Mitt. Geoi.-Paldont. Inst. Univ.

Hamburg

SCOPE/UNEP Sonderband Heft 64

S .2 9 - 4 3

Hamburg,

Juli 1987

The Biogenic Fuels: Fuelwood, Charcoal, Crop Residues and Animal Dung as a Net Source of Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide
by G. H . KOHLMAIER, H. BROHL & R. FRICKE, F r a n k f u r t * ) With 4 Figures and 6 Tables

Contents
Abstract 2 9 1. Introduction 3 0 2. Estimate of Net Carbon Dioxide Release from Roundwood, Fuelwood and Charcoal Statistics for the Developing and Industrialized Countries 3. Estimate of CO in the Tropics 3 6 2 in R Land e l e Transformations a s e 4. of CO, Release from the Use of Crop Residues, f Estimate r o m and other Biogenic Fuels 3 9 R An oi m a ul Dung n 5. of Net Carbon Dioxide Release Considering Energy d Estimate w o o Demands in Developing Countries 4 0 d 6. Conclusions 4 2 P r o References 4 3 d u c e d

Abstract
The present use o f biomass as fuel is investigated. Different approaches are used to estimate the amount o f carbon transferred to the atmosphere b y this process. The gross f l u x o f more t h a n 1 GtCia i s par t ial l y balanced b y biomass regrowth, w h i c h restores carbon to the biota. D u e to degradation o f plant cover and soils, w h i c h reduces carbon storage, there remains a net f l u x due to biogenic fuel use estimated to be 0.2 0.1 GtC/a. This net flux is mainly connected with the use of fuelwood, while the contribution of other biogenic fuels is relatively small, unless connected with greater land transformations (e.g. industrial production o f bioalcohol). A l t h o u g h the net carbon f l u x to the atmosphere is relatively small compared to other anthropogenieally induced carbon fluxes, i t may well influence the overall d y n a m i c behavior o f the biota w i t h i n the global carbon cycle and should therefore not be neglected in related studies and modelling efforts. *) A d d r e s s o f t h e authors: P r o f . D r. G.-H. KOHLMAIER, H . BROHL-KERNER, H . FRICKE, I n s t i t u t fUr Physikalische und Theoretische Chemie, J.-W.-Goethe Universitat, Niederurseler Hang, D-6000 Frankfurt 50, F.R.G.

29

1. Introduction
I n the developing countries more than 2.0 billion (10') people (out of about 3.4 x 10 i n 1980) depend on fuelwood as the most i m p o r t a n t p r i m a r y energy source. F i l e lwood i s m o s t c o m m o n l y used f o r c o o k i n g a n d secondarily f o r heating. Together w i t h other biogenic fuels, i t provides up to about 2 7 % o f the total energy consumption i n the developing countries, w h i l e i n the developed countries it contributes only 3 % (Table 1). As the population steadily increases, fuelwood is becoming more and more scarce. This is because both the annual consumption increases and because forest land is converted into agriculture or is overexploited. Most studies referring to the traditional fuels in the developing nations have been centered on energy questions, i n particular on energy efficiency, energy development, energy crisis as well as on questions concerning indoor pollution by noxious fume gases. I n this study our principal interest is directed towards an estimate o f t h e n e t rate o f carbon release f r o m biomass f u e l s i n t o t h e atmosphere. T h i s p r o b l e m has been neglected i n m o s t carbon cycle studies, because the quantities o f carbon involved were referred to as small compared to the release from fossil fuel burning and cement production which is of the order

T a b l e l 6 GLOBAL ENERGY CONSUMPTION ( 1 0 t SKE ) AND CARBON RELEASE ( G t C ) I N 1982 (according t o SMITH, 1 9 8 8 ) DEVELOPING COUNTRIES 3.4 6 10 t SKE G t C MODERN FUELS PETROLEUM COAL NATURAL GAS HYDROPOWER NUCLEAR POWER SUBTOTAL ( t SKE/(cep*a)) TRADITIONAL FUELS FUEL WOOD CROP RESIDUES a . o . ANIMAL DUNG SUBTOTAL ( t SKE/(cap*a)) 460 340 100 900 (0.260)* 0.432 0.32 0.09 0.842 240 10 low 250 (0.210)** 0.225 0.009 low 0.234 700 350 100 1150 0.657 0.32 0.09 1.067 1030 1025 235 177 8 2475 (0.720) 0.584 0.729 0.096 0.0 0.0 1.409 3200 2025 1735 500 315 7775 (6.750) 1.815 1.440 0.707 0.0 0.0 3.962 4230 3050 1970 677 323 10250 (2.230) 2.400 2.169 0.802 0.0 0.0 5.371 DEVELOPED COUNTRIES 1.2 6 10 t SKE G t C TOTAL 4.6 6 10 t S(E G t C

POPULATION ( * 1 0 9)

(0.2 . 50) Consumption o f t r a d i t i o n a l f u e l s i s u n c e r t a i n and e s t i m a t e s f o r fuelwood and a n i m a l dung a r e l i k e l y t o be u n d e r s t a t e d . Energy e q u i v a l e n t s f o r t r a d i t i o n a l f u e l s a r e s i t u a t i o n s p e c i f i c and g l o b a l averages a r e u n c e r t a i n .
* * : C a l c u l a t e d f r o m U.S. d a t a assuming t h a t r e s t o f developed w o r l d uses biomass f u e l s

i n same r a t i o a s o f t h e i r r e l a t i v e commercial e n e r g y use t o t h e developed c o u n t r y t o t a l (U.S.A. i s 35%).

30

o f 5 GtCia i n 1982. Nevertheless, the use o f biomass as f u e l is one i m p o r t a n t anthropogenie i m p a c t w h i c h influences t h e dynamics o f the biota w i t h i n the global carbon cycle. Even if the direct net input is small, there might be changes in the uptake and release patterns o f CO sink tre h o fi t h t o o t h e r anthropogenically i n d u c e d 2 w sh in cg th ne fb i o l ta uw ei t h n respect c e perturbations t h e o f t h e atmospheric C O attempt 2 c o o nto t tassess e n a t . thel carbon fluxes connected w i t h the use o f biogenic fuels, t which then can be o implemented into carbon cycle models. T h o e r u e f r ce s r e t h i r s o s t u d y i2. Estimate s o f N e t Carbon D i o x i d e Release f r o m Roundwood, a n Fue

Industrialized Countries lwo o d following analysis is based on the FAO forests products statistics (FAO, The 1984)aon total roundwood production (Table 2), and on fuelwood and charcoal production (Table 3), which is part of the roundwood production. Four groups of n industrialized nations: N o r t h America, Europe, USSR, and Pacific developed d countries, a n d three groups o f developing nations: L a t i n (Central and South) C A f r i c a and S o u t h East Asia i n c l u d i n g China are distinguished. I t is America, seen h that w h i l e t h e p ro d u c ti o n rate o f roundwood is nearly constant f o r the developed countries, it has been increasing by about 2.5-3 %/a for the developa ing nations. A c c o r d i n g t o t h e statistics t h e r o u n d w o o d p r o d u c t i o n o f t h e r developing countries is o f equal magnitude as t h a t o f the developed nations leading to a total w o r l d w i d e production o f about 3 x 10 m ' corresponding t o c about 0.65 m'icap./a. T h e average c a r b o n c o n t e n t o f 1 m ' w o o d i s t a k e n t o o correspond t o 0.33 t carbon, derived f r o m m u l t i p l i c a t i o n o f the average w o o d a (0.73 & i n ' ) and the average carbon contents per g of dry matter (0.45 gC/ density gDM) l (Table 4). ROTTY (1986), assuming a specific weight for d r y hardwood o f 0.52 and o f dry softwood o f 0.40 and a carbon to total d r y weight ratio o f 0.51, S calculates a corresponding conversion factor o f 0.25. W i t h i n the limits o f uncer t for production data and for density and carbon contents it therefore may tainty be estimated that about 1 Gt of carbon is involved annually. a L t o o k i n g at the fuelwood data (Table 3) a total annual increase o f 2.4% i s registered, which is dominated by the production of fuelwood by the developing i nations (Figs. 1 and 2). It is seen from Figure 1 that Asia has the highest share of s fuelwood, followed b y Africa and L a t i n America. The per capita consumption, t however, is highest in Africa w i t h about 0.85 m ' i c a p l a and lowest in Asia w i t h about i 0.25 m'icapla, a result w h i c h reflects availability o f fuelwood and supplementary energy sources as well as geographic and cultural differences. c I t s h o u l d b e noted, however, t h a t d u e t o d i ff e r e n t statistical evaluation s the p r o d u c t i o n data show several discontinuities f o r different counmethods tries for groups o f countries, especially in the early 60'. o Comparing Ta b l e s 2 a n d 3, i t i s seen t h a t o n l y a s m a l l fraction o f the roundwood production o f developed countries is used as fuelwood, w h i l e the r greater part goes into the pulp, paper and furniture production and into buildt ing, railroad construction a n d m i n i n g . Forest management i n the developed h countries is more o r less based on the principle o f sustained yield. i.e. annual yieldeshould be equal t o annual increments. A l t h o u g h the use o f roundwood spans a wide spectrum of residence times o f wood from a few months to a few D hundred years, we can assume in first order, that the carbon is nearly balanced e a way, that no essential net flux in or out of the atmosphere is occurring. in such v 31 e l o p i n g a n

I n the developing countries a wide spectrum o f forest management practices can be found, reaching from resource-preserving silviculture to excessive overexploitation. For a first estimate of the influence on carbon balance, we may classify w o o d p r o d u c t i o n according t o three categories: Category I contains forest areas managed for sustained yield, Le. no net flux of carbon should result

T a b l e

PRODUCTION OF ROUNDWOOD OVER THE LAST THREE DECADES BASED ON THE FAO STATISTICS 1950 ( 1 9 5 1 ) Mio cbm NORTH AMERICA EUROPE USSR PACIFIC DEVELOPED DEVELOPED ALL CENTRAIASOUTH AMERICA AFRICA ASIA DEVELOPING A L L 609 139 96 93 328 0.201 0.046 0.032 0.031 0.108 296 209 104 Gt C 0.0975 0.069 0.0343 1 9 6 0 Gt C 0.135 0.102 0.122 0.026 0.384 0.07 0.074 0.162 0.306 1970 Mio cbm 448.7 331.8 385.1 72 1238 244.3 293.8 764.4 1302.1 (It C 0.148 0.109 0,127 0.024 0.408 0.081 0.097 0.252 0.429 Mio cbm 510 333.7 356.6 66.5 1267 334 430.4 955.8 1720.2 1980 Gt C 0.168 0.11 0.12 0.022 0.417 0.11 0.142 0,315 0.567

Mio cbm 409 308.8 369 79 1166 212.7 225.1 491.3 929.1

TOTAL

937

0.308

2095.1

0.69

2540.1

0.837

2987.2

0.984

Consumption c a l c u l a t e d a s i n Ta b l e 2 .

T a b l e 3 CONSUMPTION OF FUELWOOD AND CHARCOAL OVER THE LAST THREE DECADES BASED ON THE FAO STATISTICS (FAO 1984) 1950 ( 1 9 5 1 ) Mio cbm NORTH AMERICA EUROPE USSR PACIFIC DEVELOPED DEVELOPED A l * CENTRAUSOUTH AMERICA AFRICA ASIA DEVELOPING ALL 175 130 90 57 277 0.0576 0.0428 0.0296 0.0185 0.091 0.148 31 88 (56) Gt C 0.0102 0.0289 (0.0184) 1 9 6 0 1 Gt C 0.0153 0.0289 0.0306 0.0154 0.0902 0.0512 0.0445 0.1189 0.214 0.304 9 7 0 Gt C 0.0082 0.0187 0.0283 0.017 0.0727 0.0652 0.0965 0.2055 0.367 0.439 Mio cbm 51.5 37.5 78_9 61 228.9 285 370 716 1371 1980 Gt C 0.0169 0.0123 0.0259 0,02 0.0752 0.0930 0.122 0.235 0.45

Nio cbm 46.5 88 93 47 274.5 155 135 362 652 ,926.5

Silo cbm 25 57:8 86.5 52 221.3 198 293 625,5 1116.5 1337.8

TOTAL

452

1599.9

0.326

Consumption i s c a l c u l a t e d a s P r o d u c t i o n p l u s I m p o r t s minus E x p o r t s

32

from wood production in these areas. Category I I includes wood production in areas w h i c h are transformed f r o m forests t o other types o f land use, m a i n l y permanent agriculture and pasture. I f this wood is burned, i t should result in a net i n p u t o f carbon i n t o the atmosphere, because regrowth on the respective areas is v e r y m u c h limited. Category I I I contains w o o d w h i c h is m o s t l y col-

I a b l e 4 CHARACTERISTIC ENERGY VALUES AND CONVERSION FACTORS 1 k W = 1 0 0 0 Wa t t s e c / s e c = 1 0 0 0 J o u l e s / s e c = 3 1 . 5 6 G J / a 1 t EKE ( German c o a l e q u i v a l e n t ) = 2 9 . 3 GJ 1 t SKE/a = 2 9 . 3 G J / a . 1 t f u e l w o o d = 1 4 - 1 8 GJ ( p r e f e r r e d v a l u e 1 4 G J ) = 0 . 4 8 0 , 6 1 L SKE = 9 3 0 1 t fuelwood/a = 440 - 570 W 3 1 m f u e l w o o d = 1 0 - 1 3 GJ 3 1 m f u e l w o o d / a = 320 - 420 W d a i l y f o o d consumption : 2000 - 3000 k c a l / d . approximate p r i m a r y energy u s e i n d e v e l o p i n g n a t i o n s : l k W r e s u l t i n g = 1 0 0 1 5 0 W in a an e n t d en t e r g y u s e o f c a . 2 0 0 F ( e f f i c i e n c y c a . 20% ) a p p r o x i m a t e p r i m a r y e n e r g y u s e i n i n d u s t r i a l i z e d n a t i o n s : 6 . 5 kW r e s u l t i n g i n a n e n d e n e r g y u s e o f 2 - 3 kW ( e f f i c i e n c y 3 0 - 5 0 T ) 3 1 m roundwood/fuelwood = 0.732 t d r y matter 1 t wood ( d r y m a t t e r ) = 0 . 4 5 t c a r b o n 1 t SKE ( f u e l w o o d ) = 0 . 9 3 9 t C 1 t SKE ( c r o p r e s i d u e s ) = 0 . 8 7 - 0 . 9 7 t C ( e s t i m . ) 1 t SKE ( a n i m a l d u n g ) = 0 . 8 - 1 . 0 t C ( e s t i m . )

1.0 0.9 0,8 _250 0.7 0.6 0.5 _150 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 12-- 5 -A f r i c a - 1 0 0 P44 11 L a t i n Americo_ 50 -42 1 1045 5 0 55 6 0 6 5 7 0 7 5 8 0 1 9 8 5 Auto _200 -300

Fig. 1: C o n s u m p t i o n of fuelwood in 10 m Asia 3 ( l e fcountries t ) a in n Africa, d i and n Latin America for the time period 1945-1982. 1 0 Discontinuities ' t oi n t h ef e a r l y s i x t i e s a r e m a i n l y d u e t o c h a n g i n g assessment methods (data from FAO, 1984). c a r b o n r i g h t ) 33 i n d e v e l o p i n g

1. 0 0.9 O. 8 O. 7 0. 6 O. 5 O. 4 O. 3 O. 2 O. Asia _ 50 _ 100 s 0 e e-e e o 0 e , 200 Lctin Americo _ 150 Africa 300 250

I
1945 50

"
5 5

1
0

1
6 5

1
7 0

1
7 5

1
80 1985

Fig. 2:

Per-capita consumption o f fuelwood i n m ' (left) a n d i n k g o f carbon (right) i n developing countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America as well as for the developing countries as a whole f o r the time period 1945-1982. F u r t h e r explanation see Figure 1 and text.

lected f r o m open forests, forest fringes, bushlands a n d shrublands o r single trees i n the neighbourhood o f settlements w i t h o u t clearing the entire area. I n this case the impact on carbon balance may reach from zero, when annual yield is balanced b y r e g r o w t h , t o h i g h n e t i n p u t s t o t h e atmosphere w h e n t h e respective areas are degraded due to overexploitation. I t is impossible to classify the production data directly since no information about the origin o f the produced w o o d is given w i t h regard to the introduced categories. To estimate the amount o f wood produced i n category I. one may calculate the possible yield out o f these forest areas, where sufficient management practices are executed. A c c o r d i n g t o t h e FA O classification o f tropical forest resources (LANLY, 1982) 42 x 10 intensively cut ranging f r o m 0.5-1.7 1W/ha/a on the 6 h a o managed, f t r annual o p i allowable c a l average, with values up to 8 m'lhaia possible at most favourable sites. Total yield f o r e s t s may lie between 40 and 50 x 10' m c a n 3 Another b e contribution to this category comes from forest plantations, a term w comprises artificially established stands o f wood / r ah.i c h e in the g FAO a terminology r d e for industrial as w e l l as non-industrial purposes, the latter is t o a major part d designed t o f u e l w o o d production. T h e t o t a l area o f plantations a m o u n t s t o a s 11.5 x 10 non-industrial purposes. O u t o f the total plantation area 4.6 X 10 6 established w i t h 6 h a h a v i ne the time b period e e of n 1976 - 1980 and should not have given any h a , yield at all, such that at most 6.9 x 10 o u industrial) to be taken into account. The average annual yield for industrial 6 ( have 4 . 6 x t h a plantations in the time span from 1978 to 1982 is estimated by L A = (1982) to be 1 ' h a o 0 31.4 x 10 if n d u s t r i a l , tions, adds another 15.6 x 10' m 6 m this 2 . 3 w 8 Since the FA O study does not include China, the appropriate figures f r o m 3 x h icountry have to be added to the above estimate. According to SM1L (1983) this . 1 ' c s h sp r o0 wood d u c t i o n f r o m forests managed f o r sustained y i e l d i n t h e People's A h a Republic o f China should n o t exceed 50 x 10' in', though the total roundwood 7 m i u n o amounts n to 212 x 10' m' in 1980. production . n g 1 t x 34 h 1 e 0 s ' a h m a e a y ir e e f

Summing u p the above figures, w e f i n d that about 140 X 10' m ' o f roundwood o r a b o u t 8 % o f t h e t o t a l y i e l d m a y b e harvested i n t h e developing countries according to the principle of sustained yield, i.e. not contributing to a net carbon input into the atmosphere. To estimate the share of categories I I and I I I to total wood production one may try to evaluate the possible contribution of open tree and shrub formations to wood production. F r o m data given 133 total 7 L annual A M A wood ( (increment 1 9 8 on 2 the ) 734 x 10 h a o f open forest formations to be between o n 350 e and 700 x 10' m as a ny d v e n e e r logs. T h e s h r u b f o r m a t i o n s m a y c o n t r i b u t e a b o u t 3 sawlogs m a 125 x 10' n fti a on o an area o f 624.1 x 10' ha. I t is well k n o w n that in many regions i a , o u c a l c u fl a t e open tree formations are overexploited, i.e. annual yields exceed annual increw h i c h t h e ments, m a i n l y due to fuelwood collection. Therefore total wood harvest f r o m a t these formations can be assumed at least to equal annual wood increment, but is m o s higher. t probably much 2 0 b) x 1 0 ' m 3 0,24 t 0 05 Gt C II 7 1 5 -1 / a net carbon - /75 a r reLeas e o b t a i n a b l e

Scenario 1
I M E 1 8 111 * I. 2 5 10

II: 3 8 0 180 1370 I I I . 1200 t 160

II 2 0 0 100 0.24 0,06 Gt C net carbon re[ease

1720

I D 1145 100

Scenario 2 Roundwood f 1 0 5 F im g . 3: a) Roundwood and b) fuelwood production in developing countries according to different categories: 3 I. W o o d f r o m forests managed according t o t h e p r i n c i p l e o f sustained y i e l d 1 a ) (intensively managed forests, forest plantations); carbon budget is balanced. Wood f r o m conversion o f forests (selective loggings, clearings f o r permanent F u e t agriculture/pasture, s h i f t i n g cultivation); c a r b o n release n o t balanced b y r e growth. w o o d
Wood f r o m o p e n forests, woodlands a n d shrublands, s m a l l woodlots a n d forest fringes. Carbon release partially or totally balanced by regrowth, according to different scenarios. Assumptions for secenarios 1 and 2 are explained in the text. A l l values are given i n 10' ms/a and GtC/a, resp.. Numbers given are best estimates; where ranges are given, they are meant as ranges of estimates rather than real error bounds.

35

In F i g u r e 3 a t w o l i m i t i n g scenarios f o r t h e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f r o u n d w o o d harvest onto categories II and I I I are considered. In scenario 1 it is assumed that wood p r o d u c t i o n i n category I I I equals a n n u a l w o o d increments, i.e. 650 175 x 10 m for 3 wood harvested i n selective loggings and clearings f o r permanent agriculture / a . or pasture as well as in shifting cultivation, is obtained to be 930 + 175 x 10' m'ia. B y A s w i l l be discussed i n the next chapter, this n u m b e r appears m u c h too high. d i f f e and probably more realistic estimate assumes that the contribution r e A n lower c of category I I i s restricted t o w o o d harvested i n selective loggings a n d t h e e fuelwood w o used by about 200 x 10 a. This 6 f o r time e s tby difference category I I I is obtained, where 1200 180 x 10 o d then 6 m harvested. ' im a e ar That r , e would mean that harvest exceeds annual increment by 550 f a r s p r x 10' ma/a, 180 i.e. overexploitation and land degradation is indicated. a d d i n severe g o d u Figure u c t p 3 b i s constructed b y a p p l y i n g a s i m i l a r procedure t o f u e l w o o d production. t i o n o C o n t r i b u t i o n o f category I is assumed here to be small, essentially restricted 3 8to the yield 0 o f non-industrial plantations mostly established for fueli wood supply. Production of industrial wood in category I I I was estimated above n to be 20 x 10' m 1 8 0 c 3 Fuelwood produced in category II is accounted for as net release o f carbon x aa , t / to the atmosphere, while in category I I I only that part exceeding annual incre1 0 e t h e risetaken f o into account. ments ' g r e i Asr n can be seen from Figure 3b, the net release of carbon due to fuelwood use o a l lto 0.24 0.06 GtCia, corresponding to 715 175 x 10' m amounts 3 y t h of t h e scenario It e i snessentially t h e a m o u n t o f w o o d harvestable i n a / a , i n d e pused. e n d t / I e sustained yield from category III, w h i c h determines the net release. I r e When the open forest and shrub formations are overexploited, an additional , s t i n p u t from land degradation, soil erosion etc. is to be expected. This is true for iw scenario 2, where severe overexploitation is considered, b u t it is also true on a h s smaller scale f o r scenario 1, due t o other usages o f the respective areas, l i k e i a s grazing. c s u h m e a d c t c o o b u e 3. Estimate o f CO n f 2 Ru e l e a s eTransformations in the Tropics t e l f r o onm Based the FAO study on tropical forest resources (LANLY, 1982), present s w o changes in l a nn d use i n 76 countries o f the tropics have been analyzed w i t h R o u o d respect to t h e i r w o o impact onto the carbon balance (KOHLMAIER et al., 1985). T h e .d major impacts causing transformations o f forest land to other vegetation types d are: s h i f t i n g cultivation, selective logging and clearings for permanent agriculP and r pasture o (Fig. 4). ture

d Touobtain c the amount o f roundwood produced by these impacts, one may e calculate d first the total amount of woody biomass involved. Our calculations are based on areal transformations given by LANLY (1982) and on biomass densities i derived from a study of BROWN & LUGO (1982) based on ecological estimates. I t n L 36 a n d

forest fallow undisturbed forests

A B1
logged-over forests

i d land agricult. (shifting cult.)

agricult. land ( permanent)

Area 10 6 h a4.0 Woody Biomass Timber F u e l w o o d E x c e s s Wood
10 6 M 3

770 - 1020

90 - 260 n . a .

5 1 0

- 930

B1 B2

3.0 3.2

670 830

120

n . a ,

0 - 700

130 - 260 n . a .

5 7 0

Cl C2 C3

34.9 4,1 1.0

2270 1130 260

n.a. n.a,

1 3360-3560 ( ( 100 - 300

n , a Fig. 4: E s t i m a t e d areas, biomass and wood production in different land transformations in developing countries. .

A: Selective loggings for timber harvest B L Clearings o f primary and old secondary forests for permanent agriculture or pasture B2: Clearings of already logged-over forests for permanent agriculture or pasture C l : Clearings o f forest fallow for shifting cultivation C2: Clearings o f primary and old secondary forests for shifting cultivation C3: Clearings o f already logged-over forests for shifting cultivation n. a.: no data available, b u t the corresponding numbers are assumed to be small

37

should be noted that the same authors more recently published another estimate, based o n t i m b e r v o l u m e statistics, w i t h considerably l o w e r biomass densities for all types o f tropical forests (BROWN & LUGO, 1984). I f we had used this latter estimate, yields would be reduced by at least a factor of two. I f a forest is logged over for harvest o f selected tree species (Flux A in Fig. 4), usually only 5 t o 15% o f the biomass o f the affected area is used. W i t h an annually logged area o f about 4 x 10' ha in tropical forests, yield o f timber may amount to 90-260 x 1 0 to 6 770-1020 x 10' m 1985). 3 m " , This w h means i l e that about 510-930 x 1 0 but are not 6 h , t e used as timber. Usually this wood is not commercialized, but some part may be collected by people living in the neighbouring areas. a tm c oc ot r d ai n l g 3 o w c o oo d t o f f amount ft wood obtained f r o m land clearings for permanent agricula fThe e a id rf f e pasture t d e r c ture and/or (B1 +uB2) was previously estimated to be about 315 65 x 10' e d n an ot wo n h i c h is p r o b a b l y s t i l l o n the h i g h side (KOHLMAIER e t al., w e w o estimate 1985). rp seem to be available concerning the future use made of this wood. io mNo d y data M u c h larger are cut down and burnt i n clearings for shifting d i n o f wood g a ciy t oamounts b cultivation. A g a i n , based o n d a t a a b o u t l a n d transformations a n d biomass o f s f s c a e m densities, one may calculate that up to 1100 x 10' M n a r s of undisturbed forests (C2), 3 o f w o o d a where r e 4.1 x 10 i o s m cultivation, le L 0 10' n ha 6 h u a a r hi e ax uo faalready l l y logged-over forests cleared each year c t w i n n ( O a contribute m'iad(C3). The fallow areas already involved i n the shifting c l K a e xr10' e t h e 260 H L M r (34.9 x 10' ha) may contribute up to 2300 x 10" M cultivation cycle y f a r o e a s these figures even exceedg t hh e figures f o r total r o u n d w o o d production, i t i s A T E 3 ( C l ) . T a m s h i f h to u i n g unlikely u that shifting cultivation contributes very much to the fuelwood budget R o outside the forest farmer community. On the one hand forest farmers are usually e n t unable to commercialize their wood because o f lack o f infrastructure. O n the t other hand wood extraction is i n principle limited by the fact that crops grown a on these plots usually need the nutrients stored i n wood which are released by lburning on the site. I f one assumes that the 200 x 10' people living i n shifting .cultivation satisfy their own fuelwood demand f r o m this wood, t h e n between ,100 and 300 x 10' m ' may be used as fuel. I n consequence, 690 250 x 10 transformations, 490 150 x 10 6 m ' The excess h is 6 mr 'o u a wood, s n d ww h oi c o d cut but probably not harvested as roundwood may amount 400 x 10 t i m m to b 5350 e r a y total 6 mbroundwood 'n , a da e production in these countries. Though the largest part o f this wood n o t wasted b u t used as a nutrient source for agricultural soils, there f i h g is 2 0u a r e 0 r v amounts e s o f wood, w h i c h e i t h e r m a y b e prevented f r o m remain remarkable m to e r de being cut by more careful harvesting techniques o r may be used as fuelwood. t 1 0 ausage 0n i h such n is mostly prevented by conflicting economical interests and Today t h r e x n lack l of meansaof transportation. e 1 0 d From Tables 2 and 3 i t is seen that the amount o f roundwood not used as t i m m a fuelwood is about 350 x 10' m" i.e. part o f the t i m b e r harvest estimated here is e s a probably alsos converted t o f u e l w o o d o r charcoal. T h e estimated range f o r h g f u i pe fuelwood r o d u cl t i o n w f r o m l a n d transformations i s t h e r e f o r e e x t e n d e d t o h e r . o o d 100-600 x 10 t h 6 m The total a n net carbon f l u x to the atmosphere caused by these land transfor3 mations was previously estimated to be about 1 GtC/a, while a similar portion of t /a, non-volatile c a r b o n compounds remains o n site o r i s eroded i n t o t h e r i v e r h c o r r (KOHLMAIER e systems et al., 1985). e s p o n d i n g 38 t o a c a r b o n f l

4. Estimate of CO nim Dung and other Biogenic Fuels 2 R e lAe aa sl e f r o m The use o f crop residues a n d a n i m a l d u n g has a l o n g t r a d i t i o n i n some t h e regions o f the world, b u t is recently increasing very rapidly due to the wideU s spread shortage o f fuelwood. Ve r y little data are available about the amounts used oe n a global scale. Estimates f o r use o f animal d u n g v a r y f r o m 200 t o 400 x 10' o t t a i n t h e mid-70ties t o b e g i n n i n g 8 0 t i e s , residues reaches from 60-80 x 10' t/a for the mid 70ties to 500-700 x 10' tia for the 6 f 80ties ( G L O B A L 2000, 1980; SMITH, 1985). As many as 800 x 10' people 'beginning While t h e s p a n may r l y orn c r o anima C r p residues f oe c r and o pl d u n g as t h e i r p r i n c i p a l c o o k i n g f u e l (BARNARD, 1985). o p R e Though i t t u r ns s o u t t h a t agricultural residues a r e a n i m p o r t a n t energy source, r c o n tu r i b u t i o n t o a n additional anthropogenic C O i t h e id atmosphere i s negligible: d rap 2 i ne p u ts i , n t o they w t o u lh e i d l y decompose o n t h e f i e l d a n d
therefore also b e o x i d i z e d i f n o t u s e d a s fuels. O x i d a t i o n m i g h t b e m o r e complete in burning, but under tropical conditions there is usually no extensive build-up o f organic m a t t e r i n soils, such t h a t even u n d e r natural conditions i n p u t of organic wastes and decomposition w i l l nearly be balanced.

On t h e other hand, a small i n d i r e c t i n p u t can b e expected i f extensive removal of organic material by harvesting all crop residues leads to a depletion of soil organic matter and degradation o f soils, b u t the amounts involved are d i ff i c u l t to estimate. I n some o f the developing countries biogas p r o d u c t i o n f r o m animal and plant residues has become an important additional energy source w h i c h helps to save fuelwood. Extensive programs for biogas plants for individual families or rural communities have i n particular been installed i n China and to a lesser extent in India and other developing countries. It is reported (MouLIK, 1985) that over 7 m i l l i o n biogas plants i n China could serve, i f all were operational, more than 5 % of China's rural population. It is clear that biogasification also is neither a direct source or sink for atmospheric carbon, b u t it helps to save other fuels and to recycle nutrients o f wastes efficiently, i f the residues o f biogasification are taken back into the fields. Even m o r e recently biomass is also used o n a larger scale f o r energy i n T h i r d World countries. The Brazilian Biomass Energy Program, as one o f the largest installed u p t o n o w, is p a r t o f the Brazilian effort t o face the need to substitute biomass energy for non-renewable energy sources GOLDEMBERG et al., 1985. O f the about 5.2 x 10' m are used the industry, 2 x 10' m 3 e t h in a n o chemical l ethanol cars, and 1.9 x 10' 3 a r e u s e d s p r o d u c e d ma vehicles. The alcohol production 3 s e r v e a s f u e l f o rgoal is to produce about 10.7 x 10' m i n aiming at 1 t he s8 u b7 s t i,t u t i o n o f 170. 000 barrels o f petroleum p e r day, w h i c h 3 f o r 9 a b o u t B r a z i l represents about 10 g a s 5 on l i 0 n % e of the forecasted oil consumption in that year. To d a y we 5 i can recognize this goal not to be reached, due to planning mistakes as well as the a d 9 d0 i 8 t 0i 2 v 0 1 changing economic a n d social conditions. Nevertheless t h e Brazilian Energy e a l is the most l , Program important experiment to use bioalcohol for energy. Again, f o r 0 direct net . input of 8 no CO m this biomass, u t r depending o n t h e k i n d o f implementation o f energy crops x i n 2 t o o t bh e e there m i g h t be indirect 1 t m o s 0 p a h e inputs, e.g. w h e n forests are cleared for growing sugar cane. t h ' e r a im sn 8 39 3 t o m i l b e l e xi p o e n c t e d f r o m t h e

5. Estimate of Net Carbon Dioxide Release Considering Energy Demands in Developing Countries
The per capita use o f fuelwood in developing countries is characterized by varying amounts o f consumption. depending on climatic and nutritional conditions a s w e l l as o n t h e a v a i l a b i l i t y o f f u e l w o o d a n d o t h e r energy sources. According to a FA O survey (FAO, 1981), annual needs o f fuelwood m a y vary from 0.5 to 2 m'icap, w h i c t corresponds to approximately 160 to 840 Watt. Due to the low efficiency of traditional fuelwood stoves (12-18 %), this w i l l result in an average end-use energy o f about 50 Watt, i f only cooking is considered as enduse. I m p r o v i n g stove efficiencies might be an important measure in energy and fuelwood saving; it should be mentioned, however, that even cooking fires often serve other purposes such as heating or lighting or have social functions. I f fuelwood cannot be gathered nearby, w h i c h is usually the case in urban homes, people often shift to charcoal as primary energy source, simply because transportation becomes easier. Transformation o f wood to charcoal also causes losses o f energy. A c c o r d i n g t o REVELLE (1980), 30')/o o f energy i n w o o d i s converted i n t o energy i n charcoal on average, w h i l e h i g h l y efficient charcoal kilns convert 50 to 60%. That means that 1/2 to 2/3 of the wood energy is lost, but this loss is p a r t l y compensated b y the t w o times higher efficiency o f charcoal braziers compared to wood stoves.Furthermore, since less energy is necessary to transport one energy equivalent in form o f charcoal than in f o r m of wood, i t m i g h t be more economic t o use charcoal instead o f wood despite conversion losses, w h e n transport distances o f more than about 100 k m are involved. This w i l l also reduce air pollution, since charcoal produces less smoke and fumes. The M a p o f the Fuelwood Situation i n the Developing Countries" compiled b y FA O i n 1981 uses an approach b y region to account for the different needs and types of use of fuelwood in rural areas of the developing countries as well as f o r the availability o f fuelwood t o meet this demand. (The term fuelwood" here also includes ligneous material from agricultural residues). I n Table 5a we have summarized the FAO data on people living in different categories o f fuelwood supply. We have further estimated the possible sustaining fuelwood consumption w i t h i n the different regions and categories. This is done b y m u l t i p l y i n g the n u m b e r o f people w i t h the lower o f the t w o figures given for need and availability of fuelwood per capita, assuming that fuelwood is c o n s u m e d according t o t h e g i v e n basic needs, b u t does n o t exceed t h e availability, i.e. the fuelwood resources are not degraded. This analysis reveals that in the given regions (excluding China and the Near East and N o r t h Africa, where the data given are n o t broken d o w n into different categories) the rural population, w h i c h amounts to 86 % o f the total population, may consume about 880 x 10 m tion, however, amounts to about 1260 x 10' m'ia, according to the same data set 3 (Table / a o 5b). f I f one assumes that the basic needs must be met, then the difference between f u e l these t w o figures, a b o u t 380 x 10 compensated y regrowth, 6 o ff o r b w o o d i.e. , m u s t be accounted f o r as a net source o f w m o 'o atmospheric CO i s d basic 2 h a needs, r v bu et this s m t igh et be d partially compensated by cuttings beyond basic o needs in areas where fuelvvood is abundant. . I n a n d n 5a/b do n o t account f o r about 70 x 10 f a The c t data , o i n Tables n t a North East, iwheren a fuelwood deficit situation 6areas p eo of p l e Africa l i and v i the n Near g irural n s u is assumed s e v e to r prevail. I f we apply the mean values o f sustained and needed s t fuelwood c o n s u m p t i o n o f 0.40 a n d 0 . 6 9 m a l population, we obtain additional 28.0 and 48.5 x 10' me/a, leading to total figures a i 3 r e g i n c ai p l a , r e s p e c t i v e l y , / o n s n g t o 40 p e b t h i s o p a l e s a i r s e . n T o h t

of about 915 x 10' m 1310 x 10 m 3 400 xo 10' 3a o f f m / 3 u Though e ll w the f o oannual demand of 1310 x 10' m equals FAO for total fuelwood cut in developing countries o f 1370 x / a o3 o o the r fd u e l v figure v o o d w d 10' m 0 3 at ia n i n e d n .bo e1 tb o analysis. Fe i r s t orf all, e t h e People's R e p u b l i c o f China i s n o t included, w e r e 3 b G th e d C a l e fuelwood is used o n a large scale, leading t o overexploitation o f large forest / a , / e a r l y e an d, i areas. t h hFurthermore, consumption i n urban areas o f developing countries and w e n consumption for large-scale industrial purposes, as e.g. the steel industries i n e r cu ia s s also t n o t included. Therefore o n e m a y guess t h a t t h e n e t i n p u t Brazil, are e h c obtained above a i n e w i l l b e a l o w e r l i m i t , t h e factors n o t accounted f o r i n t h i s a s h may add up to the same amount, such that the net input may reach 0.26 analysis h d r GtC/a. o u i y le d l e s e a d o n r a T a b l e 5a m t . n e ESTIMATED SUSTAINING FUFL WOODCONSUMPTION IN RURAL AREAS OF THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES e T d o r h o AMERICA TOTAL AFRICA ( w i t h o u t N-AFRICA) EAST ASIA (without P.R.CHINA/ L AT I N t t 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 e f Pop. a A c a p . a ) m / a pop. m / ( t a P * 0 a / a a /(cap*a) m /(cap*a) 6 6 6 pop m/g pop mq i h h d i *10 6 a *10 *10 *10 *ID *10 *10 0 e e , e 1 e f f b la 13.1 0.08 0.98 29 0.25 7.25 2 0.3 0.6 0 33.45 95.8 0 . 3 5 r a t 35.7 0.6 e r 14 21.42 16 0.2 3.2 o f m e n 131.4 0,85 u Eta 111.69 297 0.2 59.4 143 0.8 114.4 388.49 983.4 0 . 4 0 u o s c e lt ib 412 0.25 103.0 e p h a IIIa 65 148 0.7 30 0.85 25.5 1.25 81,25 103.6 279.5 0 . 9 4 263.28 lb e r 36.5 m M 1.45 52.93 w e o IVa 6.2 1.35 8.37 21 0.6 12.6 38 0.85 32.3 194.2 1 . 0 1 195.17 o u ia n 1.1 141.9 129 o s n S U M 276.64 1036 0.41 427.75 229 0.77 176.0 1552.9 0 . 5 7 880.3 288.9 0.96 d n t d e s e t m io a n ESTIMATED REQUIREDFUEL WOODCONSUMPTION IN RURALAREAS OF THE DEVELOPING COUNTRIES n p e AMERICA TOTAL AFRICA ( w i t h o l a . N-AFRICA) EAST ASIA (without P.R.CHINA)/ L AT I N d u a 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 a / a pop. m/(cap*a) m / a po . m f ( t u e a ) m / a P a /(caP*a) s t pop 6 6 P 6 a /g r *10 *lo 9 *10 .10 *10 *to *10 6. 6 6 . 1 ln m la 6.55 29 1.55 2 44.95 1.3 2.6 13.1 0.50 , o A 95.8 1.31 125,01 y lb 35.7 1,65 58.91 16 0.75 12.0 c t a IIa 131.4 1.25 164.25 297 0.45 133.65 143 0.95 135.85 a 983.4 0.69 680.95 p II4 412 0.6 247.2 * c a IIIa 65 148 1.25 81,25 0.7 103.6 30 0.85 25.5 c 279.5 0.94 263.28 ) Mb 36.5 1.45 52.93 o IVa 6.2 1.35 8.37 21 0.6 38 0.85 32.3 12,6 u 1.01 195.17 194.2 1V4 129 1.1 141.9 n S U M 288.9 1,29 372.26 1036 0.66 683.90 208.25 229 0.91 1552.9 0 . 8 1 1264.41 t e d 41 f o r i n t h e a

Explanation t o Tab. I s / 5b I : . b: i n mountaneous areas R e 11 : Regions o f Fuelwood D e f i c i t a : i n savanna areas g i b: i n r i v e r p l a i n s o n I I I : Regions o f Prospective D e f i c i t a : i n s u b t r o p i c a l areas s b: i n areas w i t h f a s t o growing population f A IV c : Regions o f S a t i s f a c t o r y Fuelwood Supply a : i n h i g h f o r e s t areas b: o t h e r areas u t "Sustaining fuelwood consumption" means t h e amount o f fuelwood harvestable e without degradation o f t h e r e s p e c t i v e ecosystems ( i . e . " a v a i l a b l e fuelwood" S c FAO t e r m s ) , w h i l e " r e q u i r e d fuelwood consumption" means t h a t amount in a necessary t o meet b a s i c needs o f t h e respective p o p u l a t i o n . r c Source : FAO 1981 i t y a The: use o f biomass as f u e l leads t o a carbon f l u x f r o m t h e biota t o t h e i atmosphere in an order comparable to other anthropogenic perturbations o f the n global carbon cycle. Carbon from fuelwood consumption may amount to almost a half a gigaton per year, while the other biomass energy sources may contribute r up t o the i same amount, such that about 1 gigaton o f carbon f r o m biomass is annually d oxidized and transferred to the atmosphere. / When t h e biomass i s harvested i n s u c h a w a y t h a t ecosystems are n o t s degraded, u then a reverse carbon f l u x f r o m the atmosphere to the biota w i l l be inducedbb regrowth, such that no net i n p u t into the atmosphere w i l l occur. On a hand, when biomass harvest causes a degradation o f the plant cover, the other r or soil erosions, or transforms the plant communities toward significantly lower biomassi density, less carbon will be restored to the biomass and a net flux to the d atmosphere occurs. a r to the lack o f knowledge about the t i m e development o f the ecosysDue tems s ue p p l y i n g biomass f o r energy purposes o n a g l o b a l scale, i t i s t v e r y a difficult s t o evaluate the compensating f l u x induced b y biomass regrowth. I n

6. Conclusions

this study different approaches were used to estimate the ranges o f the source strength of the biota due to human energy demands, the results are summarized in Table 6. Biomass energy seems to be a small net source for atmospheric CO2 of 0.2 0.1 GtC/a. or 2-6 % o f the annual input of fossil fuel carbon. I t is even more difficult to estimate a probable further net input connected w i t h the use of biomass for energy, stemming from soil organic carbon which is oxidized when biomass harvest leads to ecosystem degradation and soil erosion, Because decline o f soil carbon is relatively slow compared to the immediate oxidation when biomass is removed for fuel, it would be difficult to estimate the annual i n p u t even i f the amounts o f carbon stored i n the affected soils were known. Nevertheless, one may come to the conclusion that the contribution o f biomass used f o r energy t o t h e source strength o f the b i o t a f o r additional atmospheric C O when ne scenarios f o r f u t u r e e n e r g y u s e d r i v e n b y increasing 2 s ho o u analyses l d demands n o t of a steadily increasing population. b e n 42 e g l e c t e d . I t s h o u l d e s p e c i

T a b l e Approach Fuelwood: Evaluation o f Production Data E v a l u a t i o n o f E n e r g y Demand C o n t r i b u t i o n f r o m Land Tr a n s f o r m a t i o n s a l o n e Other B i o g e r l i c E n e r g y S o u r c e s :

6 Estimated N e t F l u x Gt C / a

To t a l C a r b o n F l u x Gt C / a

0.45 0.50 - 0 . 6 0

0.18 - 0 . 3 0 0.13 - 0 . 2 6 0.04 - 0 . 2 0

0.27 - 0 . 5 0

small

References
BARNARD, G. W., 1985: The use of agricultural residues as fuel. - Ambio 14: 259-266. BROWN, S. & A. E. LUGO, 1982: The storage and production o f organic matter in tropic forests and their role in the global carbon cycle. - Biotropica 14/3: 161-187. BROWN, S. & A. E. LUGO, 1984: Biomass o f tropical forests: a new estimate based on forest volumes. - Science 223: 1290-1293. FAO, 1981: M a p o f fuelwood situation i n the developing countries. - Unasylva Supplement, Food and Agriculture Organization, Rome. FAO, 1984: Yearbooks o f Forest Products. - Ith-34th issue, Rome, 1948-84. G L O B A L 2000, 1980: D e r Bericht an den Prasidenten. Frankfurt, Zweitausendeins: 1438 GOLDEMBERG, J., J. R. MOREIRA, P. U. M. Dos SANTOS & G. E. SERRA, 1985: Ethanol fuel: a use of biomass energy in Brazil. A m b i o 14: 193-297. KOHLMAIER G. H., H. BROHL, P. STOCK, M. PLOCHL, U. FISCHBACH, A. JANECEK & R. FRICKE, 1985: Biogenic C O use n l the tropical forests o f Africa. America and Asia. I n Transport o f Carbon 2 r ie e a s e and Minerals i n M a j o r World Rivers, P t . 3 " (eds. E . T. DEGENS, S. KEMPE & R. a n d HERRERA), Mitt. Geol.-Paldont. Inst. Univ. Hamburg, SCOPE/UNEP Sonderbd. 58: 123-136. s o i l a 1982: r b LANLY,c J.-P., Tr o p i c a l Forest Resources. - F o o d a n d A g r i c u l t u r e Organization, Rome: o n 106 pp. MOULIK, e T. K., r 1985: o The biogas program in India and China. A m b i o 14 (4-5): 288-292. REVELLE, s R., i 1980: o Energy dilemmas in Asia: The needs for research and development. Science 209: 164-174. n ROTTY, R . M., 1986: Estimates o f C O c o n Climatic Change 9: 311-325. 2 f r o m w o o d n e c SKIL, V., 1983: Deforestation in China. A m b i o 12 (5): 226-231. f u e l t e d SMITH, Biofuels, A i r Pollution and Health: A Global Review. - N e w York, Plenum b a K., 1988: s e d w Publ. Co.: ( i n preparation). o n i f o r e s t t h a r v e s h t c h d a t a a n . g e s i n l a n d 43