LIFE Project: Implementing a Mediterranean biorefinery to boost forest management through the production of value-added products.
- Type Project
- Status Filled
- Execution 2020 -2024
- Assigned Budget 1.576.774,00 €
- Scope Europeo
- Autonomous community Cataluña
- Main source of financing LIFE
- Project website Web del proyecto
The LIFE BIOREFFORMED project promotes a local biorefinery concept capable of processing biomass for different end-uses. This approach will significantly contribute to the development of the bioeconomy and accelerate progress toward a low-carbon, circular economy, in line with the EU's bioeconomy and circular economy strategies.
Forest stands will be selected that are representative of the most important problems facing Mediterranean forests, including Aleppo pine forests regenerated after fires, cork oak forests, and post-disturbance/degraded forests whose products have little value in the current forest market. The biorefinery will produce several by-products: antioxidants, wood thermal energy, and fertilizers from different combinations of forest biomass types.
Forests cover 35% of Europe's total land area. The area covered by Mediterranean forests is increasing, but, mainly due to a lack of economic profitability and rural depopulation, there is a lack of management and an increase in forest fires caused by accumulated biomass.
Spain accounts for 21% (18 Mha) of the total Mediterranean forest area and has one of the highest growing stocks. In Catalonia, forest area covers up to 43% (1.34 Mha) of its territory. The mountainous areas typical of Mediterranean forests, characterized by steep slopes and abundant shrub understory, make management difficult and less profitable due to low productivity. Added to this are the recent pressures of climate change (higher temperatures, altered rainfall patterns, heat waves), which lead to direct impacts, such as increased tree mortality, and indirect impacts, such as increased pest infestation.
Forests regenerated after fires also pose a particular economic and environmental management challenge, due to their large size (more than 50,000 ha) and their unprofitable composition of very small trees and dense forest areas. The challenge, therefore, is to add value to the forest value chain to boost the management of Mediterranean forests, based on the principles of the bioeconomy and the circular economy.
The project aims to improve the sustainable management of Mediterranean forests by modernizing an existing biorefinery, using torrefaction and pyrolysis processes to produce renewable chemicals and fuels from forest biomass.
- Up to 1,000 tonnes of forest biomass used to produce bioenergy, 25 tonnes to produce biochar and 50 tonnes to produce bio-oil (with a total antioxidant content of 70 g gallic acid eq. per kg).
- Implementation of 45 ha of pilot forest stands (including Aleppo pine, cork oak, scrubland, and mixed species, totaling 1,350 tons of biomass) in different areas for the demonstration and transfer of innovative forestry techniques, with eligible species and biomass (e.g., bark) for the biorefinery.
- Improving the economic viability of post-fire Aleppo pine and cork oak forests combined with cork production and shrub understory management. Increasing economic viability through the market price of antioxidants to boost forest management.
- Improving forest health and productivity (increasing tree growth rate and relative foliage water content) of managed forest stands, reducing their vulnerability to climate change and enhancing forest ecosystem services (e.g., water regulation, carbon sink capacity).
- Coordinator/entity name: Neus Puy
- Postal address: Ctra. St. Lloren, Km2, s/n, 25280 Solsona (Lleida), 25280, Solsona,
- Coordinator/entity email:
- Consorci Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya
- CREAF(Centre de Recerca Ecològica i Aplicacions Forestals)
- ENERGBAS(Energies Tèrmiques Bàsiques SL)
- CPF(Centre de la Propietat Forestal)
- UAB(Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona)
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