EU forests' carbon sink, biodiversity and bioenergy all depend on one another and are not competing. Why is that so?

Bioenergy is part of sustainable forest management and relies on well-established synergies with the wood-based industry. Together they help maintain the resilience of forests. The wood-working industry uses high-quality timber to produce furniture and other wood-based products. Sustainable bioenergy in turn uses residues and wood that is not fit for the wood-working industry. This can be crooked or pest infested wood, residues from forest management operations as well as by-products from high-value timber production. By creating a market for these raw-materials, bioenergy makes sustainable forest management practices economically viable and strengthens the health of the forest. 

Looking at the development of bioenergy over the last two decades, statistics show that bioenergy consumption has increased by 135%, while the share of wood fuel removal has remained constant. Overall, the forest stock has been growing in the EU, expanding the carbon stock.

---

 Bioenergy is an integral part of a sustainable future because:

it provides energy security

it fosters rural development

it contributes to greenhouse gas emissions reductions

it increases forest resilience

---