本文转自《EURACTIV》发表的题为“The inherent dangers of Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS)”的报道

作者：Julia Christian

日期：2018.09.06

原文链接：https://www.euractiv.com/section/climate-environment/opinion/the-inherent-dangers-of-bioenergy-with-carbon-capture-and-storage-beccs/

The assumption that BECCS at scale can provide carbon dioxide removals is wrong. At worst it could even accelerate climate change, writes Julia Christian. [Jay Huang / Flickr]

大规模BECCS可以减排二氧化碳的假设是错误的。 Julia Christian写道，最坏的情况甚至可能加速气候变化 [Jay Huang / Flickr]

As the European Commission considers its long-term strategy to cut EU greenhouse gas emissions, Julia Christian says they must reject an unproven and dangerous technology in favour of protecting and restoring natural forests.

由于欧盟委员考虑其减少欧盟温室气体排放的长期战略， Julia Christian表示，他们拒绝一项未经证实和危险的技术，转而支持保护和恢复天然林。

Julia Christian is a campaigner at forest and rights NGO Fern.

Julia Christian是森林和权利非政府组织Fern的活动家。

In years to come, the summer of 2018 could be seen as a seminal moment: when climate change shifted for many from an abstract concept to a frightening reality.

在未来几年，2018年的夏天可以被看作是一个开创性的时刻：当气候变化从许多抽象概念转变为可怕的现实时。

Media outlets which were previously sceptical about global warming reversed positions, as the heatwave gripping the Northern Hemisphere saw temperatures soar inside the Arctic Circle, forest fires sweep Greece with devastating consequences, and Japan’s weather agency declare “the unprecedented levels of heat” a natural disaster.

以前对全球变暖持怀疑态度的媒体机构扭转了局势，因为北半球的热浪使得北极圈内的气温飙升，森林大火席卷希腊，带来毁灭性后果，日本气象局宣称“前所未有的高温”是一场自然灾害。

Scientists say that the “signal of climate change is unambiguous” in this summer’s blistering temperatures, a stark illustration that time is rapidly fading to limit global temperature rises to  1.5 degrees Celsius, the aim of the Paris agreement on climate change.

科学家们表示，在今年夏天气温升高的情况下，“气候变化的信号是明确的”，这是一个鲜明的例证，将全球气温上升限制在1.5摄氏度，这是巴黎气候变化协议的目标，距离该目标的时间正在逼近。

But to achieve this, cutting carbon dioxide emissions won’t be enough, say most climate scientists. They will also have to be removed from the atmosphere – so-called negative emissions. And the negative emissions proposal currently attracting the bulk of attention is Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS).

但大多数气候科学家表示，要实现这一目标，减少二氧化碳排放是不够的。 它们也必须从大气层中除去 - 即所谓的负排放。 目前吸引大量关注的负面排放提案是生物能源与碳捕集与封存（BECCS）。

In short: carbon is absorbed by growing trees or energy crops, which are burned to generate energy, then the emissions are captured from the smokestack and buried. The theory is that the more energy generated, the more carbon dioxide will be removed from the atmosphere.

简而言之：碳被生长的树木或能源作物吸收，燃烧产生能量，然后从烟囱中捕获并掩埋。 理论上说，产生的能量越多，从大气中去除的二氧化碳就越多。

Forests are crucial in salvaging the Paris goals – EU must lead the way

森林对于实现巴黎目标至关重要 - 欧盟必须引领这条道路

In addition to halting deforestation, the European Union must support efforts to allow forest regeneration and sequestering more carbon dioxide, write Heidi Hautala and Carlos Zorrinho.

Heidi Hautala和Carlos Zorrinho写道，除了停止砍伐森林外，欧盟还必须支持让森林更新和封存更多二氧化碳的努力。

The European Commission is in the midst of preparing  a long-term strategy for reducing the European Union’s greenhouse gas emissions, and its public consultation closes on October 9. The consultation specifically calls for “opinions on technological… pathways”.

欧盟委员会正在制定减少欧盟温室气体排放的长期战略，其公众咨询将于10月9日结束。该磋商会特别要求“关于技术......途径的意见”。

We believe that BECCS, particularly on large-scale – which seen as a “saviour technology” by some – must not be included. As we show in a new briefing, placing our faith in this unproven technology is loaded with dangers and uncertainties: for people, nature and the climate.

我们认为BECCS，特别是大规模的 - 被一些人视为“救世主技术” - 不得包括在内。正如我们在新的简报中所展示的那样，我们对这种未经证实的技术的信心充满了危险和不确定性：对人类，自然和气候都是不确定的。

It compounds one of the EU’s major policy failings in recent years: burning wood for energy on the flawed assumption that it’s carbon neutral.

它构成了欧盟近年来的主要政策失误之一：燃烧木材作为能源，因为它假设碳中性。

The scientific consensus that burning wood is not carbon neutral is now overwhelming. Even in a best-case scenario where bioenergy is made from ‘additional biomass sources’, carbon capture and storage (CCS) only captures emissions released from burning biomass. No mention is made by its proponents of the emissions released by the soil when a forest is logged, indirect and supply chain emissions related to biomass growth, transport, refining, capturing and storing, nor the foregone sequestration from the tree that would have grown bigger had it not been cut. These could considerably reduce the positive impact of the capture and storage of the combustion emissions.

燃烧木材不是碳中和的科学共识现在越发势不可挡。即使在最佳情况下，生物能源来自“额外的生物质来源”，碳捕获和储存（CCS）也只捕获燃烧生物质释放的排放物。支持者们并没有提到当森林被砍伐时土壤释放的碳排放，以及与生物量增长，运输，精炼，捕获和储存相关的间接和供应链排放，也没有提到如果没有砍伐的话，原本会生长的更大的树木会预先封存碳。这些可以大大减少捕获和封存燃烧排放物的积极影响。

So the assumption that BECCS at scale can provide carbon dioxide removals is wrong and at worst it could even accelerate climate change.

因此，大规模BECCS可以减排二氧化碳的假设是错误的，最坏的情况甚至可能加速气候变化。

Another major drawback is the vast amount of land that BECCS would require.

另一个主要缺点是BECCS需要的大量土地。

It’s been estimated that growing dedicated crops for BECCS would require 0.1-0.4 hectares of land per hypothetical tonne of carbon removed. The amount of land needed differs depending on the climate scenario, but one example which would give us a 50 per cent chance of meeting the aim of keeping global warming below two degrees would require the growing of biomass on a land area 1-2 times the size of India (380–700 million hectares). This would have dramatic impacts on food, water and biodiversity, turning our landscapes into monoculture plantations.

据估计，为BECCS种植专用作物，每减少1公吨的碳需要0.1-0.4公顷的土地。 所需的土地数量根据气候情况而有所不同，但一个例子可以让我们有50％的机会达到将全球变暖控制在2度以下的目标，这就要求陆地上的生物量增加到印度面积（380-700百万公顷）的1-2倍。这将对食物，水和生物多样性产生巨大影响，将我们的景观变成单一种植园。

So what could work?

那有什么用呢？

The answer is surprisingly simple. Protecting and restoring natural forests would benefit biodiversity and bring climate and social benefits. A forthcoming scientific report commissioned by a group of NGOs including Fern underlines this: revealing that, when coupled with deep emissions cuts and halting deforestation, it can limit warming to 1.5C.

答案非常简单。 保护和恢复天然林将有益于生物多样性并带来气候和社会效益。 由包括Fern在内的一些非政府组织委托撰写的即将出版的科学报告强调了这一点：揭示当与深度减排和停止砍伐森林相结合时，它可以将升温限制在1.5C。

Unlike BECCS, restoring natural forests’ climate benefits are tried and tested. Forests already store large quantities of carbon and they have been sequestering it for hundreds of millions of years.

与BECCS不同，恢复天然林的气候效益是经过试验和测试的。 森林已经储存了大量的碳，并且它们已经封存了数亿年。

If they are protected and managed with the full inclusion of those who live in and depend upon them, forests can help us achieve the targets of Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals.

如果森林受到保护和管理，使生活在森林中并依赖森林的人得到充分参与，森林可以帮助我们实现“巴黎协定”和“可持续发展目标”的目标。

Combined with deep and rapid emissions cuts and a concrete plan to halt deforestation, this ‘natural technology’ should be at the heart of the EU’s long-term decarbonisation strategy.

结合深度和快速的减排以及制止森林砍伐的具体计划，这种“自然技术”应成为欧盟长期脱碳战略的核心。

For more information about the forthcoming scientific report that provides a 1.5C compatible pathway with no reliance on BECSS, contact Julia Christian, forest and climate campaigner at Fern.

关于即将发布的不依赖于BECSS的科学报告的更多信息，请联系Fern的森林和气候活动家Julia Christian。