Balancing renewable energy and ecosystems services at different scales in the European Alps. possible lessons to learn for Japan

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1 Balancing renewable energy and ecosystems services at different scales in the European Alps possible lessons to learn for Japan Florian Kraxner 1, Sylvain Leduc 1, Sabine Fuss 2,1, Franziska Albrecht 1, Georg Kindermann 1,3, Kentaro Aoki 4,1 and Yoshiki Yamagata 5,1 1 International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), Ecosystems Services and Management Program (ESM) 2 Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) 3 Federal Research and Training Centre for Forests, Natural Hazards and Landscape (BFW) 4 Rural and Renewable Energy Unit, Energy and Climate Change Branch, United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) 5 National Institute for Environmental Studies (NIES), Center for Global Environmental Research (CGER) GCP-URCM Workshop, Toyota High-level Meeting on Sustainable Cities Toyota City, Japan

2 What is an Ecosystem Service? Image: environment magazine

3 Definitions (UNEP/IUCN/MEA )

4 Experts ranking ES in the Alps Haida et al., 2013 (UIBK)

5 How does the public valuate the importance of Ecosystems Services (ES) in the European Forests?

6 Bioenergy production VERSUS (?) Carbon Sequestration Management that matters G4M

7 Scenario description Forest Management Carbon stock (tc/ha) (S1) Bioenergy (S2) C Sequestration Carbon increment (tc/ha/a)

8 Economic bioenergy potential BeWhere estimates the optimal allocation of bioenergy tc/ha production plants and associated harvesting intensity. Bioenergy is competing with other energy production types (i.e. costs of fossil fuels). Economic supply: 14 TWh (heat & electricity) met by both scenarios. Significant local difference of harvesting intensity. tc/ha Harvesting intensity/cell (1,000 m3/ yr) Total harvested amount in S1: (1,000 m3/ yr) Total harvested amount in S2: (1,000 m3/ yr) , ,820 1, ,851 1, ,290 Source: BeWhere S1: Carbon sequestration scenario (increment) 1,000 m3 S2: Biomass production scenario (increment) 1,000 m3

9 1,000 m3 tc/ha/a 1,000 m3 tc/ha/a Results for Powerplants (S1) Bioenergy (S2) C Sequestration

10 Intensification Effect

11 Intensification Effect for improved planning Where do I manage more intensively, while I take management and production pressure from other areas that can consequently serve other Ecosystem Services or can be protected

12 Water How about hydro power in the Alps What is the potential Considering Ecosystems Conservation

13 Current Size Distribution 13% of hydropower stations Source: Carma, 2014 Own calculation larger than 10 MW produce ~80% of the power

14 Theoretical Potential Source: recharge.green, EURAC, IIASA

15 Protected areas that shall not be touched

16 Reduced Potential

17 Modeling Preliminary Results Business as Usual High Carbon tax

18 Urban renewable energy and ESS What can a city contribute to its energy supply How can ESS (i.e. recreational services) be balanced with energy production

19 Focus Area: Vienna Woods and Meadow Belt

20 Focus Area: Vienna Woods and Meadow Belt provides a vast array of ecosystems services, mainly based on its large forest area Main ecosystem services: welfare functions recreation protective functions water and drinking water supply biodiversity conservation conservation of cultural landscapes and natural monuments food production wood / biomass production

21 Study area: Biosphärenpark Wienerwald (Vienna Woods Biosphere Reserve) UNESCO's MAB Programme in 2005 Total area: 9,700ha Variety of important land use purposes: Recreation Water supply Agriculture Forestry, Traffic, Infrastructure, etc. We focus on forest area: 1,182 forest stands

22 Social Constraint: Recreation Recreational use and respective areas have a long tradition and needs to be taken out of use! Area is easily accessible Lainzer Tiergarten: around 500,000 visitors per year attractive for biking and hiking road network of more than 72km Many recreation spots, e.g. 6 restaurants, 3 watchtowers, 23 playgrounds and 3 BBQ areas 25m buffer zone to both sides of e.g. a bike path/forest road etc 25m radius around monuments etc

23 Environmental Constraint: Nature Protection International and national conservation laws protect large parts of the area Management zones of the Biosphere Reserve Natura2000 Areas Bird Directive Habitat Directive Nature protection areas as stated by Conservation Act of Vienna (2006)

24 Results: Analysis of Constraints Mean Annual Increment Biomass Increment (Lower) Heating Value

25 Results: Biomass Potential For the Biosphärenpark Wienerwald the sustainable potential of biomass harvesting has been assessed to be around 5.9 m 3 /ha/year (currently realized annual biomass use of 2.1±0.9 m 3 /ha). This translates into a total sustainable potential of biomass harvesting of ca. 20,000 m 3/ year. Thus, the potential is about three times higher than the realized biomass harvest of about 6,570 m 3.

26 Results: Harvesting potential under consideration of existing constraints around 5.9 m 3 /ha/year total sustainable potential of biomass harvesting of ca. 20,000 m 3/ year Potential seem to be three times higher Considering environmental constrains: down to 12,600 m 3 /year Social constraints: down to 10,500 m 3 /year still 60% higher than current harvesting

27 Conclusions for the urban study The results of this study show that the use of higher potentials does not necessarily have to go to the costs of environmental or social welfare. In the case of the Biosphärenpark Wienerwald, 60% more biomass could be harvested under sustainable forest management conditions. Provided that the entire harvestable biomass (ca. 10,000 11,000 m 3 /year) will be used for bioenergy generation e.g. in the Bioenergy Plant Simmering up to 3,000 households could be provided with electricity, another 720 households with heat, and some 8,600 t CO 2 emissions could be saved. According to the results of this study, these figures can be achieved from only 3,400 ha of forest area within the Biosphärenpark Wienerwald while having millions of visitors in this park every year. If considering all productive forest area within the Vienna City limits (about twice as large as the study area) plus the entire area of the Biosphärenpark Wienerwald which reaches well into the province of Lower Austria, approximately a 4-5 times higher harvest or bioenergy production could be achieved.

28 Possible lessons for Japan ESS Management (and due assessment of realistic management options) is key Infrastructure is key to realize potentials (e.g. access for harvesting/transport; electricity grid ) Scenario assessment and optimization tools can help to avoid mistakes with respect to sustainability, investment, development etc.

29 Contact Florian Kraxner G4M Deputy Program Director Ecosystem Services and Management International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis, IIASA Laxenburg, Austria