Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies study: Call for evidence

Ember challenges the assumption that biomass is carbon neutral, noting that current practices may actually contribute to climate change. The organization argues that the scale of land required for energy crops to support BECCS would cause significant environmental and food security issues. Furthermore, Ember highlights the high public cost of subsidizing bioenergy, suggesting that funds would be more effectively spent on wind, solar, or forest restoration.

• The assumption that burning biomass is carbon neutral is contested by evidence, including statements from the European Academies Sciences Advisory Council (EASAC) suggesting that using woody biomass for power may increase the risk of dangerous climate change. Consequently, there is a high risk that current biomass energy practices are net carbon emitting over the timescales of the Paris Agreement.
• The UK lacks the strong policy measures and robust verification needed to ensure that wood used for biomass delivers actual carbon savings; without these, even small amounts of high-carbon feedstock can result in emissions higher than coal.
• Scaling BECCS through dedicated energy crops would require vast amounts of land—potentially 1Mha in the UK and up to 200Mha globally—leading to significant negative impacts on biodiversity, water consumption, pesticide use, and food competition.
• Large-scale BECCS deployment is likely to be prohibitively expensive for the public purse, citing that Drax received £832m in public subsidy in 2020. Ember suggests that public funds are better spent on wind and solar energy or deeper societal decarbonisation to reduce the overall need for GGR.

APA

Ember (2021). Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies study: Call for evidence. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/12/NIC-GGR-call-for-evidence-Ember-March-2021.docx.pdf

Chicago

Ember. Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies study: Call for evidence. 2021. https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/12/NIC-GGR-call-for-evidence-Ember-March-2021.docx.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |author=Ember |title=Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies study: Call for evidence |date=20 January 2021 |url=https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/12/NIC-GGR-call-for-evidence-Ember-March-2021.docx.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{ember2021greenhouse, author = {{Ember}}, title = {{Greenhouse Gas Removal Technologies study: Call for evidence}}, publisher = {Ember}, year = {2021}, month = jan, url = {https://ember-energy.org/app/uploads/2024/12/NIC-GGR-call-for-evidence-Ember-March-2021.docx.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }