At the beginning of February, negotiations are planned at the European Union (EU) level regarding a point in the Renewable Energy Directive that introduces several new restrictions on the use of forest biomass, Mārtiņš Ailts, Executive Director for Project Affairs of the Forest Owners Association of Latvia (LMĪB), told the LETA agency.

The LMĪB emphasises that these amendments are concerning for the forestry sector as they contain new restrictive conditions. These include definitions of what counts as a renewable and sustainable resource, support conditions for heating installations that use 'primary forest biomass', and limits on the volumes of biomass that member states will be permitted to count as renewable energy—that is, energy that will not be included in the emissions balance and will not be subject to CO₂ tax.

The Association notes that the directive plans a new definition for the term 'primary woody biomass', proposing that it be defined as all roundwood felled or otherwise harvested and removed. 'This includes all wood obtained from harvesting, all wood removed from the forest, including naturally dead wood and wood obtained as a result of logging, as well as wood obtained from felling and forest management. It includes all wood obtained with or without bark, including wood obtained as roundwood, split, roughly processed or otherwise, including, for example, branches, roots, stumps and coppice if they are felled, as well as wood in a raw or rounded form,' the LMĪB quotes the plans. In contrast, secondary forest biomass is that which is obtained during the primary processing of wood, such as wood chips converted into pellets.

'The draft project provides for restrictions regarding the volume of 'primary woody biomass' and also support for investments in the use of this raw material,' the Association states.

Meanwhile, there are no plans to restrict the use of firewood in households, the Association notes. 'The directive does not contain provisions relating to restrictions for individual households; however, the volume of wood fuel consumed by households will be included in the national total balance of renewable energy resources. If this exceeds the volume recorded between 2017-2022 regarding biomass use, the excess portion will be counted towards emissions. In that case, the government will have to decide which wood fuel consumers should be subject to the CO₂ tax for the portion that exceeds the CO₂ neutral volume, and how to administer this. In order not to place households using individual heating and end consumers of district heating systems in an unequal position, a solidarity approach will need to be introduced to cover the payment of the CO₂ tax for the portion that exceeds the permitted volume,' the LMĪB assesses.