Estatuto General de Contratación Ley 80 de 1993

The report, Biomass as Feedstock for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry: The Technical Feasibility of a Billion-Ton Annual Supply (generally referred to as the Billion-Ton Study or 2005 BTS), was an estimate of

“potential” biomass based on numerous assumptions about current and future inventory, production capacity, availability, and technology.1 The analysis was made

to determine if conterminous U.S. agriculture and forestry resources had the capability to produce at least one billion dry tons of sustainable biomass annually to displace 30% or more of the nation’s present petroleum consumption. An effort was made to use conservative estimates to assure confidence in having sufficient supply to reach the goal.

The potential biomass was projected to be reasonably available around mid-century when large-scale biorefineries are likely to exist. The study emphasized primary sources of forest- and agriculture-derived biomass, such as logging residues, fuel treatment thinnings, crop residues, and perennially grown grasses and trees. These primary sources have the greatest potential to supply large, reliable, and sustainable quantities of biomass. While the primary sources were emphasized, estimates of secondary residue and tertiary waste resources of biomass were also provided.2

The original Billion-Ton Resource Assessment,

published in 2005, was divided into two parts—forest- derived resources and agriculture-derived resources. The forest resources included residues produced during the harvesting of merchantable timber, forest residues, and small-diameter trees that could become available through initiatives to reduce fire hazards and improve

forest health; forest residues from land conversion; fuelwood extracted from forests; residues generated at primary forest product processing mills; and urban wood wastes, municipal solid wastes (MSW), and construction and demolition (C&D) debris. For these forest resources, only residues, wastes, and small- diameter trees were considered. The 2005 BTS did not

attempt to include any wood that would normally be used for higher-valued products (e.g., pulpwood) that could potentially shift to bioenergy applications. This would have required a separate economic analysis, which was not part of the 2005 BTS.

The agriculture resources in the 2005 BTS included

grains used for biofuels production; crop residues derived primarily from corn, wheat, and small grains; and animal manures and other residues. The cropland resource analysis also included estimates of perennial energy crops (e.g., herbaceous grasses, such as

switchgrass, woody crops like hybrid poplar, as well as willow grown under short rotations and more intensive management than conventional plantation forests). Woody crops were included under cropland resources because it was assumed that they would be grown on a combination of cropland and pasture rather than forestland.

In the 2005 BTS, current resource availability was

estimated at 278 million dry tons annually from forestlands and slightly more than 194 million dry tons annually from croplands. These annual quantities increase to about 370 million dry tons from forestlands and to nearly 1 billion dry tons from croplands

1 _{Perlack, R.D., Wright, L.L., Graham, R.L., Turhollow, A., Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Stokes, B., USDA Forest Service; and Erbach, D., USDA}

Agricultural Research Service. Biomass as Feedstock for a Bioenergy and Bioproducts Industry: The Technical Feasibility of a Billion-Ton

Annual Supply. ORNL/TM-2005/66, DOE/GO-102005-2135. April 2005.

2 _{In this report, primary resources are biomass feedstocks that come directly from either forest or agricultural land and include logging}

residues and forest thinnings, crop residues (such as stover and straw), and energy crops. Secondary residues are biomass materials that

under scenario conditions of high-yield growth and large-scale plantings of perennial grasses and woody tree crops. This high-yield scenario reflects a mid- century timescale (~2040–2050). Under conditions of lower-yield growth, estimated resource potential was projected to be about 320 and 580 million dry tons for forest and cropland biomass, respectively. As noted earlier, the 2005 BTS emphasized the primary resources

(agricultural and forestry residues and energy crops) because they represent nearly 80% of the long-term resource potential.

The law contains a number of provisions to increase energy

efficiency and the availability and use of renewable energy.

One key provision of EISA is the setting of a revised Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). The revised RFS mandates the use of 36 billion gallons per year (BGY) of renewable fuels by 2022. The

revised RFS has specific fuel allocations for 2022 that include

use of:

• 16 BGY of cellulosic biofuels

• 14 BGY of advanced biofuels

• 1 BGY of biomass-based biodiesel

• 15 BGY of conventional biofuels (e.g., corn starch-based ethanol).

EISA legislation (see, 42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(2)) also established

new definitions and criteria for both renewable fuels (e.g.,

greenhouse gas reduction thresholds) and the renewable biomass used to produce the fuels. Renewable biomass generally includes:

TEXT BOX 1.1 | ENERGY INDEPENDENCE AND SECURITY ACT (EISA) 2007 • Crops from previously cleared non-forested land

• Trees from actively managed plantations on non-federal land

• Residues from non-federal forestland that is deemed not to be critically imperiled or rare

• Biomass from the immediate vicinity of buildings or

public infrastructure at risk from wildfires • Algae

• Separated yard or food waste.

Excluded from the qualifying renewable biomass are resources from ecologically sensitive or protected lands, biomass from federal forestlands, biomass from newly cleared or cultivated land, and merchantable biomass from naturally regenerated forestlands (see, 42 U.S.C. 7545(o)(1)(I)).

40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022

Cellulosic Biofuel Component (BGY) Advanced Biofuel Total (BGY)

Renewable Fuel Total (BGY)

Biomass-based Diesel Component (BGY)

Billion gallons per y

ear

Since publication of the BTS in April 2005, there have

been some rather dramatic changes in energy markets. In fact, just prior to the actual publication of the BTS,

world oil prices started to increase as a result of a burgeoning worldwide demand and concerns about long-term supplies. By the end of the summer, oil prices topped $70 per barrel (bbl) and catastrophic hurricanes in the Gulf Coast shut down a significant fraction of U.S. refinery capacity. The following year, oil approached $80 per bbl due to supply concerns, as well as continued political tensions in the Middle East. The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA) was enacted in December of that year (see Text Box 1.1). By the end of December 2007, oil

prices surpassed $100 per bbl for the first time, and by mid-summer 2008, prices approached $150 per bbl because of supply concerns, speculation, and weakness of the U.S. dollar. As fast as they skyrocketed, oil prices fell, and by the end of 2008, oil prices dropped below $50 per bbl, falling even more a month later due to the global economic recession. In 2009 and 2010, oil prices began to increase again as a result of a weak U.S. dollar and the rebounding of world economies. Other legislation has had impacts since 2005, as well. The 2008 Farm Bill, also known as the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, provides for 11 programs (although not all have been funded) for renewable energy, biobased products, and bioenergy. Furthermore, the Farm Bill provides for “advanced biofuels,” which are biofuels other than corn-kernel based, and provides funding for using biomass for power or heat. The Farm Bill also makes incentives available for the production of biomass through the Biomass Crop Assistance Program. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 provided additional funding for biorefineries and other clean energy initiatives. In effect, since the BTS was

published, America has seen an expansion in financial support for renewable energy and has had both legislative and executive actions that support all types of renewable energy, including biomass. The emphasis has shifted to cellulosic biofuels and to the use of biomass for an array of products, including electricity and thermal applications.

In addition to cellulosic biofuels and the RFS, there has also been interest in developing a national RPS (renewable portfolio standard) to generate electricity from renewable energy, including biomass. A study by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) (2007a) looked at a combined 25% RFS and RPS by 2025. This analysis suggests that to comply with such mandates, it would require almost a 13-fold increase in non-hydropower renewable generation and more than a 12-fold increase from 2005 levels. Although not all would be biomass based, the likelihood of increased demand for biomass for all energy uses has become very apparent. However, the greenhouse gas reductions are also providing more scrutiny in the use of biomass, especially in emissions accounting. Although this analysis does not address differences in emissions among feedstocks, it does address the basic sustainability aspects of using renewable feedstocks—a non-diminishing supply over the period studied.

In sum, these supply and demand forces have contributed to volatility in oil prices in recent years, and by transitioning toward higher energy efficiency and additional domestic sources of renewable fuels, such as biofuels, there is high potential to reduce U.S. market uncertainty and increase energy security. Legislative and executive actions have occurred at the federal and state levels in support of the use of biomass. There have been increased legislative actions and investments in the use of biomass for biopower. Overall, since the original report, the United States has accelerated efforts in using biomass for energy, and along with that emphasis, new questions have been asked about supply.