presentation at the 9th International Conference on Renewable Resources & Biorefineries, 6 June, 2013 – Antwerp, Belgium

1. 1
9th International Conference on
Renewable Resources & Biorefineries,
6 June, 2013 – Antwerp, Belgium
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability
criteria for biomass
Harmen Willemse
Consultant
NEN - Netherlands
Standardization Institute
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

2. About NEN
• 35.000 standard users
• 1.400 committees
• 40.000 standards
• € 40 million turnover, 300 employees
• 280 international secretariats CEN and ISO
•Private standardization
organisation since 1916
•Founding member of CEN,
CENELEC, ISO and IEC
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

3. NEN and Energy
• Standards development in energy market:
– Solid, liquid & gaseous (bio)fuels
– Sustainability of bioenergy
– (petroleum, petro-)chemical & natural gas Technology
– Pipeline and distribution systems
– Energy management & efficiency
– Hydrogen & Fuel cell Technology
– Biobased products
– Smart cities, Smart grids, Electrical vehicles
– Wind, Tidal and Solar power systems
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

4. Standardization
• A standard is a voluntary agreement amongst market
parties
• Starting points for standards development
– All parties concerned
– Agreements based on consensus
– Open & transparent process
• Purposes
– Facilitating trade & interoperability
– Self-regulation
– Health, safety, environment
– Image
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

5. International standardization
• Standardization takes place at three
levels:
– National (NEN)
– European (CEN)
– International (ISO)
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

6. The golden triangle
6
Global criteria
Detailed
elaboration
Conformity
assessment
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

7. Sustainability of biofuels
Sustainability criteria for biofuels and liquid
biomass
7Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

8. EU sustainability criteria biofuels
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

9. CEN Technical Committee 383
“Sustainably produced biomass for energy applications”
– initiated and chaired by the Netherlands, February 2008
– originally meant to cover Cramer-criteria
– re-focused on basis of RED and specific EC letter request in 2009
– Published EN 16214-series: Sustainability criteria for the production of
biofuels and bioliquids for energy applications
9
“The work carried out by CEN/TC 383 is to
assist economic operators in providing
evidence for the provisions relating to the EU
sustainability criteria for biofuels and
bioliquids”
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

10. ISO 13065 ‘Sustainability criteria for
bioenergy’
• Specifies sustainability principles, criteria and measurable indicators
for the processes involved throughout the bioenergy supply chain to
facilitate assessment of environmental, social and economic aspects
of sustainability
• Does not establish thresholds or limits and does not describe specific
bioenergy processes and production methods
• Is intended to facilitate comparison between various bioenergy
processes or products
• Compliance with ISO 13065 does not determine the sustainability of
processes or products.
• Applicable to solid, liquid and gaseous biomass
ISO/PC 248
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

11. NTA 8080 sustainable biomass
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Cramer sustainability
themes:
• Well-being
• Environment
• Biodiversity
• Greenhouse gases
• Prosperity
• Competition
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

12. NTA 8080 Sustainability criteria for
biomass for energy purposes
• Developed with a diverse group of stakeholders,
including several NGOs
• For international application
• For all types of biomass
• Harmonized with CEN and ISO standards
• Approved as a voluntary scheme for RED
• Accredited by RvA, an EA and IAF member
• Now being updated and extended to bio-based
products
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

13. Scope of certification
Solid, Liquid and Gaseous biomass
Producers, Processors, Traders, End-users
NTA
8080
NTA
8080
NTA
8080
NTA
8080
NTA
8080
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

14. WWW.NT8080.ORG
>> Opportunity to join the update of the standard!
14Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

15. Standards for bio-based products
15Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

16. Support to standardization for bio-
based products
• Knowledge Based Bio-based Products' Pre-Standardization
• Project duration: 3 years
• Part of EU FP7-KBBE work program
• Pre-Standardization research for CEN Technical Committee 411:
„Bio-based products‟
16Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass
WWW.BIOBASEDECONOMY.EU

17. BTWG 209
Bio-based
products*
CEN/TC 19
Gaseous and liquid
fuels, lubricants and
related products of
petroleum, synthetic
and biological origin
CEN/TC 249
Plastics
CEN/TC 276
Surface Active
Agents
CEN/TC 411
Bio-based
products
Bio-based products: European Mandates for
standardization
* Disbanded in August 2010Developing standards for Bio-based products
M/429
M/430 M/430 M/491 M/491
M/492

18. Mandates
M/492 Mandate for the development of horizontal European standards
and other standardization deliverables for bio-based products
M/491 Mandate for the development of European standards and
technical specifications and/or technical reports for bio-surfactants and
bio-solvents in relation to bio-based product aspects
CEN/BT accepted Mandates M/491 and M/492 in May 2011 and decided:
• TC 276 “Surface active agents” to work on bio-surfactants
• New TC 411 “Bio-based products” to work on horizontal standards
and bio-solvents
Developing standards for Bio-based products

19. CEN/TC 411 Bio-based products
• Develop horizontal standards for bio-based products
and standards for bio-solvents.
• Subjects include:
• Terminology
• Determination of bio-based carbon content
• Determination of bio-based content
• Specific sustainability criteria
• Specific Life-Cycle Analysis Guidance
• Bio-solvents aspects in relation to bio-based products
• Specific declaration and certification tools
• Convenor: Fredric Petit (DSM)
19Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

20. CEN/TC 411 Working Groups
WG 1 Terminology (Huub Omloo, DSM)
WG 2 Bio-solvents (Antoine Brossier, CEFIC/ESIG)
WG 3 Bio-based content (Frits Bakker, ECN);
WG 4 Sustainability criteria, life cycle analysis and related
issues (Solveig Eriksson, SCA)
WG 5 Certification and declaration tools (Henk Vooijs,
NRK Biobased / Novamont)
20Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

21. WG 4 Sustainability criteria, life cycle
analysis and related issues
• Convenor Mrs Solveig Eriksson (SCA)
• Standardization of sustainability criteria applicable to
bio-based products
• building on relevant existing standards and research where
appropriate. It may also give guidance on the application of
those criteria to biobased products.
• Standardization of life cycle analysis guidance
(horizontally) applicable to bio-based products
• Based primarily on the ISO 14040-series
• Not the purpose to set thresholds or default values
21Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

22. CEN/TC 411 Results
• prEN 16575: pre-standard on vocabulary of bio-based products
• FprCEN/TS 16640: draft Technical Specification of the method for
the determination of bio-based carbon content in bio-based
products using the 14C method.
• Report on current relevant biodegradation and ecotoxicity
standards
• Advisory workshop on bio-based products
• Bio-based product category list presenting a market overview of
different types and applications
22Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

23. Sustainability of bio-based products: bottom
up
23Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

24. Conclusions & takeaways
• Standards are voluntary agreements, creating certainty
and transparency in the market
• Interaction between legislation, standardization and
certification
• (Potential) Role of standards in policy development
• Standards and voluntary schemes are powerful tools to
drive the sustainability debate
• Opportunity for the market to take the lead
24Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass

25. WWW.BIOBASEDECONOMY.EU
25
Global initiatives to harmonize sustainability criteria for biomass