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Principal Investigator

Objective

The purpose of this study is to identify the current bottlenecks in the use of woody biomass heat with local currency, and then to propose evidence-based system conditions that enhance mutual synergy.

(1) Bottleneck of woody biomass heat utilization and policy proposal by acceptability study
To clarify the bottleneck of the current woody biomass heat policy and the acceptability of woody biomass heat among consumers, and propose incentives to promote the heat utilization.

(2) Bottlenecks and Policy Recommendations for Forest Resources and Woody Fuel Use
From a survey of upstream (logging and removing) to downstream (chipping and heat utilization), to identify issues at each site, clarify bottlenecks, and propose policies to resolve these issues.

(3) Evaluation of social value and benefits from synergy between woody biomass heat and community currency
Establish a generalized evaluation method to assess the social value and impact of the use of woody biomass heat and community currency, and use it as evidence to propose a social system that creates synergy effects.

(4) Proposal for sustainable management and circulation design of community currencies
Design a sustainable management approach and distribution design for community currency, and make policy recommendations to solve both the bottleneck of woody biomass heat utilization and the bottleneck of community currency.

Outline

More than half of the energy of woody biomass is heat energy, but there is no effective policy to promote the use of this heat in Japan. However, in our energy demand structure, the demand for thermal energy is greater than that for electrical energy, so the widespread use of heat is essential for a decarbonized society.

The use of woody biomass as firewood, chips, and pellets for heat utilization is expected to not only have a cross-sectoral local economic circulation effect in forestry, processing, and energy (economy), but also to build good social capital and strengthen resilience through the construction of a small-scale distributed energy system (society). In addition, woody biomass is expected to make a significant contribution to forest conservation and decarbonization (environment). However, there is no established evaluation method for the social value and impact of woody biomass heat utilization on the entire region.

In this project, we will clarify the policy bottlenecks that have prevented the spread of woody biomass heat, visualize the benefits of woody biomass heat for the entire region, and propose a policy using community currency as a means of providing incentives for the spread of woody biomass heat. Community currency is not only a means of trading goods and services, but also a tool that can create new relationships among users and rebuild shared values. By combining woody biomass heat, we will explore system conditions that enhance mutual synergy.