Assessment of sustainable non-plantation biomass resources potential for energy in India

In India, fuelwood, crop residues and animal manure are the dominant biomass fuels, which are mostly used in the rural areas, at very low efficiencies. Industrial and municipal (urban) residues such as wastewater, municipal solid wastes (MSW), and crop residues such as rice husk and bagasse can also be used for energy generation. In this paper, the potential of energy from crop residues, animal manure, MSW, industrial wastewater and biomass fuels that can be conserved for other applications through efficiency improvement is discussed. The total potential of energy from these sources in 1997 is estimated to be equivalent to 5.14 EJ, which amounts to a little more than a-third of the total fossil fuel use in India. The energy potential in 2010 is estimated to be about 8.26 EJ.