Government consultation on biomass sustainability

3rd March, 2026

Using plants and crops for fuel feedstocks is inefficient and risks indirect land-use change, argues AEF

The UK government has just concluded a consultation on the design of new sustainability parameters for the use of biomass (crops and plant-matter) in economy-wide decarbonisation. While the government argues that biomass will continue to play an important role in decarbonisation – from its use in power generation and possible bioenergy carbon removals (capturing the released CO₂ and burying it underground) – the rules on what is considered “sustainable” vary from sector to sector. AEF responded to the plans to create an over-arching sustainability framework giving views on how the SAF mandate is affecting how biomass is used as a potential fuel feedstock.

AEF is concerned that without economy-wide planning, biomass will go to the “highest bidder” – the industry that can afford to pay a premium. This could lead to crops and biomass being used inefficiently for feedstocks. AEF has already cautioned that this does not necessarily lead to the most efficient economy-wide decarbonisation, as there has hitherto been little detailed exploration of whether chopping down forest to produce feedstock for a fuel which is then burnt in a plane is the best way of using that biomass, or whether it would be better used in BECCS (bioenergy with the released CO₂ captured and stored away) for example, or for anaerobic digestion, back-up power generation as part of the UK’s Clean Power Plan, or bio-gas.

You can read our full consultation response below:

Photo credit: James Lo, Unsplash