Potential Climatic Effects from Different Bioenergy Production Chains based on Energy Crops Cultivated on Former Mining Sites in Viet Nam

Due to its rapid economic growth and an increasing population, Vietnam’s energy demand is increasing continuously. Already today, the energy sector is responsible for approximately 170 Mt CO2eq emissions. From this, 23% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions derive from the transport sector, corresponding to approximately 39 Mt CO2eq (Partnership on Transparency in the Paris Agreement 2017). The reason for the high emissions is Vietnam’s strong dependency from fossil fuels.
The use of renewable energy including bioenergy can contribute to mitigation of GHG emissions.

The CPEP-Project was implemented by the Independent Institute for Environmental Issues (UfU) together with Vietnamese and German project partners between 2015 and 2018. It was funded by the German Environmental Ministry under the framework of the International Climate Initiative. Its purpose was to demonstrate the feasibility of reusing closed mining sites in Vietnam for the cultivation of energy crops on a pilot scale. From 2016 to 2018, the cultivation of energy crops on three different former mining sites in Vietnam was tested on a pilot scale. The pilot sites differ in terms of location, type of mining activities, and climate conditions, including a waste rock dump from tungsten mining in Dai Tu, Thai Nguyen province, a waste rock dump from coal mining in Hon Gai, Quang Ninh province, and a site after bauxite mining in Bao Lam, Lam Dong province. On each of these pilot sites a different combination of energy crops was grown, including fast growing tree species (mainly acacia), sweet sorghum and cassava, specific grass species (VA 06), and other energy crops.