CEN Technical Committee (TC) 383 Sustainability produced biomass for energy applications was created in 2008 in order to work on European Standards dealing with sustainability principles, criteria and indicators including their verification and auditing schemes for biomass for energy applications. This includes green house gas emission and fossil fuel balances, biodiversity, environmental, economic and social aspects and indirect effects within each of the aspects.
The Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28) sets the framework for the work of TC 383. Sustainability criteria related to the quality of petrol and diesel fuels were also requested in the Fuel Quality Directive (98/70/EC). In May 2009, the European Commission (EC) requested CEN/TC 383 through a letter to initiate work on standards. CEN is in the process to finalise the development of a standard in four parts.
CEN standards
The development of parts 1, 3 and 4 of European Standard EN 16214 have been finalised by CEN/TC 383:
- EN 16214-1 Sustainably produced biomass for energy applications - Principles, criteria, indicators and verifiers for biofuels and bioliquids - Part 1: Terminology, was published by CEN in August 2012.
- EN 16214-3 Sustainably produced biomass for energy applications - Principles, criteria, indicators and verifiers for biofuels and bioliquids - Part 3: Biodiversity and environmental aspects related to nature protection purposes , was published by CEN in August 2012.
- EN 16214-4 Sustainably produced biomass for energy applications - Principles, criteria, indicators and verifiers for biofuels and bioliquids - Part 4: Calculation methods of the greenhouse gas emission balance using a life cycle analysis, was published in January 2013.
CEN/TC 383 is still working on part 2 of the standard. CEN/TS 16214-2 Sustainably produced biomass for energy applications - Principles, criteria, indicators and verifiers for biofuels and bioliquids - Part 2: Conformity assessment including chain of custody and mass balance, should be published before the end of 2013 as a Technical Specification.
The text of the CEN standards can be purchased via your National Standardization Body.