Quantification of Environmental Externalities of the EU Bioeconomy

Abstract

The EU bioeconomy is an interesting field that could provide non-electric renewable energy to mitigate climate change for the EU. The goal of this research is to assess the effectiveness of quantifying environmental externalities of the EU bioeconomy to answer the following research question: “How did the environmental impacts of the EU bioeconomy, both production- and consumption-based, evolve over the years 2011, 2015, and 2022? What roles do EU countries and their respective sectors play in contributing to these impacts?”. This research is performed in the context of the Harmonitor project, which aims to improve the quality of certification schemes of the bio-based economy. Four objectives needed to be achieved: (1) classify the sectors of Exiobase as bio-based, non-bio-based, and partially bio-based, and estimate the bio-based shares of partially bio-based sectors based on the best available data, (2) quantify the production-based (or direct) environmental impacts in the EU region from the production of bio-based commodities for own use and exports, (3) quantify the consumption-based (direct and indirect) environmental impacts due to the consumption of bio-based commodities in the EU region produced within the region and imported from other world regions, (4) compare the production- versus consumption-based environmental impacts of EU countries, their respective sectors, and the entire EU region, to understand their roles as either an “exporter” versus “importer” of environmental impacts. The three environmental impacts assessed are CO2-eq emissions, land use, and water use.

The results show that the EU is a net importer of environmental impacts, primarily from China, India, and the United States. Higher GDP per capita countries within the EU tend to have a higher net import of these impacts. Over time, the environmental impacts within the EU have remained largely constant, except for some anomalies specific to certain EU countries. Both production- and consumption-based accounting methods were used, showing significant differences between them. Production-based accounting focuses on what a country produces and controls, while consumption-based accounting holds the EU and its countries accountable for their environmental impacts globally. The EU, being a net importer of these impacts, is thus responsible for environmental effects such as water and land use elsewhere.

This research offers results from both accounting methods to assess the impacts of countries and sectors on the EU bioeconomy. These results can be used to further develop and assess certification schemes in Harmonitor.