Agro-Pruning for Energy as a Link between Rural Development and Clean Energy Policies

Biljana Kulišić,Mario Njavro,Tajana Radić

doi:10.3390/su12104240

Biljana Kulišić, Mario Njavro + Show 1 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/su12104240

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Abstract

Agrarian pruning and plantation removal (APPR) is a common residue from pomo-technical maintenance of orchards, vineyards, and olive groves, frequently overlooked by the energy sector. This paper sheds new light on the socio-economic role of APPR as solid biofuel. The paper suggests business models that could both alleviate energy poverty in rural areas and increase the competitiveness of perennial crop (fruits, olives, vine) production. The effects of mobilizing APPR potential via business models are estimated at the micro (households’ income) and macro (number of households affected, size of the investment, tax effect, CO2eq savings) levels in the Croatian setting. Contrary to classical energy planning, the paper provides an approach that fosters local use of bioenergy by linking rural development with renewable energy end-use. The approach linked pruning energy potential with 47% of Croatian rural households which allows creating an evidence-based policy for rural development utilizing APPR as a sustainable solid biofuel. The most attractive business model for Croatian rural areas is utilization of APPR as a solid biofuel. It could be used as an energy poverty alleviation measure, allowing savings per heating season equivalent to 5%–11% of the average disposable income per household. Net APPR influence at VAT tax is estimated at 5.5 million euro·y−1. The paper proves that using average values for APPR in energy planning could be misleading.

Highlights

Energy potential from woody biomass originated from regular care of orchards, vineyards, and olive groves is frequently overlooked both at the micro and macro levels
The effects of mobilizing APPR potential via business models are estimated at the micro and macro levels for Croatian rural households
The approach was applied to the EU and Croatian average values to demonstrate how the role of APPR in energy planning could be underestimated when applying the classical approach to energy planning

Summary

Introduction

Energy potential from woody biomass originated from regular care of orchards, vineyards, and olive groves is frequently overlooked both at the micro (local source of renewable energy and additional farm income) and macro (energy planning) levels. Numerous studies have been conducted to estimate the energy potential from agrarian pruning and plantation removal (APPR) focusing either on a geographical area (country [7], region [4], macro-region [8,9,10,11]) or on a certain type of APPR from vineyards [7,12], specific fruit plantation [13], or olive groves [14,15]. Theoretical pruning potential estimated at 227.2 PJ·y−1 [10] represented 0.33% of the total energy supply in the EU-28 2017 [16]. Adding to that spatial distribution, seasonal dynamics, and variation in quality and quantity, APPR does not represent an attractive “low hanging fruit” to decarbonize our society, from that perspective

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