What is the potential effect of different land use options on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration? : A systematic review of the available evidence.

Hellfeld, Rebecca von and Carvalho, Fabio and Armstrong, Alona and Hastings, Astly (2023) What is the potential effect of different land use options on greenhouse gas emissions and carbon sequestration? : A systematic review of the available evidence. UNSPECIFIED.

Abstract

The main aim of this review is to determine the impacts of specified land use options for food production, energy and low-carbon materials on GHG emissions and on carbon sequestration in the UK and in climatically comparable regions. The land use options of interest are: (1) wind farms, (2) solar farms, (3) energy crops for biomass (e.g., Miscanthus), and (4) short rotation forests and coppice for biomass production. In order to account for the previous land use, effects due to land use change between the above mentioned uses and other types of land use (e.g., pastureland, arable land comprising varied agriculture practices, meadows) will also be assessed. The work will shed light on net GHG emissions and sequestration and consider the impact of the transition to the new land use option, the on-going use, and the potential reversion back to the previous land use. Suitable time horizons will be considered for all land use options, with a minimum of 25 years for all land use options. The insight gained from this review will inform full life cycle assessments (LCA) of the different land use options considered. In addition, the review will contribute to the development of a decision making tool to help locate the most appropriate land use options for achieving the UK’s net zero goals by 2050.