Further development of the GBEP sustainability assessment

Further development of criteria and approaches for a sustainability assessment of bioenergy in the context of the GBEP

Germany has long been intensively involved in the global bioenergy partnership GBEP, and has played a crucial role in the development of its environmental indicators. Germany has also expressed its desire to strengthen and promote GBEP through active cooperation.

Professional guidance is required to ensure that the work of the GBEP is maintained at the appropriate technical level and with the required intensity. Since 2007, this guidance has been provided by ifeu and IINAS (by the Öko-Institut until 2012). Acting as delegates for Germany, experts from both institutes take part in all meetings and prepare them for the BMUB (2014) or the BMWi (since 2014), as well as conducting follow-up work.

This project includes the continuation of professional support for the BMWI and the UBA, in particular through:

• Participation in GBEP meetings on a range of committees:
  • in the Working Group on Capacity Building (WGCB), Germany is the joint leader of a working group which collates the experience gained from the application of the GSI in different countries, identifies difficulties, and then comes up with recommended applications.
    Germany is also involved in other working groups, for example on the issue of wood usage, bioenergy and water.
  • One of the primary tasks of the reinstated Task Force on Sustainability (TFS) is to focus on the continuation of the GSI. Germany provides key input on selected topics, for example in relation to the issue of allocation of biomass provision, or for linking the GSI and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Measurement of the GSI in Germany
  From 2013 to 2014, the ifeu worked on the national implementation of the GSI for Germany for the first time and the methodological insights gained were reflected in the GBEP process. In 2019 an update of this work was prepared and a second version of the report was presented.
• Training on GSI application in partner countries
  Numerous GBEP partner countries have now implemented the GSI on a national level. In some cases, ifeu experts have provided support and conducted training seminars. These took place in Indonesia, Colombia, Vietnam, Paraguay, Kenya and Ethiopia.