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DESCRIPTION OF WORKIn order to achieve maximum efficiency in project implementation and to secure a continuous dissemination of results a step-by-step approach will be used during the project period. The project is therefore divided into 6 work-packages:
Detailed description of the work-packages Objectives: Activities envisaged in this work package refer to the process of project management together with ensuring communication between the project participants, the European Commission, the public and the scientific community. This work-package extends through the entire span of the research with the general objective to ensure successful progress and control of the project by developing and maintaining effective measures in project management, administration and coordination. This WP is initiated by the consortium Kick-off meeting and terminates in a workshop and international symposium organised for environmental NGO's and other potentially interested parties. In order to increase cost-efficiency all workshops and meetings will take place in Associated states, together with the management of the project website, newsgroups and the on-line chatroom (IRC). Objectives: The final goal of this work is awareness raising and the dissemination of the results among the end-users. This means that authorities, regional development agencies and the European Commission itself will receive concrete proposals for management and control actions, while the relevant local experts (of the authorities and other agencies involved) will receive the final deliverables that could really help their daily work and long term planning. Activities envisaged in this work package refer to the process of communication with the public and the scientific community, as well as to the dissemination and exploitation of the results. The work package includes both traditional ways of public awareness raising, such as hardcopy publications and state-of-the-art Internet technology, such as the use of on-line discussion forums and the setting up of well-structured website. Objectives: Encompassing a geographically vast area in Central-Eastern Europe, low-grade soil has excessively been drawn into cultivation during the past five decades. Although unprofitable from an agricultural point of view, those areas would be suitable for hosting energy forests and large-scale bio-mass development using today's state-of-the-art technology. We would like to assess the opportunity costs and rational policy choices for land management in those low-quality agricultural areas where bio-mass production could be a viable alternative source of energy for many rural communities. In this workpackage an objective decision-support methodology with multiple variables will be introduced, defined on different geographical scales, taking into account all relevant natural, environmental and economic factors. Such a decision-support tool could enable local decision-makers and stake-holders to make informed policy choices. Objectives: In some European countries like Germany, Denmark, Spain, Britain, novel energy crops are investigated as a possible biofuel crops. Since ten years the investigation is undertaken over such energy crops like Miscanthus giganteus or Switchgrass. According to European Community White Paper, EC is going to increase the amount of primary energy consumption from renewable energy sources from 5.5% (what is now) till 12% in 2010. In Central - Eastern European countries the share of renewable energy sources is estimated on about 1.5%- 2.5%. The aim of the work in WP4 is to deliver the basic data for assessment the possible scenarios of ground utilisation for energy crops growing and utilisation. Climatic conditions, energy consumption structure as well as other energy sources will be taken into account in assessment of energy crops utilisation. Objectives: There is considerable interest in the socio-economic and environmental implications of moving society towards the more widespread use of Renewable Energy Sources (RES). Especially in the case of bioenergy and energy forest plantations, the effects on the local agricultural systems will play an important role in the successful implementation of these schemes. The main objective of this Work Package is to analyse the socio-economic, agricultural and environmental aspects of energy forest development in Central - Eastern Europe, in areas where agricultural production is uneconomical. Objectives: This work package (WP6) refers to potential utilization of the energy forests planting in the areas heavily impacted by anthropogenic activities unsuitable for regular agriculture. Natural conditions (geology, biology, soil science etc.) for energy forestry will be studied through the application in the area of coal mine dump sites in Northern Bohemia (Czech Republic), which can represent many similar artificial areas where surface mining occurs (especially in Associate states). The importance of energy forests for recultivation and other aspects of these areas will be evaluated. With respect to a weak economical situation after the attenuating the coal mining in the region, potential social and economical assets have to be studied. The optimal strategy for energy forests planting in the area will be proposed.
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