Current Status of Woody Biomass Utilization in ASEAN Countries

Abstract

Renewable energy, including biomass, has received increasing attention because of worldwide efforts to prevent global warming and alleviate soaring oil prices. When biomass is used as an energy source, for example, it is converted to ethanol as an alternative to gasoline or burned in a boiler to generate heat and power. Cereals such as corn are promising candidates for easily convertible biomass for ethanol production. However, it is possible that the supply of such potential biofuels will become unstable because of conflicts with food production. For example, corn prices have doubled or have reached levels not seen in many years11. In contrast, woody biomass is inedible and thus may be a promising candidate as a future renewable energy source. Woody biomass can be collected in large amounts from forests or as a by-product of the forest industry. However, forests are unevenly distributed throughout the world, and so the distribution of woody biomass is uneven. Countries belonging to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) have a vast range and abundance of forest resources. However, these resources have been considerably reduced because of unrestrained logging in some countries. Sustainable forest management is necessary for the continued use of the available biomass as a renewable energy source. Our objective was to investigate the current status of the use and consumption of woody biomass to discuss future possibilities and difficulties in the use of woody biomass as an energy source. We focused on Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Hereafter, our use of the term “ASEAN countries,” unless otherwise specified, refers to these seven countries.