Positive water linkages of producing short rotation poplars and willows for bioenergy and phytotechnologies

Abstract

The production of short rotation woody crops (SRWCs) such as poplars and willows is a promising component of global bioenergy and phytotechnology portfolios. In addition to the provision of biomass feedstocks and pollution remediation, these trees and shrubs have been sustainably grown to conserve or utilize water in a variety of applications. Growing these woody plants for multiple uses supports many of the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG6) and Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG7). As a result, focusing on ecosystem services such as freshwater and biomass has become an important aspect of deploying these production systems across variable landscapes. The current review consists of an introduction of ecosystem services and the SDGs, as well as SRWCs and their applications. The middle section of the review contains case studies highlighting the positive water linkages of producing short rotation poplars and willows for bioenergy and phytotechnologies. The review concludes with a section that combines the common themes that are consistent among the case studies to address options for integrating new bioenergy feedstock production systems into rural and urban landscapes to promote environmental, social and economic sustainability.This article is categorized under: Bioenergy > Economics and Policy Bioenergy > Climate and Environment