How the ecological risks of extended bioenergy production can be reduced
Monday, April 23, 2012 - 10:36
in Earth & Climate
For years experts have discussed the ecological impact of the extended cultivation of energy crops. Scientists have now developed a computer model that allows assessing the impacts and comparing the effectiveness of strategies for the reduction of risks for biological diversity. Conclusion: The extension of bioenergy leads to problems to biological diversity in agrarian regions. With different accompanying measures, such as the conservation of near-nature areas, however, these effects could be partly reduced, as scientists of the Friedrich Schiller University in Jena and the Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ) write in the current issue of the professional journal Global Change Biology Bioenergy.