The Renewable Energy Directive provides the policy framework for the production and promotion of energy from renewable sources. It requires the EU to fulfil at least 20% of its total energy needs with renewables by 2020. An increased supply of biomass by agriculture and forestry could play an important role in reaching this goal. UNIQUE, as part of a consortium led by the company Ecofys GmbH, supported the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Energy to estimate the real potential for yield increase of agricultural residues and forestry biomass in Europe. The consortium developed best practice strategies and an action plan. In the forestry context, the study focused on how to increase the growth rates of the major European forest types, with the proviso that traditional wood assortments and valuable stem wood are maintained or increased.

• Development of a baseline – forests, yield and forest production.
• Selection of measures and definition of best-practice strategies to increase yield in forestry.
• Assessment of relevant quality traits for forest biomass.
• Derivation of a theoretical potential.
• Technical-sustainable potential considering ecological constraints.
• Development of policies fostering increase of biomass yield in forestry.