On 3-4 June 2019 the United Nations’ Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)/ Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Timber Section’s Team of Specialists (ToS) on Wood Energy met at the SLU campus in Umeå. Among its obligations, the ToS has a mandate to advise and support the joint UNECE/FAO Forestry and Timber Section’s activities regarding wood energy data and to contribute to a better understanding of wood energy statistics as a basis for sound policy making. The ToS recently released a report on wood energy as the largest source of bioenergy in the UNECE region.

At the meeting, CERE’s Deputy Director Francisco Aguilar was elected to be the new leader of the ToS over the 2019-2021 period. (Click on headline to read more)
ToS members and SLU faculty members pictured at the SLU campus on 4 June 2019. Photo: Ann-Katrin Israelsson.
Dr. Dinko Vusic at the University of Zagreb, Faculty of Forestry, was elected to serve as Deputy leader. During the meeting in Umeå the ToS learned about sustainable procurement and use of woody biomass for energy during visits to NORRA and Umeå Energi hosted by Erik Torshage and Linus Elldegre, respectively. Jonas Danielsson from local company Bioendev described the conversion of forest residues into torrefied pellets. Presentations by SLU faculty members (Gustaf Egnell, Peichen Gong, Sylvia Larsson and Karin Öhman) highlighted the opportunities and challenges to the expansion of forest bioenergy.

The ToS is scheduled to continue informing decision makers in Europe, North America, the Russian Federation and Commonwealth of Independent Nations on the sustainable use of wood energy through policy briefs, oral presentations and capacity building sessions.