Abstract
Development of energy systems, based on forest biomass, is a challenging issue in India. The study investigated perceptions of fifty-five Indian Forest Service (IFS) officers in relation to the potential benefits and challenges associated with the development of forest-based bioenergy (FBE) projects in India when they participated in two training programs in Finland during 2010. They generally agreed that development of FBE projects could have beneficial impacts on job creation, income generation, rural development, and restoring ecological degradation. They perceived lack of public acceptance and political support, impacts on biodiversity, and lack of technologies and infrastructure as the considerable challenges to the development of FBE projects in India. The study could provide some policy directions towards developing the FBE sector in India. It recommends conducting further studies to include a larger group of experts and other stakeholders to investigate the broader societal perceptions of FBE projects in India. In addition, the study also recommends building the capacity of the IFS officers so that they can play a key role from the government side for developing the FBE sector in the country.
Highlights
India’s population, of over a billion, and rapid economic growth have led to an increasing demand for energy and dependency on imported oil from foreign countries
The results showed that the respondents had quite similar perceptions of the potential benefits and challenges associated with the development of forest-based bioenergy (FBE) projects
Development of future energy systems based on forest biomass is a challenging issue in
Summary
India’s population, of over a billion, and rapid economic growth have led to an increasing demand for energy and dependency on imported oil from foreign countries. About 95% of India’s current commercial energy demand is met by domestic production of coal (51%), natural gas (9%), and imported oil (35%), while the rest is satisfied by hydro and nuclear energy. Despite the country’s fast economic growth in recent years, the major share of India’s rural population still remains. 836 million) rely on traditional biomass for cooking [2]. Like other major developing economies, such as Brazil and China, India has taken steps to increase the production of domestic biofuels (ethanol and bio-diesel) for addressing climate change and energy security related concerns [4]. The Government of India (GoI) has formulated several policies since 2003 in order to increase the domestic production of liquid biofuels. Among the most recent policies, the GoI adopted an ambitious National Policy on Biofuels, in 2009, targeting a 20%
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