Switching to Renewable Biomass
Project Type: Renewables Biomass
Project Standard: VCS, Social Carbon
Project Location: Brazil
Annual Emission Reduction (CO2e): 57,000 t
Operator: Cenol and Telha Forte Ceramics
Amazonian native firewood is substituted with açai seeds and sawdust at two small ceramic production sites. In the absence of this project, the biomass would have decomposed causing methane, a potent greenhouse gas. The project minimizes the negative impacts of the deforestation of the Amazonian biome by offering local businesses an alternative to native firewood.
Project Background
The project bundles two small ceramic industries producing structural ceramic devices as bricks for the local market. The original fuel employed to fire the kilns in both production sites was native wood from the Amazonian biome. Nowadays, the uncontrolled deforestation of the Amazonian biome is breaking up the firm land forest. The project activity stops the use of native woods and utilizes açai seeds and sawdust instead to feed the kilns. Açai is a fruit typically consumed in the project region. In the absence of the project activity, the biomass residues arriving from the fruit production was left for decay in open dumps, leading to considerable methane emissions.
Sustainable Development
The project activity contributes to the level reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by diminishing the deforestation of the Amazonian biome. In the year 2005, the verified deforestation rate was at an annual average of 1,879,300 ha within the boundaries of the Legal Amazon of which about 30% corresponds to the deforestation in the project region due to the increasing agribusiness such as the cultivation of soy. The forest is considered as a “carbon reserve”, therefore maintaining an average of 210 tonnes / ha of carbon trapped in 420 tonnes / ha of biomass. The main goal of this project activity is to minimize the negative impacts of the deforestation of the Amazonian biome by offering viable alternatives to the exploitation of native firewood to local businesses.
In addition the project activity contributes to the sustainable development of the project region by
- Increasing job opportunities in the local community;
- Diversifying and improving the sources of thermal energy generation;
- Using clean and efficient technologies, yielding the energy of biomass waste as a fuel; by these means the project is in accordance with Agenda 21 and with Brazilian Sustainable Development Criteria;
- Spreading a pioneer initiative throughout the country and encouraging the development of new technologies that substitute the use of non-renewable fuels for renewable fuels as biomass;
- Contributing towards the conservation of the Amazonian biome by using renewable biomass.
