Bamboo: an overlooked biomass resource?

Bamboo is the common term applied to a broad group (1250 species) of large woody grasses, ranging from 10 cm to 40m in height. Already in everyday use by about 2.5 billion people, mostly for fiber and food within Asia, bamboo may have potential as a bioenergy or fiber crop for niche markets, althoug h some reports of its high productivity seem to be exaggerated. Literature on bamboo productivity is scarce, with most reports coming from various par ts of Asia. There is little evidence overall that bamboo is significantly m ore productive than many other candidate bioenergy crops, but it shares a n umber of desirable fuel characteristics with certain other bioenergy feedst ocks, such as low ash content and alkali index. Its heating value is lower than many woody biomass feedstocks but higher than most agricultural residu es, grasses and straws. Although non-fuel applications of bamboo biomass ma y be actually more profitable than energy recovery, there may also be poten tial for co-production of bioenergy together with other bamboo processing. A significant drawback is the difficulty of selective breeding, given the l ack of knowledge of flowering physiology. Further research is also required on propagation techniques, establishment and stand management, and mechani zed harvesting needs to be developed. Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.