From Forest to Furnace

The burning of wood in power and heat installations as well as the industrial use of charcoal are expanding rapidly worldwide. This development is driven by a combination of renewable energy targets and subsidies, coal phaseout policies that support wood biomass as an alternative. But, as shown in this report, the industrial-scale burning of wood for energy has severe impacts on forests and other ecosystems. This paper looks at wood biomass energy developments in Europe, North America, East Asia, Africa, and South America.