WP 6 Recommendation and policy measures

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This Work Package will be finalised in the coming months. The first preliminary conclusions were discussed during the meetings in April 2010 in Delhi. They are to be completed.

Summary Results
Resume of results Biosafor: Regional & Global potential of biosaline biomass:
1. A significant contribution of saline marginal lands as suppliers of renewable energy based on trees was assesed (up till 4 % = 22 Exa joules of the current global energy consumption)
The regional contribution of biosaline biomass to the regional energy market can be considerable.
The spread of saline marginal areas is concentrated in semi-arid and coastal regions.
2. The project produced a database with more information on the salt tolerance of tree species in both the juvenile and mature phases of their life cycles.
3. The project identified a number of promising but not widely used accessions for the production of woody biomass in salt affected areas. Examples are the Tamarix aphylla and the Acacia ampliceps, A. stenophylla, the Casuarina glauca and C. Obesa. Application depends on the specific biosaline systems requirements of the areas.

The project produced a regional database and a modelling instrument (SASOTER), to define the regional potential biomass production of species for saline environments. This instrument was developed and applied for the Indian situation. Due to the missing soil data for Pakistan and the lack of digitised/ geo referenced data for Bangladesh the modelling of the biomass potential was not possible within the framework of this project.

Follow-up
1. SASOTER model can be further used for other species in India or elsewhere when databases and digitization are completed
2. The promising accessions require further investigation and may lead to new species for these areas/categories of production systems.
3. Optimization of biomass production in biosaline AF-systems for (semi-)arid areas can be further realised when existing simulation models developed for humid areas can be adapted (for example WANULCAS).
4. A clearer picture needs to be gained of the effect of groundwater- ]depth on average tree growth.

Constraints
1. Technical challenges may arise from the use of biomass from salt affected areas (chlorides in biomass).
2. Apart from this constraint, which is specific for saline environments, a general constraint for farmers for growing trees is the relatively long period before a return on investment can be expected

First Recommendations
1. Land use competition between species (such as pastures – Prosopis) may be managed through better management of the invasive species. In such areas a fine tuned system can enhance productivity and improved environments for all stakeholders.
2. Governments should provide incentives like subsidies for labor, saplings, irrigation costs (as is the norm in conventional agriculture & forestry) to encourage farmers & communities to practice AF.
3. Certification systems are a valuable and proven instrument to steer developments into desirable directions.
4. Biosaline AF-systems require specific know how. Investments are required in pilots and capacity building of extension services and farmers.