
detrimental eects. The desire to maximize crop yields may give rise to other problems
relating to monocropping, habitat and soil degradation, high levels o water consumption,
water pollution rom agrochemicals, exploitation o labour and poor working conditions.
Biodiversity o natural ecosystems is threatened by habitat destruction rom land use change.
Research indicates that rising commodity prices due to increased bioenergy demand could
induce land use change and intensication in Brazil, and agricultural expansion driven by
these higher prices could endanger areas with high diversity o bird species. Monocropping
also reduces the genetic diversity o crops, thus increasing susceptibility to disease and
reducing possibilities or developing new varieties. Some second generation crops areconsidered invasive or potentially invasive species and thus a threat to biodiversity, water
resources and agriculture.11
7 FAO, 2008
8 FAO, 2008
9 IPCC, 2007
10 IFPRI, 2009
11 FAO, 2008
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1 INTRODUCTION
1.4.3. Water and soilsWater or agriculture is becoming scarcer as competing
uses increase. About 70 percent o reshwater resources
worldwide are used or agriculture.12 The IPCC 4AR indicates
that under most climate change scenarios there is strong
evidence that water resources in SIDS are likely to be
seriously compromised. Annual river runo and water
availability are projected to decrease 10-30 percent by mid-
century in some regions, some o which are already water
stressed.13
Many o the crops presently used or bioenergy have high
water requirements; processing can also use vast quantities
o water, mainly or washing plants and seeds and or
evaporative cooling. However expansion o irrigated systems pose the most concern given the
impact on local water resource balances and limitations relating to unavourable land tenure
systems, costly land acquisition, and inrastructural requirements and costs or extraction,delivery and storage. Higher surace temperatures will also increase water demand, as well
as induce changes in precipitation patterns and increase the likelihood o drought. Land use
changes and cultivation and production processes may initiate or exacerbate problems o soil
erosion and sedimentation o water courses, and o pollution o ground and surace waters
rom runo o excess ertilisers and pesticides.14, 15
Soil quality, structure and stability are largely dependent on the techniques employed.
Monocropping, waterlogging and salinsation o irrigated land, excessive application o
agrochemicals, and clearance o crop residue are some contributors to poor soil quality and
land degradation. Crop rotation, contour ploughing, intercropping, adequate drainage, and
conservation or no tillage are some o the sustainable agricultural practices which can help
maintain nutrients and organic content, minimize erosion, and prevent soil becoming inertile.
Feedstocks will impact the soil dierently. Growing perennials such as sugar cane, palm
and switchgrass instead o annual crops can increase soil cover and organic matter. Crops
also dier based on their water and nutrient requirements. Some crops such as jatropha
and grasses need ewer inputs and less intensive management, and can contribute to the
improvement o marginal soils. Increasing demand or crop residues such as bagasse or
energy production, i not managed sustainably, can have inimical eects on soil quality by
reducing soil cover and organic content.16
1.4.4. Climate change
Debate continues to rage as to whether bioenergy is truly renewable or mitigative in termso GHG emissions reduction. CO
2is sequestered during the growth o energy crops as they
store it in their biomass and the soil. Quantities o various greenhouse gases (GHG) emitted
12 FAO, 2008
13 IPCC, 2007
14 FAO, 2008
15 IFPRI, 2009
16 FAO, 2008
You have the power to chart a saer, moresustainable and prosperous course or this and
uture generations. The power to reduce theemissions that are causing climate change...to help the most vulnerable adapt to changesthat are already under way... to catalyse anew era o global green growth. Now is yourmoment to act.
UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon addressing global leaders
at the Climate Change Summit Plenary in New York, 22
September 2009
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1 INTRODUCTION
rom combustion o bioethanol and biodiesel are signicantly lower as compared to ossil
uels. Thus they serve a role in mitigating urther climate change, and enabling Annex I
countries to ull their emissions reduction commitments under the Kyoto Protocol.
There are also reductions in the amount o other pollutants such as sulphates, CO, VOCs,
and particulate matter. However, the levels o reduction are dictated by the type o biouel,
eedstock, and conversion technology, inter alia. Capture and aring o biogas, which
is primarily methane (a GHG 25 times more potent than CO2), or conversion to electricity
reduce its release into the atmosphere and its capacity or causing res. Conversely, nitrous
oxide (300 times more potent than CO2) is released rom nitrogen ertilisers; other GHGs are
released during dierent stages, such as during pesticide and ertiliser production, chemical
processing, and transport and distribution17.
The energy balance (units o clean energy generated per unit o non-renewable energy
used) o biouels is, again, dependent on characteristics such as eedstock, climatic
conditions, cultivation practices, and extraction and production technologies. For instance,
the energy balance or cane-based ethanol rom Brazil is on average 8.3, compared to 0.81-1.03 or wheat, and 0.56-0.65 or sugar beet.18 The energy balance or sugar cane ethanol is
so high relative to beet and maize mainly because biomass (bagasse rom the cane) is used
to produce electricity or the process. The use o ossil uels in the production process will
drastically reduce the potential or GHG reduction. Conversely there is the consideration
that biouels emit less CO, sulphates and particulate matter. This is also countered by
greater emissions o NO2. Also, the value o co-products such as glycerine, ertiliser and
electricity, must be actored into the LCAas emissions avoided rom an additional or more
polluting processes.
Most LCAs indicate emissions reductions in the range o 20-60 percent or rst generation
biouels, assuming high-eciency systems and ignoring emissions related to land use
change. Eorts are underway to standardize the methodologies used or LCAs, e.g.how co-products and land use are accounted or, and identiying the broader social and
environmental impacts.19
Why should bioenergy be considered or the Caribbean region?
Social inequalities, small and undiversied economies, high dependence on ood and uel
imports, concentration o settlements and critical inrastructure in the coastal zone, and
many other actors make Caribbean countries highly vulnerable to impacts o world trade
markets, natural hazards and climate change. Every country will be aected by climate
change. Forecasts indicate that climate change will result in greater vulnerability to hunger
and poverty, less secure means o subsistence, exacerbation o social inequalities (including
gender inequalities) and more environmental degradation. Hence the poorest and mostvulnerable countries, which produce the lowest levels o emissions,20 will be most aected.
17 FAO, 2008
18 Duey, 2006
19 FAO, 2008
20 UNDP, 2009
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Growing populations, expanding industry and escalating energy demand and prices have
orced gradual shits in outlook regarding energy strategies and policies. The territories o the
region in recent years have been turning their ocus increasingly to renewable energy, and
particularly to bioenergy. Various drivers surround these moves, including high dependence
on ossil uel imports, rising per capita energy consumption and waste production, crippled
sugar industries, and creation o agreements such as the US-Brazil Biouels Partnership, and the
Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) which allows duty ree export o ethanol to the United States.
The IICA Agro-energy Strategy23 indicates that the organization will give priority attention to
countries where the potential or bioenergy development is considered good or excellent,
as illustrated in Table 2. Further, the IICA Regional Biouels Industry Development Initiative
outlines our main areas o ocus in order or the prospective benets o these industries to
be realized:
capacity development and public education;
catalysing production o biouels or transport;
catalysing production o bioenergy or electricity generation; and
development o small and medium-sized enterprises or biouels.
23 IICA, 2006a
TABLE 2: COUNTRIES IN THE CARIBBEAN IDENTIFIED AS HAvING GOOD OR
ExCELLENT POTENTIAL FOR BIOENERGY DEvELOPMENT
Potential Country Lead crops Biouels market Imported petroleum
products 2004 (US$000)
Excell
ent
Belize
sugar cane
oil seeds
ast-growing trees
transport uelspower generation
73,185
Guyana 164,004
Cuba 1,449,014
Dominican Republic 1,712,591
Good
Barbados sugar cane transport uels
power generation
209,451.3
Jamaica sugar cane
oil seeds
ast-growing trees
transport uels
power generation
928,646.2
Suriname 162,381.4
Trinidad and Tobago sugar cane transport uels 1,258,352.8
Source: IICA, 2006a
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In the medium term it is unlikely that there will be sucient quantities o ossil uels to meet
global demands24. Coupled with the pollution and climate change rom burning o these
uels, the expected shortall presents the opportune time or the transition to renewable
orms o energy. While production o bioenergy raises many concerns on several ronts, e.g.
geopolitical implications, concerns over trade and ood security, it provides an alternative by
which countries can increase their sel-suciency in energy production, reduce their carbon
ootprint, generate local employment, and chart a more sustainable development path.
Nevertheless, in climate change mitigation eorts and in driving to improve energy security,
bioenergy cannot be the sole solution. There must be a combination o several measures,
which must include energy/uel eciency and conservation, that can be adopted at various
scales by the entire society and typically have a much lower cost per tonne o CO2
abated.
The strategy may also include use o other renewable orms o energy, reorestation and
orest preservation, and more sustainable agricultural practices.
24 IICA, 2007
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23
Bioethanol is a distilled liquid produced via the
ermentation25 o sugars rom agricultural produce or by-products such as sorghum, sugar cane, maize, wheat,
ruit, cane juice and molasses.
Hydrated ethanol is the output o distillation, but can be rened to obtain an
anhydrous product.26
Ethanol can be used as a transport uel either when blended with conventional petrol
to power automotives or used alone. It can be blended with petrol up to 10 percent (E10) without
the need or engine modication. Its energy content and combustion eciency are similar to
those o conventional gasoline, and thus has approximately equivalent economic value.
Figure 1 below indicates the energy balance (units o clean energy generated per unit o non-renewable energy used) and environmental balance (GHG emissions per toe in equivalent
tCO2) or various crops used to produce ethanol.
25 Fermentation is the biochemical process whereby sugars (e.g. glucose, sucrose) are broken down
into ethanol and carbon dioxide under anaerobic conditions (i.e. in the absence o oxygen). The
simplied equation below shows the conversion o glucose.
C6H
12O
61 2C
2H
5OH + 2CO
2
26 Duey, 2006
Bioethanol
2
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Figure 1: Energy and enironmental balances or arious crops used in ethanol production27
Agricultural research in this area ocuses mainly on developing crop varieties that will give
greater yields, on new cellulosic eedstocks, and testing the energy perormance o ethanol-
gasoline blends.
Sugar cane is the principal crop used in the region rom which ethanol is derived. Captured
below are the E10 production potential or various countries, along with present yield o
sugar and amount o land available or cultivation.
27 Adapted rom IICA, 2007
10
9
8
7
65
4
3
2
1
0
Sunower Canola Soybean Palm Wood
energy balance
environmental balance
TABLE 3: SUGAR CANE AREA UNDER CULTIvATION, PRODUCTION AND YIELD FOR COUNTRIES
IN LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN
Country Area under sugar cane Recent sugar cane yield Sugar production
000 ha kt/ha t t/ha
Argentina 296.8 66.05 2,030,653 6.84Barbados 8.0 62.0 54,000 6.75
Belize 24.3 64.0 107,000 4.41
Bolivia 105.0 45.71 510,000 6.8
Brazil 5,800.0 77.0 29,500,000 5.1
Colombia 212.5 122.9 2,415,117 13.1
Costa Rica 52.0 75.3 382,824 8.0
Dominican Republic 350.0 40.0 464,000 1.3
Ecuador 78.0 78.0 510,000 6.8
Honduras 88.1 73.1 381,018 4.32
Jamaica 40.0 47.5 167,000 4.18
Mexico 680.0 77.5 5,800,000 8.5
Panama 37.0 56.8 165,000 4.5Peru 66.2 102.4 694,599 12.0
Venezuela 130.0 67.7 706,000 5.4
Source: Adapted rom IICA, 2007; data delivered between 2005 and 2007
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TABLE 4: ETHANOL PRODUCTION POTENTIAL FOR vARIOUS COUNTRIES IN LATIN AMERICA AND
THE CARIBBEAN TO FULFIL DEMAND FOR E10
Country Gasoline
consumption
Area under
sugar cane
Arable
area
E10 ethanol
demand
Current
ethanol
output
Area o sugar cane to
meet E10 demand
000 m3 000 ha 000 ha 000 m3 000 m3 000 ha %
Argentina 4,911.1 296.8 128,747.0 491.1 230.0 81.9 27.6
Barbados 124.4 8.0 19.0 12.4 0 2.1 26.3
Bolivia 763.4 105.0 37,087.0 76.3 33.8 12.7 12.1
Brazil 16,000.0 5,800.0 150,000.0 1,600.0 15,999.2 266.7 4.6
Colombia 4,937.0 212.5 45,911.0 493.7 270.0 63.0 29.7
Costa Rica 855.1 52.0 2,865.0 85.5 30.5 14.3 27.5
DominicanRepublic
1,423.3 350.0 3,696.0 142.3 0 23.7 6.8
Ecuador 1,944.6 78.0 8,705.0 194.4 47.1 24.5 31.4
Guyana 130.0 49.0 1,740 13.0 23.6 2.2 4.5
Haiti 288.0 18.0 1,590.0 28.8 2.0 4.8 26.7
Honduras 457.2 88.1 2,936.0 45.7 26.3 7.6 8.6
Jamaica 699.8 40.0 513.0 70.0 12.0 11.7 29.3
Mexico 39,455.3 680.0 107,300.0 3,945.5 445.2 657.6 96.7
Panama 576.7 37.0 2,230.0 57.7 12.4 9.6 26.0
Peru 1,203.0 66.2 21,210.0 120.4 78.4 20.1 30.4
Suriname 106.5 3.0 89.0 10.6 0.4 1.8 60.0
Trinidad and
Tobago
493.1 13.0 133.0 49.3 5.3 8.2 63.1
Venezuela 12,700.6 130.0 21,640.0 1,270.1 0 234.5 180.4
Source: Adapted rom IICA, 2007
The last ew years have seen many sugar-producing SIDS scaling back or closing their
operations in response to unavourable international markets. This is aecting the traditional
landscape o many Caribbean countries and displacing many workers in the agricultural
sector. However many SIDS are now seeking to transition into energy production. This has
signicant social benets including employment generation, reduced oreign exchangeoutows, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions28.
28 Binger, 2005
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Initiaties in the Caribbean
Barbados
Feasibility analyses29 have been conducted to assess the viability o diversiying the sugar
industry to produce rened and specialty sugars or local and international markets, molasses,
bioethanol and electricity rom bagasse cogeneration (Figure 2). The annual production
capacity or ethanol was estimated at 14.4Ml; and over 9,000Mt o molasses. Estimates
o initial capital investment required are in the range o $150 million; this is expected to
translate to annual oreign exchange savings o $39 million, which are comparable to or
greater than revenue earned rom sugar exports.
More recent gures suggest that at ull capacity, to be attained by 2014, the system should
have an annual production capacity o 23Ml o anhydrous ethanol; 36,445t o molasses; and
15-20MW o electricity with input to the national grid30.
Figure 2: Restructuring and diersication o the Barbados cane industry31
29 Schaer and Associates, 2006
30 Briggs, 2008
31 Adapted rom Schaer and Associates, 2006
2.1
CANE
PRODUCTION
Commercial cane
and fuel cane
Independent
producers
Agricultural
input suppliers
Harvest and
transport
BAMC
Agricultural Operations Industrial Operations
Research and
Development
For domestic markets
Electricity (BL&P)
Fuel blends (BNOCL)
For domestic
rum industry
For domestic and
international
markets
Sugar
production
Ethanol
production
Power
production
Natural gas
Wood and
paper waste
Syrup
Bagasse
Molasses
Sugar
sugars
Refined and specialty
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Cuba32
The ethanol production industry in Cuba dates back to 1862, peaking in 1961. Investigations
into the use o ethanol or the transport sector resumed in 1977. Hydrated ethanol is preerred
due to such actors as its availability, physio-chemical properties, and cost. Results o studies
looking at the use o a 25 percent hydrated ethanol blend with gasoline showed several
benets, including increasing the octane number by 10 units, eliminating knocking, and
reducing incidences o spark plug ailure. Unortunately it could not be utilized commercially
due to the possible separation o the mixture over time.
Experiments blending 25 percent hydrated ethanol in diesel engines demonstrated that 21
to 23 percent less diesel was used with the mixture, and separation did not occur. However,
1.5-2 units o ethanol were required or every unit o diesel replaced, and a special device
was needed or the uels to be injected separately.
Dominican Republic33
Data show that the Dominican Republic has the potential to produce 50-60Mt o biomass
annually rom 300,000ha o sugar cane. Since the gradual closure o sugar mills starting inthe 1980s, sugar production has progressively declined and by 2007 the cultivated area was
125,000ha. Thereore their rst objective is to reclaim an additional 130,000ha o abandoned
lands to initiate the bioethanol programme. The aim is to diversiy the industry so as to yield
300-1,500 million gallons o ethanol per year along with biogas, with annual expansion o
the cultivated area eventually to 700,000ha dedicated to bioethanol production.
Guyana34
Assessments show that more than sucient quantities o ethanol can be produced rom
molasses (with a more avourable price comparison than using cane juice) to achieve
a 10 percent substitution o gasoline without altering the area o land presently under
cultivation. The daily production capacity required would be 65,000lpd utilizing 38 percent
o the available current supply o molasses.
A plant o this size would cost about $6.5 million; this compares to importation costs o
$5.4 million in 2005. Depending on the raw material used (molasses or cane juice), 30,000-
280,000m3 o ethanol can be produced annually. In light o the removal o preerential trade
agreements across the Caribbean, Guyana is also looking to expand sugar production by 50
percent, diversiying products, generating electricity rom bagasse and producing ethanol.
Jamaica
At present Jamaica has a production capacity o 606Ml or dehydrating ethanol rom Europe
and Brazil which is then exported to the United States under the CBI35.
Bioethanol is being considered or its application in transport. Jamaica Broilers Ltd, withcooperation rom Brazilian investors, constructed an ethanol plant, opened in August 2007,
32 Villareal, 2005
33 Tabar, 2007
34 Horta, 2007
35 Tulloch and Barrett-Edwards, 2007
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with an annual production capacity o 230Ml. Generation o E10 commenced in 2008, using
eedstock imported rom Brazil, and the blend is available at petrol stations throughout the
country. Local eedstocks under consideration are sugar cane and cassava.
Vast improvement in the eciency o the operation o the industry is crucial or the viability
o this venture. Privatization is presently underway, and is expected to yield marked changes
in productivity and energy consumption.
To achieve an E10 mix in transport uel by 2010, it is projected that an additional 19,000ha o
land are need or growing sugar cane. This assumes an annual rate o growth in demand o
4 percent, which would see consumption rise rom 68Ml or an E10 blend in 2004 to 91Ml.36
St. Kitts-Neis
Brazil and the US have pledged technical assistance to the twin island state in the
development o biouels rom sugar cane. A memorandum o understanding (MOU) to
Advance Cooperation on Biouels was signed by the three governments in March 2007, in
which it was agreed that St. Kitts and Nevis would receive assistance or the completion o anational energy policy, assessment o agricultural land available or sugar, building investor
support, and capacity building or decision makers37.
The US-Brazil Biouels Partnership also encompasses Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
In association with the OAS and IADB, these governments will und easibility studies to
investigate soil quality, the types o sugar cane most appropriate or local conditions,
environmental impact, and potential or rural development.38
Recent research has indicated that, based on sugar cane production in 2004, the estimated
annual ethanol production potential is 21Ml rom cane juice and bagasse. This has an
economic value o $10-15 million depending on the price o
crude oil ($70-100/bbl). The electricity output is projectedin the range o 15-50GWh, depending on crop yield and
energy conversion eciency.39
Suriname
Suriname has neither national policy nor government
incentives or development o bioenergy. There are very
limited technical, nancial, inrastructural and human
capacities; as well as a number o political and bureaucratic
barriers. The country possesses petroleum resources and has
developed hydropower, which orm the main bases or energy.
Nevertheless, bioenergy presents potential or increasein technical skills, employment and government revenue.
Suriname has a vast land area (over 160,000km2), with 85
36 Loy and Coviello, 2005
37 http://www.caribbeantoday.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2186&Itemi
d=162
38 http://www.cuopm.com/newsitem.asp?articlenumber=1324
39 Binger, 2008
We have only one planet to live on. We mustensure that the way we live and develop isconsistent with keeping its ecosystems inbalance. We must all nd a diferent, moresustainable way to grow our economies, andensure that poor people and nations havethe opportunity to create a better lie orthemselves.
Op-Ed A green deal or rich and poor nations by Helen Clark,
UNDP Administrator, 8 September 2009
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percent orest cover40. This aords opportunity or agricultural expansion, but also engenders
the likelihood o high deorestation, monoculture and subsequent soil inertility and eects
o pests and disease.
Trinidad and Tobago
This twin island state currently has no policy stance on biouels, but is anticipating the
development o a national energy policy in the near uture in which this matter will be
addressed. There is a lack o incentives or renewable energy development due to the
inexpensive petroleum products derived rom local resources. However these reserves are
diminishing. Further, the sugar cane industry has been closed or a number o years. There
is an ethanol purication plant which operates in Point Fortin, and exports the nished
product is exported to the United States. 41
Initiaties in Latin America
BrailBrazils National Alcohol Programme (Prolcool), pioneered in the 1970s, is the largest ossil
uel substitution initiative within the transport uel market. It is the most ecient example
o extraction o ethanol rom sugar cane in the world, with the uel being competitive at
oil prices o $30-40 per barrel. Government controls, subsidies and incentives that were
used to oster the growth o the programme were gradually removed rom the mid-1990s
to 2002. The tremendous progress and increases in productivity over the last 30 years have
been as a result o progressive introduction o new technologies, sugar cane species and
management practices, which has resulted in eciency improvements in areas such as
transport, extraction and ermentation.42 Bioethanol is now a highly competitive commodity
in Brazils transport uel market, as illustrated in Figure 3.
Figure 3: Fuel station in Brail displaying prices or ethanol (at top) and conentional gasoline43
40 Universiteit van Suriname, 2007
41 ECLAC, 2007
42 Moreira, 2003
43 Moreira, 2003
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Furthermore, the demand created by Brazils policies has revolutionised the automobile
market. By 2005 seven global manuacturers (Fiat, Volkswagen, General Motors, Ford,
Citron, Renault and Peugeot) were oering 24 FFV models with all the necessary engine
and vehicle modications. By this time there were 2.5 million pure hydrated ethanol vehicles
in Brazils national eet, and 608 billion FFVs using blends rom E25 to E100.44
The IADB has earmarked more than $2.5 million or Brazil to support the countrys objective
o tripling ethanol production by 2020. There have also been discussions surrounding
technical assistance and acilitating technology transer to enable other countries in the
region to benet rom Brazils experience.45
Colombia46,47
In 2001 a Fuel Ethanol Law was approved which demanded use o sugarcane-derived ethanol
in transport rom 2006. This is part o an initiative to use renewable energy to improve air
quality in cities, create jobs and promote sustainable development. Domestic gasoline
would be blended to E10, with a production capacity o 2.5Ml per day. No gasoline taxes
are levied on the ethanol substitute. There are to be nine distilleries, creating an expected
170,000 jobs or armers, and requiring an additional 150,000ha o sugar cane. It will increase
the average earnings o armers and the contribution to GDP rom agriculture. Production
costs are estimated at $0.90-1.15/gal. Sales are expected to generate $400 million annually.
Required investment will total $680 million, and expected uel importation savings are at
least $150 million per annum.
Proposals were also included or substituting $20 million o imported beverage ethanol, which
would allow reopening o 12 liquor plants mothballed because o vinasse contamination,
and generate associated employment.
Further, the IADB is contemplating nancing a $20 million biodiesel enterprise using palm oilas the raw material. This is anticipated to eventually have an annual production o 100,000t.48
El Salador
Here, as well as in Costa Rica, the IADB has nanced easibility studies and technical assistance
in areas such as market development, regulation and public outreach to help the countries
achieve their target o E10 blended gasoline49.
44 Lucon, et al, 2005
45 IADB, 2007http://www.iadb.org/NEWS/detail.cm?language=English&ARTID=3779&id=3779&CFID=53030
67&CFTOKEN=56941889
46 Cala Hederich, 2002
47 2002 http://www.iea.org/Textbase/work/2002/ccv/ccv1%20echeverri.pd
48 IADB, 2007
49 http://news.mongabay.com/bioenergy/2007/04/inter-american-development-bank-to.html
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Catalysed50 transesterication51 o ethanol and vegetableoil produces biodiesel or vegetable oil methyl ester
(VOME) with glycerine as a by-product.
Inputs include soya, palm, jatropha, coconut and sunower oil, waste cooking oil, tallow
and animal ats.52 Rapeseed, soya and palm oil currently tend to dominate the biodiesel
markets in developed and developing countries. While its use is not yet widespread,
jatropha seems to hold much promise as a eedstock. It is a perennial crop which can grow
on marginal lands in dry conditions, and has a very high energy balance. This is encouraging
in light o the ood-uel debate, where biouel crops are occupying vast tracts o agricultural
land usually used to grow ood or human or livestock consumption. There are also issues o
deorestation in Malaysia and Indonesia over cultivating plantations to grow oil palms.
Figure 4 below indicates the energy balance (units o clean energy generated per unit o non-
renewable energy used) and environmental balance (GHG emissions per toe in equivalent
tCO2) or various crops used to produce ethanol.
50 Catalysts alter the rate o a chemical reaction, typically increasing it, by creating an alternative
reaction pathway, but are not reagents and are thus not consumed by the reaction.
51 Transesterication reers to the switching o an organic group o an ester with that o an alcohol.
52 Duey, 2006
Biodiesel
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3 BIODIESEL
Figure 4: Energy and enironmental balances or arious crops used in biodiesel production53
Initiaties in the Caribbean
Barbados
Located at Counterpart Caribbean/Future Centre Trust a private entity, NativeSun NRG,
produces biodiesel rom waste cooking oil, shown in Figure 5. With support enlisted
rom the nearby Lester Vaughan Secondary School, NativeSun NRG sells the biodiesel or
use in agricultural machinery and private transportation54. Collaboration with the school
has opened an avenue or broader community involvement, with the students engaging
their households, neighbours and others in collection o the waste oil. It has also ostered
broader environmental education within the school, and provides an income stream or
the Environmental Club. This venture was started with the support o the GEF Small Grants
Programme (SGP) or Barbados and the OECS, and has developed to the level where it
has received a commitment o investment capital rom international interests or urther
expansion o the initiative to other islands.
Figure 5: Biodiesel manuacture rom waste cooking oil in Barbados55
53 Adapted rom IICA, 2007
54 http://sgp.undp.org/web/projects/9741/community_based_recycling_programme_
produciton_o_biodiesel_rom_used_vegetable_oil_with_the_lester_.html
55 GEF SGP Barbados and the OECS photo stock, 2008
3.1
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0Wheat Sugar
beetMaize Sugar
caneStraw
energy balance
environmental balance
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3 BIODIESEL
Jamaica
Locally-grown eedstock options or biodiesel include oils rom rapeseed, castor, palm,
jatropha and sunower. The production target or 2010 is 73Ml. Land requirements to
achieve substitution with B10 are in the range o 65,000-96,500ha.56
Guyana
In August 2007, a MOU was signed between the OAS, IICA, IADB and the Government o
Guyana during the regional high-level seminar Expanding bioenergy opportunities in the
Caribbean57. The parties have committed to explore promotion and nancing o initiatives
in energy eciency, renewable energy and bioenergy in the region; develop a CARICOM
agro-energy strategy; and help member states access world biouel markets.
In April 2008, $925,000 in grants was approved rom the IADBs Japan Special Fund and its
Sustainable Energy and Climate Change Initiative Fund. This would go towards institutional
strengthening, nalization o the national agroenergy policy, training, supporting eld visitsby potential oreign investors, and conducting easibility and pre-investment studies.58
56 Tulloch and Barrett-Edwards, 2007
57 IADB news release 6.08.2007
http://www.iadb.org/NEWS/detail.cm?Language=En&parid=2&artType=PR&artid=3977&id=3
977&CFID=5303067&CFTOKEN=56941889
58 http://www.stabroeknews.com/2008/news/local/08/21/idb-government-to-sign-agro-energy-
agreement/
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
I in Barbados, you can collect the oil used in cooking, lter out the ood remains and store it in plastic bottles (let it
cool rst!). Take it to Counterpart Caribbean at the Future Centre Trust at No 2, Edgehill, St. Thomas. Your oil will betransormed into a clean uel instead o dumped into the drains to pollute the groundwater system. You may also
purchase biodiesel at this location or all diesel-powered ehicles and machinery.
I you are interested in starting such an initiatie in your territory you may contact the GEF SGP in Barbados, Belie, Cuba,
Dominican Republic, Jamaica, Trinidad or other countries or adice and support. I t can be a community-leel project, or
can be as epansie as including ast ood and restaurant operations. Think globally, act locally.
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3 BIODIESEL
Initiaties in Latin America
Brail59
The country noted as a orerunner or its advances in bioethanol production has embarked
on a programme or biodiesel, with government authorization o commercial production,
initially or B2 (2 percent blend o biodiesel with regular diesel). The National Biodiesel
Production and Use Programme (PNPB) is a collaboration o 14 ministries under an Inter-
ministerial Executive Committee (CEI).
There is a great degree o exibility in the type o oilseeds grown as eedstock, as well as in
the techniques used or rening. This acilitates participation by armers and armers groups
on all scales and at all levels, and ensures lands are used optimally. However, all output must
conorm to the international quality standards dictated by the regulatory authority.
Jobs will be created in construction o plants, transport and distribution, arming, technical
assistance, and rening. Crops can be grown in isolated rural communities to replace the
diesel used or electricity rom generators.
Nicaragua
In 1994, a collaborative venture o the Austrian government, Petronic, the Union o Agricultural
Cooperatives and the National Autonomous University o Nicaragua commenced with the
planting o an initial 1000ha oJatropha curcas. The ve-year project would have annual
outputs o 1,700t o biodiesel, 1,600t o animal odder with 56 to 58 percent protein content,
144t o glycerol, and 1,800t o oilseed shells or heat generation. 60 An economic easiblity
study was previously completed by Petrotrin, with Nicaragua ullling World Bank dened
cost eectiveness criteria or such a project, namely extensive wastelands, high transportation
costs, availability o labour, and the need to oset expenditure on diesel imports. 61
59 Ministry o Mines and Energy, n.d.
60 Mayorga, 2005
61 Grimm, n.d.
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Over 2.5 billion people rely on traditional uses o biomass
or heating and cooking.62
However, there is a diverse array o modern applications or conversion o biomass
to energy, here specically reerring to energy extracted directly rom the biomass
rather than any o its metabolic products such as sugars and oils. Sewage, MSW,
wood, garden waste and agricultural waste such as rice husks and bagasse are
among the possible raw materials. Energy is extracted by combustion o the material itsel
or heat, producing process steam or electricity. Alternatively, products o decomposition,
e.g. methane, are used or heat or electricity. Notably, there must be due consideration given
to cultural perceptions relating to use o treated sewage or even greywater as these may
not be very amenable to some societies. Adequate regulations and monitoring systems
must also be in place to ensure proper procedures to avoid contamination, as well as quality
standards or the end products.
Energy-rom-waste technologies result in a number o additional benets beside creating
a renewable energy source. These include reduced toxic and GHG emissions; better waste
treatment and disposal; less pressure on landlls, extending their longevity; ertilizer
production; and reduced pathogens and pollution o air, soil, groundwater and aquatic
environments.
62 IUCN, 2008b
Biogas and soild uels
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But our planet needs more than just actionby governments and corporations; it needseach o us. Although individual decisions mayseem small in the ace o global threats andtrends, when billions o people join orces in
common purpose we can make a tremendousdiference.
Statement by UN Secretaty-General Ban Ki-moon on World
Enironment Day 2009
Initiaties in the Caribbean
4.1.1. Biogas
Biogas is produced by the biodegradation o organic matter under anoxic conditions. This
organic matter includes animal waste, sewage and wastewater, abattoir efuent63, and the
organic portion o MSW. The cycle involves numerous types o microorganisms, including
methanogens which generate methane (CH4).
Barbados
An environmental impact assessment (EIA) was conducted
in relation to a planned waste-to-energy project or
collecting landll gas (LFG) to convert it to electricity.
Models estimated LFG generation rates in the order o
14Mm3 per year. Observations rom surace sampling
indicated actual rates o 3.7Mm3. There is also an associated
wind arm which is expected to have an annual output o16.5GWh o electricity.64
The project is to be operated as a public-private partnership
between Barbados and a Canadian rm. Phase I involves
design, construction and operation o a LFG collection
and aring system. Phase II entails the construction and operation o a 2-5MW electricity
generation plant or a leachate treatment system, depending on the consistency o LFG
production. The justication or this project lies in stabilization o the landll, increased
rate o regeneration o the site, improved air quality, reduced hazards rom risk o re,
explosion and groundwater contamination, and reduction o GHGs (CH4and CO
2). There are
surrounding issues relating to ownership o the land, which the Sanitation Service Authority
has been renting towards purchase. A drat Landll Agreement has been prepared sinceownership needs to be nalized or the project to be eligible under the CDM.65
Jamaica
Although, due to the poor management o disposal sites, the potential or LFG capture is
lower than might be expected or MSW with an organic content o 65 percent, including 40
percent yard waste, proposals or CDM projects have nonetheless been submitted to the
Government.66 A suggested alternative is the controlled decomposition o separated organic
waste, which would generate biogas to cooking, heating or electricity, as well as ertilizer.
Biogas can also be derived rom treatment o liquid wastes (sewage, efuents, sludge, etc)
with high organic content. The existing central sewage system manages 30 percent o the
islands domestic wastewater at a primary treatment level. The approximately 150 treatmentacilities are almost 50 years old and in deplorable condition.67 In 1978 OLADE, the Ministry
63 IUCN, 2008b
64 R.J. Burnside International and Biothermica International Inc, 2003b
65 Marshall, 2008
66 Loy and Coviello, 2005
67 Loy and Coviello, 2005
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o Mining and Energy, the Ministry o Agriculture, and SRC initiated a pilot project aimed
at appropriately adapting the design o and constructing biodigesters or use by livestock
small armers, and to transer the technology and expertise. The rationale was to reduce
the impact o the energy crisis on the poor, particularly those in rural communities. Nine
demonstration plants were constructed, using designs rom Mexico, Brazil, China, Costa
Rica and Guatemala and evaluation o the digesters was based on costs, perormance, and
operation and maintenance requirements. An indigenous adaptation was created, but cost
was prohibitive to wide dissemination. Thus in 1983 the programme expanded to create a
revolving loan und to subsidize the costs.68
The public education component o the programme proved very eective, promoting
energy diversication through waste diversion. It was enhanced by a United Nations
University (UNU) which included training o agricultural extension workers and introduction
o biodigesters to selected arming communities. Further a design improvement put orward
by the CDB and GTZ enabled a local NGO to get involved in the project. Also, SRC was able to
broaden its technology dissemination through a armers inormation centre, an agricultural
training school, and a penal institution.
Jamaicas Energy Minister announced in October 2009 that the country has contracted a
rm to construct two waste-to-energy plants. It is anticipated that this investment will see
generation o 18 percent o the islands electricity and reduce uel imports by 700,000bbl,
thus saving $60 million annually.69
St. Lucia
With support rom the government, IICA, the Bank o St. Lucia and UNDP a cadre o small
armers travelled to Costa Rica in 2008 or an intensive training course in the construction and
use o biodigesters. These will enable waste products to be transormed into useul energy
and by-products and reduce associated pollution. With this new capacity, the armers are
expected to share their knowledge and spread the application o the technology or moresustainable management o the agricultural sector in their country.
4.1.2. Biomass cogeneration
Cogeneration is the simultaneous generation o mechanical and/or electrical energy plus
thermal energy or process heat using the same energy source within a single acility. It
improves the eciency o the heat and electricity system rom by 33 percent to possibly as
much as 80 percent. Topping cycles are typical in most industries, where uel input is used
rst to produce electricity ater which the thermal energy is recovered. Bottoming cycles
are less common, usually associated with high-temperature processes.70
BarbadosThe combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT) in the sugar industry diversication programme is
projected to produce up to 30MW o electricity rom bagasse, with cultivation o high-bre
cane varieties.71
68 UNDP SUSSC, 1999
69 Jamaica Gleaner, 2009
70 Barrett, 2002
71 Schaer and Associates, 2006
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Guyana72
Improvement in the eciency o boilers, i.e. increased pressure, could realize generation o
1,400GW o energy rom bagasse rom 3.4Mt o cane, compared to current outputs o 30MW.
This output duration is o course limited by the length o the harvest season which provides
the uel source, unless a supplemental source is ound.
Rice is also considered a potential source or electricity production on small cogeneration
plants. With approximately 110,000t o rice husk residue produced rom the annual crop o
over 500,000t (in 2004), the energy potential o this waste product is equivalent to about 11
percent o diesel consumption.
Timber production is another major industry in Guyana, thus wood is under consideration
or electricity production in small cogeneration plants. Conservative estimates suggest
that about 33 percent o the resource ends up as waste rom sawmills. Calculated outputs
reached 1.55Mtoe, almost treble the countrys diesel consumption.
JamaicaIn conjunction with the production o ethanol, the bagasse derived rom the sugar cane can
be used to generate an additional 300GWh o electricity annually. Conventional cogeneration
resulted in process eciencies o less than 10 percent when it was considered primarily a
disposal process. The total amount o energy that can be extracted rom sugar cane depends
on its bre content, the moisture o the bagasse which determines its net caloric value,
and the technology used or energy conversion73. High temperature and pressure boilers
need to be used, which would improve the quantity o energy produced rom cane and
bagasse, allowing export to the grid, as indicated in the ollowing table. The old boilers
served principally as incinerators to dispose o the bagasse, and not or maximising energy
production; hence they were o low eciency74.
Further improvements could be realized with the use o other cane residues such as leavesand with application o gasication techniques.
72 Horta, 2007
73 Loy and Co