greenGain
Supporting Sustainable Energy Production from Biomass from Landscape Conservation and Maintenance Work
The aim of this project was to strengthen the energy production of woody and herbaceous biomass from landscape conservation and maintenance work (LCMW) carried out in the public interest. The scope of the biomass used will be any material predominantly produced from nature conservation and landscape management, but not from energy-crops.
greenGain lasted 36 months (2015-2017) and was funded from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 646443).The project team was well balanced between technical and scientific organisations and local demand side oriented players. Eight institutions from Germany, Italy, Spain and the Czech Republic participated. The Agency for Renewable Resources e.V. (FNR) coordinated the project.
The main objectives of greenGain were to:
- trigger the exploitation and coordinate as well as support the market uptake of currently underused biomass sources from LCMW for energy purposes;
- mobilize biomass not competing with food and feed production;
- assess and develop planning, harvesting, transport, pre-treatment, measuring, energy conversion and financial frameworks;
- support local governance processes, develop tools for an active & supportive citizenship and realise a good practices know-how platform.
The project built up reliable knowledge on local availability of these feedstock and know-how on issues from logistics to storage and sustainable conversion pathways for the transformation of this feedstock to renewable energy (heat and energy products). Furthermore political, legal and environmental aspects as well as recommendations were addressed to politicians. Awareness raising, governance and public acceptance actions were conducted. General guidelines (like the Handbook for know-how on LCMW, or Business models of most economic conversion pathways) were prepared to guarantee a wide dissemination to other regions in the EU. Regional partners were actively supported by technical partners for the project measures’ development and implementation. As a Coordination and Support Action, the project focal point was the exchange between the model regions and other similar relevant players in the EU, by good practice exchange, a topic-specific website, several workshops and educational site visits in different regions as well as other standard public relations activities.
greenGain - The result in brief
This project received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Programme for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement No 646443.
