1st Edition

Bioenergy Crops for Ecosystem Health and Sustainability

By Alex Baumber Copyright 2016
218 Pages 40 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

218 Pages 40 B/W Illustrations
by Routledge

The growing of crops for bioenergy has been subject to much recent criticism, as taking away land which could be used for food production or biodiversity conservation. This book challenges some commonly-held ideas about biofuels, bioenergy and energy cropping, particularly that energy crops pose an inherent threat to ecosystems, which must be mitigated. The book recognises that certain energy... Read more

Part 1: Introduction 

1. Bioenergy Crops and Sustainability 

Part 2: Energy Cropping and Ecosystem Health 

2. Bioenergy and Climate Change 

3. Deforestation and Land Degradation 

4. Ecological Restoration and Enhancement 

Part 3: Socio-economic Dimensions of Energy Cropping 

5. Food Security  

6. Land Rights and Community Impacts 

7. The Economics of Energy Cropping 

Part 4: Moving Forward 

8. Review of Policy Options 

9. Case Studies: Australia and Brazil 

10. Conclusion

Biography

Alex Baumber is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow and Sessional Lecturer in Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies at the University of New South Wales, Australia. He has previously worked for the Future of Australia’s Threatened Ecosystems (FATE) Program and for the Australian Government Department of Environment and Heritage, Sustainable Wildlife Industries Section.

"Overall, this is a valuable addition to the literature on bioenergy crops; it recognises problems, deals in the reality of ecological protection, and reflects the ever present interplay between politics, economics and environment. ... its approach makes it relevant to a wide audience in environmental science/management at advanced undergraduate and postgraduate stages." - Antoinette Mannion, in Bulletin of the British Ecological Society (October 2016).