Bioenergy Criteria under the Climate Bonds Standard

Aug 2022

Revision

Date

Summary of changes

1.3

1 August 2022

Clarification that Bioenergy ‘Storage’ is within scope as supporting
infrastructure – i.e., providing the Bioenergy meets the overarching
criteria (with Storage included in LCAs).
Addition of Supporting Infrastructure section (section 3.4) which waspreviously absent.

1.2

23 March 2021

Feedstock certification best practice standards list updated to include
CBI Agriculture criteria following analysis that it meets requirements
in appendix 2.
Removal of indication that a part 2 might be developed (that could
have been for woody biomass feedstocks). This will not now be
done.

1.1

28 July 2020

Swap ‘bioenergy’ to ‘electricity’ in table 2

1

July 2019

Publication of first criteria

August 2022

Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

Definitions
Bioenergy assets and projects: Assets and projects relating to the acquisition, installation and /or management of bioenergy facilities, which might include: biofuel preparation and pre-treatment
facilities, bio-refinery facilities, electricity, heating and cooling facilities using biofuel/biomass.
Plus, assets and projects related to dedicated infrastructure and/or the production of dedicatedcomponents for these facilities.
Bioenergy: Energy generated from the conversion of solid, liquid and gaseous products derived
from biomass.1
Biofuel: Liquid fuels derived from biomass. They include ethanol, a liquid produced fromfermenting any biomass type high in carbohydrates, and biodiesel, a diesel- equivalent processedfuel made from both vegetable oil and animal fats.2
Biogas: A mixture of methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2) used as fuel and produced bybacterial degradation of organic matter or through gasification of biomass.3
Biomass: Any organic matter, i.e. biological material, available on a renewable basis. It includes
feedstock derived from animals or plants, such as wood and agricultural crops, and organic wastefrom municipal and industrial sources.4
Climate Bonds Initiative (CBI): An investor-focused not-for-profit organisation, promoting largescale investments that will deliver a global low carbon and climate resilient economy. The Initiative
seeks to develop mechanisms to better align the interests of investors, industry and government
to catalyse investments at a speed and scale sufficient to avoid dangerous climate change andcope with unavoidable climate change.
Green Bond: A Green Bond is one in which the proceeds are allocated to green projects andlabelled accordingly by the issuer. The vast majority of these green projects are focused on
climate change mitigation or adaptation, but there is a small share of the market, which also funds
green, non-climate projects, such as green spaces.
Certified Climate Bond: A green bond that is certified by the Climate Bonds Standard Board asmeeting the requirements of the Climate Bonds Standard, as attested through independent
verification.
Climate Bonds Standard (CBS): A screening tool for investors and governments that allows themto identify green bonds where they can be confident that the funds are being used to deliver
climate change solutions. This may be through climate mitigation impact and/ or climate
adaptation or resilience impact. The CBS is made up of two parts: the parent standard (Climate
Bonds Standard v2.1) and a suite of sector specific eligibility Criteria. The parent standard covers
1

IEA/FAO (2017). How 2 Guide for Bioenergy Roadmap Development and Implementation.

2

Ibid.
Ibid.

3
4

Ibid.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

the certification process and pre- and post-issuance requirements for all certified bonds,
regardless of the nature of the capital projects. The sector-specific Criteria detail specificrequirements for assets identified as falling under that specific sector.
Climate Bonds Standard Board (CBSB): A board of independent members that collectively
represents $34 trillion of assets under management. The CBSB is responsible for approving i)
Revisions to the Climate Bond Standard, including the adoption of additional sector Criteria, ii)
Approved verifiers, and iii) Applications for Certification of a bond under the Climate Bonds
Standard.
Climate Bond Certification: allows the issuer to use the Climate Bond Certification Mark in relation
to that bond. Climate Bond Certification is provided once the Climate Bonds Standard Board issatisfied the bond conforms with the Climate Bonds Standard.
Technical Working Group (TWG): A group of key experts from academia, international agencies,
industry and NGOs convened by the Climate Bonds Initiative. The TWG develops Sector Criteria- detailed technical criteria for the eligibility of projects and assets as well as guidance on the
tracking of eligibility status during the term of the bond. Their draft recommendations are refined
through engagement with finance industry experts in convened Industry Working Groups andthrough public consultation.
Industry Working Group (IWG): A group made up of potential green bond issuers, potential
investors in bioenergy related green bonds, financial intermediaries in the bond issuance process,and Climate Bonds Standard approved verifiers who are responsible for assessing whether bonds
meet the Criteria. The purpose of the IWG is to advise and review the Criteria being developedby the TWG, testing the practicality of the Criteria for green bond market participants and providing
recommendations for further improvement.

Acknowledgement
We would like to thank all members of the Bioenergy Technical Working Group and Industry
Working Group for their time and valuable expertise that helped shape these Criteria. A full list of
all TWG and IWG members can be found in Appendix 1 and on our website.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

Table of Contents
Definitions ................................................................................................................................... 1
1.

Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 5
1.1
The Climate Bonds Standard .................................................................................................. 5
1.2
The need for Bioenergy Criteria.............................................................................................. 5
1.3
Assets and projects in scope for the Criteria .......................................................................... 6
1.4
Key elements to the Criteria ................................................................................................... 6
1.5
This document and supplementary information available ..................................................... 6
1.6
Revisions to these Criteria ...................................................................................................... 7

2.

Potentially eligible bioenergy assets and projects................................................................ 8

3.

Eligibility Criteria ............................................................................................................... 11
3.1
Overview of the Eligibility Criteria ........................................................................................ 11
3.2
Mitigation Requirement of the Criteria ................................................................................ 11
3.3
Adaptation and Resilience Requirement .............................................................................. 13
3.4
Supporting Infrastructure ..................................................................................................... 17

4.

Reporting Requirements ................................................................................................... 17
4.1
Reporting to demonstrate compliance with the Criteria described in Section 3 ................... 17
4.2
Additional reporting encouraged, but not mandatory for certification ................................ 18●

Appendix 1 Bioenergy Working Group Member ................................................................ 19●

Appendix 2 Determining the robustness of best practice standards .................................. 21

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

1.

Introduction

1.1

The Climate Bonds Standard

Investor demand for Green Bonds and Climate Bonds is strong, and will increase in line with thedelivery of quality products into the market. However, investor questions about the credibility ofgreen labelling are also growing. Standards, assurance & certification is essential to improve
confidence and transparency, which in turn will enable further strong growth in the market.
The Climate Bonds Standard and Certification Scheme is an easy-to-use screening tool thatprovides a clear signal to investors and intermediaries on the climate integrity of Certified Climate
Bonds.
A key part of the Standard is a suite of sector-specific eligibility Criteria. Each Sector Criteria setsclimate change benchmarks for that sector that are used to screen assets and capital projects sothat only those that have climate integrity, either through their contribution to climate mitigation,
and/or to adaptation and resilience to climate change, will be certified. Where a bondencompasses a mixed portfolio of assets across several sectors, each sub-category of assets will
be subject to the relevant Sector Criteria for those assets.
The Sector Criteria are determined through a multi-stakeholder engagement process, including
Technical and Industry Working Groups, convened and managed by the Climate Bonds Initiative,
and are subject to public consultation. Finally, they are reviewed and approved by the Climate
Bonds Standard Board.
The second key part of the Climate Bonds Standard is the overarching Climate Bonds Standard
available at https://www.climatebonds.net/standards/standard_download. This gives the common
fund management and reporting requirements that all Certified Climate Bonds must meet, in
addition to meeting the appropriate specific Sector Criteria.

1.2

The need for Bioenergy Criteria

Bioenergy has the potential to be a key mitigation technology due to its flexibility as a generation
technology as a well as a form of solid, liquid or gaseous fuel. By replacing fossil fuels, the use of
biomass/biofuel can reduce GHG emissions in the power, heat and transport sectors, while thebioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) 5 is considered as a negative emissions
technology to achieve 2-degree or below global warming target. However, in some circumstances,
bioenergy can have no net positive impact, or even a negative impact on climate change
mitigation and/ or on the resilience of ecosystems to climate change through changes to water
quality, biodiversity and soil carbon, etc.
To ensure consistency and credibility for those wishing to issue or invest with confidence incredible green bonds linked to bioenergy, it is therefore necessary to determine robust and5

BECCS refers to bioenergy facilities combined with carbon capture and storage technologies so that the carbon
emissions generated during bioenergy combustion or manufacture of biofuels are separated and then injected into
long-term geological storage. Source: IEA (2017). Energy Technology Perspectives 2017.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Documenttransparent screening Criteria, which will ensure that any bioenergy projects and assets linked touse of proceeds of Certified Climate Bonds are ‘climate compatible’ (i.e. are sufficiently low carbon
and enabling greater climate adaptation and resilience in a world of unavoidable climate change,in line with the goals of the Paris Agreement).
The Bioenergy Criteria are intended to provide such robust and transparent screening Criteria forthe green bond market.

1.3

Assets and projects in scope for the Criteria

These Criteria apply to assets and projects relating to:●Facilities producing biomass/biofuel● Heating/cooling, and co-generation facilities using biofuel/biomass● Bio-refinery facilities● Supporting infrastructure associated with the above
Further details of the scope of the Criteria are in Section 2, Table 1.

1.4

Key elements to the Criteria

As a general principle, bonds will meet the requirements of the Climate Bonds Standard if theassociated use of proceeds:●●

Promote low carbon infrastructure;
Promote adaptation and resilience to climate change both in respect of assets and projects
themselves and the systems in which they are located.

Complete details of the requirements in respect of Bioenergy assets and projects are detailed in
Section 3 of this document. The reporting requirements associated with these requirements are
summarised in Section 4.1.
In addition, in order to promote best practice as regards transparency over use of proceeds,
issuers are also encouraged to disclose further information as detailed in Section 4.2 of thisdocument. However, this is not mandatory for certification.

1.5

This document and supplementary information available

This document details:● The current scope of bioenergy assets and projects eligible for certification under the
Climate Bonds Standard – Section 2;● The Mitigation and Adaptation & Resilience Requirements that these assets and projects
must meet to be eligible for inclusion in a Certified Climate Bond – Section 3;● Mandatory and recommended disclosure – Section 4
Supplementary information available in addition to this document include:
1. Bioenergy Criteria Brochure: a 2-page summary of the Bioenergy Criteria.
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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

2. Bioenergy Criteria Background Paper: full background to the process of determining these
Criteria, including issues raised and discussed by the TWG, and arguments and rationale forthe approaches and decision taken.
3. Climate Bonds Standard V2.1: the umbrella document laying out the common requirementsthat all Certified Climate Bonds need to meet, in addition to the sector-specific Criteria (V2.1
is the most recent update version).
4. Climate Bonds Standard & Certification Scheme Brochure: an overview of the purpose,context and requirements of the Climate Bonds Standard & Certification Scheme.
For more information on the Climate Bonds Initiative and the Climate Bond Standard &Certification Scheme, see https://www.climatebonds.net For the documents listed above, see
https://www.climatebonds.net/standard/bioenergy

1.6

Revisions to these Criteria

These Criteria will be reviewed regularly, at which point the TWG will take stock of issuances thatarise in the early stages and any developments in improved methodologies and data that canincrease the climate integrity of future bond issuances. As a result, the Criteria are likely to berefined over time, as more information becomes available. However, certification will not be
withdrawn retroactively from bonds certified under earlier versions of the Criteria.

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2.

Potentially eligible bioenergy assets and projects

The Bioenergy Criteria use a feedstock-neutral approach and do not express a preference forcertain feedstocks. This means that the Criteria cover bioenergy generated from different typesof feedstock, including residues, energy crops and lignocellulosic biomass such as straw, withthree exceptions:● Wood (and all woody biomass)● Third generation biofuels (algae)6● Biodegradable Municipal Solid Waste (MSW), including sewage sludge and food waste
Therefore, ‘eligible feedstock’ for the purposes of these Criteria includes all feedstocks except for
the three exceptions noted above.
Table 1 presents bioenergy assets and projects that might be included in a Certified Climate Bond,subject to meeting the Criteria described in Section 3. Table 1 is provided for illustrative purposes
and is not an exhaustive list of every possible bioenergy asset or project that would be eligible.
The assets in Table 1 are eligible for inclusion in a Certified Climate Bond if they meet:● The Mitigation requirement (see Section 3.2 for details); and● The Adaptation and Resilience requirement (see Section 3.3 for details).
That is, bioenergy assets and projects need to meet both Mitigation, and Adaptation & Resilience
requirements of the Bioenergy Criteria to be eligible for certification under the Climate Bonds
Standard.
Table 1 provides signposting as follows:● A green circle indicates assets or projects that automatically meet the Mitigation and/or
Adaptation and Resilience requirements of the Criteria.
● An orange square indicates that the eligibility of these assets or projects is conditional on
meeting specific requirements per the Mitigation and/ or Adaptation and Resilience
requirements of the Criteria.
● A red diamond indicates that these assets or projects are not eligible for inclusion in a
Certified Climate Bond under any circumstances.
Table 2 demonstrates assets and projects that are not covered by the Bioenergy Criteria.

6

Future iterations of these Criteria will reconsider the inclusion of algae biofuels when the technology and market ismore developed and better information is available.

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Table 1 Illustrative assets and projects eligible for Climate Bonds Certification under the Bioenergy Criteria

Asset type

Example use of proceeds

Mitigation
requirement

Adaptation &Resilience
requirement

Facilities
Fuel preparation process facilities such as those for
producing
drying, size reduction, pelletisation or briquetting, andbiofuel/biomass pyrolysis
using feedstock
Pre-treatment facilities such as those forin scope
thermochemicalliquefaction,
pyrolysis
andgasification
Bio-refinery facilities which produce biomass-based
products for energy purpose (power and heat). They
may also co-produce bio-mass based products for
non-energy use (such as food and feed ingredients,
pharmaceuticals, chemicals, materials and minerals),with ≥ 50% biomass-based products produced forenergy use.
EnergyHeating/cooling, and co-generation facilities using
production
biofuel/biomass
facilities using
feedstockinTraditional biomass assets or projects, such as ascopethree-stone fire for heating and cooking in theresidential sector.7
Supporting
infrastructure

Dedicated transmission lines frombioenergy facility to the main gridaneligible

Dedicated bioenergy storage facilities
Infrastructure that is built to power the extraction or
distribution of fossil fuels.

Table 2 Assets and projects not covered by the Bioenergy Criteria

Assets/projects not covered

Explanation for exclusion

Facilities producing Electricity frombiodegradable municipal solid waste(MSW), including sewage sludge and foodwaste.

Covered by the Water Infrastructure Criteria and the
Waste Management Criteria under the Climate Bonds
Standard respectively.

Land and land management assets for thecultivation/ production of feedstocks andbiomass for bioenergy

Covered under appropriate sector criteria, e.g. Forestry fortimber, Agriculture (in development) for various otherfeedstocks.

7

Traditional biomass has very low conversion efficiency (10%-20%), with inefficient combustion leading to harmful
emissions with serious health implications.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

Transportation assets to transport biomass
to pre-treatment or bioenergy or biorefinery facility and vehicles used in theprocess of the production or transportationof bioenergy, e.g. flexi-fuel vehicles, or thatrun on biofuels.

Covered by the Climate Bonds Standard Land Transport
Criteria.

Facilities for the manufacture of ships andaircraft that run on biofuels, and those
ships and aircraft themselves

Covered by the Climate Bonds Standard Shipping Criteria(in development) and Aviation Criteria (to be developed).
Noting though that these Bioenergy Criteria cover biofuel
used for shipping and aviation.

Blending facilities mixing with biofuel andfossil fuel

These facilities are beyond the control of bioenergy
production. The Climate Bonds Standard will keep
watching this space and set up requirements for blending
facilities with further investigation in transport sector.

Facilities dedicated to the production of
biomaterials (food, feed, chemicals, etc.)

Facilities where less than 50% of input feedstock is used
to produce bioenergy, biofuel and/or biomass will not be
eligible under the current iteration of the Bioenergy
Criteria, due to the challenges to determining appropriate
eligibility Criteria for such projects and facilities.

Infrastructure that is built to power the
extraction or distribution of fossil fuels.

Do not qualify under the standard.

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3.

Eligibility Criteria

3.1

Overview of the Eligibility Criteria

The Bioenergy Criteria has two sets of requirements:● Mitigation Requirement – details in 3.2 (bioenergy facilities)● Adaptation and Resilience Requirement – details in 3.3
Figure 1 summarises the requirements under each of these headings, which are explained in
more detail in Sections 3.2 and 3.3.
Section 3.4 (Supporting Infrastructure) makes clear that all dedicated infrastructure for bioenergy
are eligible providing the bioenergy meets the criteria in 3.2 and 3.3.
Note that when the bond portfolio includes several separately identifiable projects or groups ofassets, these Criteria must be met for each separately identified project or asset grouping. Bondissuers should determine and justify these project boundaries or asset groupings.
Figure 1: Summary of eligibility Criteria

3.2

Mitigation Requirement of the Criteria

For the assets and projects linked to the bond, issuers are required to:
1. Meet the established GHG emissions threshold; and2. Reduce the risk of indirect land use impact (iLUC).

3.2.1. Requirement 1: Meet the established GHG emissions threshold
For facilities producing biomass/biofuel as a final product, including liquid biofuel, solid andgaseous biomass for heating and co-generation, and biofuel for transport, the biomass/biofuel
produced needs to meet specific GHG emissions thresholds in terms of gCO 2e/MJ (primaryenergy) (Table 3).

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

For heating/cooling, and co-generation (combined heat and power, CHP) facilities using
biofuel/biomass, the biofuel/biomass being used needs to meet specific GHG emissions
thresholds in terms of gCO2e/MJ (Table 3), and the facilities are required to achieve energy
conversion efficiency of 80%. Note that CHP facilities need to meet requirements when they are
in CHP mode.
Table 3 provides the summary of these thresholds. The rationale of determining these specificthresholds can be found in the Bioenergy Criteria Background Paper Section 4.3.3 – 4.3.7.
Table 3 Summary of the GHG emissions thresholds for different asset types

Asset type

Thresholds for biofuel/biomass
produced/used (primary energy)

Energy efficiency thresholds

Facilities producing liquid biofuel, solidand gaseous biomass for heating andco-generation

16.0gCO2e/MJ

N/A

Facilities producing biofuel fortransport

18.8gCO2e/MJ

N/A

Heating/cooling, and co-generation
facilities using biofuel/biomass

16.0gCO2e/MJ

80%

To demonstrate they meet these threshold, issuers are required to conduct a life cycle
assessment (LCA) of GHG emissions from their bioenergy.
The scope of the LCA should include:● Feedstock production● Feedstock processing● Biofuel/bioenergy production● Biofuel storage and blending● Intermediate and final transport steps: transportation of feedstock to processing facilities
to fuel production facilities, and transportation of fuel to the point of consumption
For facilities producing both biomass-based products for energy purpose (power and heat), andfor non-energy use (such as food and feed ingredients, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, materials
and minerals), issuers are required to allocate GHG emissions to the biomass for energy purpose
based on energy content of the biomass-based products. For such facilities, only the biomass forenergy purpose needs to meet the GHG emissions thresholds detailed in Table 3 above. That is,at this time, there is no additional GHG emissions thresholds for biomass products for non-energy
use. However, users of these Criteria are reminded that if biomass products for energy use
accounts for less than 50% of feedstock inputs then the facility is not certifiable under these
Criteria.
Issuers are required to use one of the five tools in Table 4 below for GHG emissions calculation.

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Table 4 Endorsed GHG Calculation Tools

Name
BIOGRACE I8
BIOGRACE II9
RSB GHG Calculator10
UK Solid and Gaseous
Biomass Carbon Calculator11
GREET12
RenovaCalc13

Technical scope
Liquid biofuels
Biomass for electricity, heating and cooling
Liquid biofuels
Solid biomass and biogas used for heat andelectricity generation
Alternative fuels in transport
Ethanol, biodiesel, aviation biokerosene andbiogas from waste

OriginEU
EUInternational
UK
US
BrazilUsing other tools is not a viable option, issuers may not use other tools (including bespoke tools)
to calculate GHG emissions. If there are extenuating circumstances which mean this is notpossible, please contact Climate Bonds Initiative to discuss the options available.

3.2.2. Requirement 2: Reducing the risk of indirect land use impact
Bioenergy facilities must either:● Be certified under the RSB low indirect land use change (iLUC) optional module 14 todemonstrate that they have low indirect land use impact; or● Provide evidence and documentation to demonstrate that they meet low iLUC risk
biomass criteria and compliance indicators under the RSB optional module, i.e.:- Yield increase: issuers demonstrate that source feedstock for the facility is produced
through an increase in yield compared to a reference date, without any additional land
conversion. The biomass that is produced above the baseline scenario is eligible.
- Unused/degraded land: issuers demonstrate that source feedstock for the facility is
produced from land that was not previously cultivated or was not considered arable
land.
- Use of waste / residues: issuers demonstrate that the raw material used is derived
from existing supply chains and does not require dedicated production out of arable
land
Details of the RSB iLUC model can be found here: http://rsb.org/the-rsb-standard/standarddocuments/low-iluc/

3.3

Adaptation and Resilience Requirement

For the assets and projects linked to the bond, issuers are required to:
1. Conduct a climate risk assessment and have an adaptation plan where high risks are
identified – assessed via the Adaptation and Resilience Checklist; and8

http://www.biograce.net/home

9

Ibid.
http://rsb.org/services-products/ghg-calculator/

1011

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/publications-and-updates/uk-solid-and-gaseous-biomass-carbon-calculator

12

https://greet.es.anl.gov/

13

http://biofutureplatform.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/RenovaBio-Mechanism-Policy-and-Instruments.pdf

14

Or using the Etanol Mais Verde Protocol if the potential project is an ethanol project in Sao Paulo State, Brazil.

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2. Demonstrate that their source feedstocks are compliant with established and approved
best practice standards for the industry to make sure feedstock production isenvironmentally sustainable and climate resilient; and3. Identify food security risk, if any; and have a plan to address it when the risk is significant.
The Adaptation and Resilience Checklist is complementary to compliance with the best practicestandards as currently these standards do not explicitly address climate risks nor require climate
risk mitigation.

3.3.1. Requirement 1: Adaptation & Resilience Checklist
The checklist (Table 5) is a tool to verify that the issuer has implemented sufficient processes andplans in the design, planning and decommissioning phases of the asset or project to ensure thatthe operation and construction is appropriately adaptive and resilient to climate change and also
supports the adaptation and resilience of other stakeholders in the surrounding ecosystem.
All elements of this checklist must be addressed with appropriate evidence that theserequirements are being met, or are not applicable in respect of the specific assets and projects
linked to the bond. It is expected that this evidence will encompass a range of assessment andimpact reports and associated data, including but not limited to those reports required to meetnational and local licensing and approval processes. This might include Development Consent
Orders, Environmental Impact Assessments, Vulnerability Assessments and associated
Adaptation Plans.
Table 5 Checklist for evaluating the Issuer’s Adaptation & Resilience performance in respect of a bioenergy
facility
Item
Proof
Overallgiven
assessment
Section 1: The issuer identifies the climate related risks and vulnerabilities to the asset/ site
Processes are in place (as part of both the asset design and ongoing management) toassess key risks to the assets from a changing climate.
These key risks should include the following, plus any others felt to be of concern for theoperation of these assets. The risks should be identified and interpreted in terms of the
impact on the asset and the related effects for the business – e.g. impact on operating
feasibility and schedules and potential system outages, impact on maintenancerequirements etc.
N.B. This list taken from World Banks Climate and Disaster Risk Assessment Tool
● Temperature changes, and extremes in temperature● Extreme precipitation and flooding● Drought● Sea level rise and storm surge● Strong winds
How these affect the asset or site in question will be highly variable and will be for theissuer to identify and relate to their operations. These assessments should use climate
information, modelling and scenarios from a peer reviewed source.
This assessment should be done regularly. The frequency of the assessment will dependon the nature of the climate related risks and vulnerabilities, and should be specified by
the issuer and reporting against in subsequent annual reporting.

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Section 2: The issuer identifies the impacts in larger context (spatially and temporally) beyond the asset/site (i.e. theimpacts of the linked assets and projects on the broader ecosystem and stakeholders in that ecosystem)
Processes are in place (as part of both the asset design and ongoing management) toassess the impact of the bioenergy asset on the climate resilience of other stakeholders
in the social, economic and environmental system in which it operates and how to mitigate
or reduce any negative impacts
These assessments address:● Any ways in which bioenergy facilities might affect the climate resilience of otherusers/stakeholders?
● Any ways in which bioenergy facilities improve the adaptation capacity of otherusers/stakeholders?
For example, they may include:● Impact on water quality and quantity for other users in the basin● Waste and pollution emitted● Fire hazards
Section 3: The issuer has designed and implemented strategies to mitigate and adapt to these climate risks andvulnerabilities to the underlying assets and projects and the broader ecosystem and its stakeholders.
An adaptation plan has been designed and is being implemented to address the risks
identified in assessments above
The issuer has designed or amended investment and maintenance plans for the assets
or projects and the broader ecosystem and its stakeholders. This is to ensure that theasset and its scheduled maintenance is sufficient to cope with the ongoing impacts ofclimate change and a plan has been established to govern how they approach emergency
maintenance needs arising from sudden climate change impacts (e.g. extreme storms)
The issue has training, capacity and governance arrangements in place for how theorganization will deal with the impacts of exception events (e.g. droughts, floods, severe
pollution events, extreme storms, winds etc.)
The issuer has monitoring and reporting systems and processes to identify high risk
scenarios
The issuer has contingency plans to address disruption to operations or loss of the asset
and any resulting broader environmental or social damage
The issuer has processes for feeding risk assessment back into decision making.
The issuer has a budget allocated to implementing the adaptation plan and has a named
member of staff responsible for its implementation.
The issuer complies with any existing broader or higher-level adaption plans, such as
NAPAs.

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3.3.2. Requirement 2: Feedstocks certified under approved best practice standards
Issuers are required to demonstrate that they are sourcing feedstock that is produced in anenvironmentally sustainable way and therefore promotes climate resilience. They have two
options for how they do this.
Option A – Feedstocks used are certified under one of the following, pre-approved best practicestandards:● RSB● RTRS● FSC● ISCC Plus
● CBI Agriculture Criteria
Certification of all source feedstocks must be maintained for the full term of the bond.
The Bioenergy TWG will check every two years whether there are other standards or schemesthat should be included in the list of pre-approved best practice standards for these Criteria.
Option B – Feedstocks are certified under a standard or a similar scheme where issuer can prove
the standard has sufficient requirements and thus is robust.

In cases where certification of feedstock inputs under one of the pre-approved best practicestandards is not a viable option, issuers will be able to demonstrate to the verifiers compliancewith the Criteria using other standard or certification scheme.
Under this option, issuers are required to provide evidence that the proposed standard/scheme
they use has sufficient requirement about environmental impacts and governance. This means
the issuer needs to check the proposed standard against Table 6 in Appendix 2, which is used by
the Bioenergy TWG to evaluate the robustness of the best practice standards, in order todemonstrate the proposed standard sufficiently covers the requirements in Table 6.
The Bioenergy TWG will review the evidence provided and decide whether the standards orscheme used by the issuer is robust and sufficient to cover environmental and governance issues,
and make decision on whether to approve the standard proposed by the issuer as one of theapproved best practice standards. Once approved, issuer will be able to use the certification
against the proposed standard to demonstrate the compliance with climate change adaptation
and resilience requirements under the Bioenergy Criteria.
Again, where approved, certification of all source feedstocks must be maintained for the full termof the bond.

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3.3.3. Requirement 3: Addressing food security risk
The requirement for addressing food security risk is based on RSB Food Security Assessment
Guidelines.15
Issuers are required to first evaluate food security at national level by checking latest International
Food Policy and Research Institute’s Global Hunger Index (GHI) 16 to see whether their sourcing
feedstock are produced in food insecure nations. If the feedstock production is located in a country
with low or moderate ranking on the GHI, there is no further requirement.
Otherwise, the issuer needs to assess whether the production of the sourcing feedstock is likely
to have impacts on food security, and to establish corresponding mitigation and enhancement
measures if the impacts are significant. Issuers can follow guidelines such as RSB Food Security
Assessment Guidelines and FAO’s Bioenergy and Food Security Assessment 17, or any otherrobust and publicly available guidance.
Note that there is no need for issuers whose feedstock already obtained certification from RSB(which covers food security issues), to meet this requirement. In this case, verifiers only need toverify that the issuer’s feedstock is all certified under RSB.

3.4

Supporting Infrastructure

All supporting infrastructure (e.g., storage infrastructure) demonstrated to be dedicated tobioenergy is eligible for certification provided the bioenergy itself meet the overarching criteria(3.2 and 3.3).

4.

Reporting Requirements

4.1

Reporting to demonstrate compliance with the Criteria described in Section 3

In accordance with the Climate Bonds Standard, it is the issuers responsibility to provide to theapproved verifier the information necessary to demonstrate compliance with each requirement of
the Criteria. Per the requirements outlined above, it is therefore necessary for the issuer to provide
the approved verifier with:● Life cycle assessment (LCA) of GHG emissions of biofuel/biomass produced/used,
including scope, tool(s), GHG emissions allocation methodology, and the result of GHG
emissions.
● Energy efficiency of facilities (only applicable for heating/cooling, and co-generation
facilities using biofuel/biomass).

15

http://rsb.org/the-rsb-standard/rsb-standard-tools-guidance/impact-assessment-guide/16

http://ghi.ifpri.org

17

http://www.fao.org/energy/bioenergy/bioenergy-and-food-security/assessment/en/

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document● Certification against the RSB iLUC module or evidence and documentation to demonstrate
the compliance with the criteria under the module.
● Assessment against the Adaptation & Resilience Checklist.
● Certification of the feedstock against one of the approved best practice standards; orassessment of the proposed standard/scheme against Table 6 in Appendix 2, andcertification of the feedstock against the proposed standard/scheme.
● Information about the GHI ranking of the country where the feedstock production is, andif applicable, assessment of impacts on food security and the corresponding mitigation
plan.

4.2

Additional reporting encouraged, but not mandatory for certification

In the interests of transparency and disclosure, issuers of Certified Climate Bonds are encouraged
to publically disclose the following in respect of the assets and use of proceeds incorporated inthat issuance. This is for transparency purpose only. There is no need for verifier to check thisinformation.
●
●
●
●
●
●
●

Project location and size, including description of ecosystem in proximity to planned
installations;
Projected lifespan of the asset/project;
Key stakeholders involved, including other users of the area and surrounding area (sea,land or air depending on what is applicable) of the facility(ies);
Description of project activities including details on installation, operation anddecommissioning activities;
Expected/current facility capacity and generation during and after the life of the bond;
Details of where the energy generated is being fed into, and estimated impact on grid mix;
The planning standards, environmental regulations and other regulations that the project
has been required to comply with.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document● Appendix 1 Bioenergy Working Group Member
Bioenergy Technical Working Group (TWG) Members
Round 2 development• Dr. Ausilio Bauen, Director, E4Tech.
• Barbara Bramble, Vice President, International Conservation and Corporate Strategies,
National Wildlife Federation.
• Aziz Elbehri, Senior Economist, Trade and Markets Division, Food & Agriculture
Organisation (FAO).
• Dr Birka Wicke, Assistant Professor, Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development Energy & Resource, Utrecht University.
• Jack (John) N Saddler, Professor, Department of Wood Science, The University of
British Columbia.
• Luc Pelkmans, Project Manager Bioenergy & Biomass, VITO.
• Dr Thomas Buchholz, Forest and Agriculture, Spatial Informatics Group (SIG).
• Uwe R. Fritsche, Scientific Director, International Institute for Sustainability Analysis
and Strategy.
Round 1 development• László Máthé, Accreditation Program Manager and Lead Author, Accreditation
Services International.
• Luc Pelkmans, Project Manager Bioenergy & Biomass, VITO.
• Molly Jahn, Professor, University of Wisconsin-Madison.
• Shay Reza, Co-Founder, Arise International.
• Dr Thomas Buchholz, Forest and Agriculture, Spatial Informatics Group (SIG).
• Uwe R. Fritsche, Scientific Director, International Institute for Sustainability Analysis
and Strategy.

Bioenergy Industry Working Group (IWG) Members
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

Artur Yabe Milanez, BNDES
Brad C. Friedman, Ramirez & Co., Inc.
Bryan Sherbacow, AltAir Fuels
Christian Carraretto, EBRD
Cindy Thyfault, Wester Trade ResourcesDavid Fairchild, Bureau Veritas UK
David Kemp, M&G Investment
Derek Ip, S&P Trucost
Dimitri Koufos, EBRD
Elena Schmidt, Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials
Gerard J.Ostheimer, SEforALL
Mark Robinson, DNV GL
Matthew Brander, University of Edinburgh
Melanie Eddis, ERM
Michael Brown, Ryze Capital Partners
Michael Burns, Novozymes
Mike Cao, Shanghai Mu Yi Investment Advisors Ltd
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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

•
•
•
•
•
•

Monica Reid, Kestrel Consulting
Nikos Ntavos, Cluster of Bioenergy & Environment of Western Macedonia
Paul Curtis-Hayward, Guy Butler Limited
Dr Richard Mills, Strategy Director, Boeing UK
Terri Smalinsky, Ziegler Investment Banking
Wenqin Lu, CECEP

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document● Appendix 2 Determining the robustness of best practice standards
Table 6 Areas to be considered for determining the robustness of best practice standards

Environmental

Priority areas protection
The area of land to be utilized does not contain, and is not suspected ofcontaining, primary forest or High Conservation Value (HCV) areas. The
land area is not being converted from native ecosystems, such as forests
to a plantation or other land use.
GHG emissions
Efforts are made on the farm to reduce fossil fuel emissions and increasecarbon sequestration. Techniques can include soil carbon management,
restoration of native vegetation, and eliminating in-field burning practices.
Indirect land use
Possible unintended consequences of indirect land use change havebeen assessed and show that the crop generates low indirect land usechange risks (e.g., produced from agricultural waste/byproducts,
produced on degraded lands, or production is integrated with foodproduction).
Chemical use
Agrochemicals are properly used on site, judiciously and in a targetedfashion using available expertise. There is no use of hazardous
agrochemicals listed as Classification I or II in the World HealthOrganization's Recommended Classification of Pesticides by Hazard.
Agrochemicals are prepared and applied by trained personnel withappropriate protective gear and in accordance with the law and producer
guidelines - and not by children or pregnant women. Potential impacts on
local communities of chemical run-off and spraying are assessed andmanaged.
Pest management
An Integrated Pest Management (IPM) plan is developed andimplemented, ideally incorporating biological controls. An Integrated
Weed Management plan is developed and implemented, ideally including
cultural and biological controls, appropriate rates of pre- and postemergent applications, and appropriate altering of active ingredients.
Nutrient management
A Nutrient Management Plan focused on optimal uptake and minimal lossof nutrients has been developed and is implemented. The plan can
include: soil and foliage testing (regularly and especially prior to fertilizer
applications), use of variable rate technologies for fertilizer application,
crop rotation, and use of cover crops and filter strips.

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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

Soil management
A Soil Management Plan is developed and implemented with a focus on
soil productivity, including retention of soil biomass levels, soil structure,salinity, pH, and carbon sequestration. The plan can outline crop andgeographically appropriate practices such as no-till, only planting on
suitable slopes, use of cover crops, crop rotation, tree hedges, andcontour planting, etc. The plan should also include adequate protection of
riparian areas.
Water management
A complete assessment of water resource requirements and discharge
impacts should be conducted, taking into consideration crop needs, soil
water holding capacity, hydrological conditions, downstream human andenvironmental needs and uses, and impacts that the water use anddischarge will have on the watershed, community health, and regional
ecology. This is especially important in water stressed areas. A Water
Management Plan is in place that addresses relevant risks and includes
concrete measures to protect ground water or local water bodies.
Genetic diversity management
Species selection e.g. no introduction of invasive alien species that
disrupt native genetic diversity, or that are not suitable for current or
projected future ecological conditions
Sustainable resource extraction
Resources are managed to prevent overexploitation
Waste management
Minimising waste from spoilage, utilisation of by products, maximisation ofwaste to energy opportunities

GovernanceCompliant with ISEAL's code of good practiceMulti-stakeholder in involvement in standard development process
Multi-stakeholder participation in the standards system
Scientific input in development of standard
Transparency in public reporting
Transparency in communication of the standards documents andprocesses
Complaints and appeals process
Regular reviews and revisions of the standard
Standard gives accreditation
Stakeholder consultation in certification and auditing process
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Climate Bonds Standard Bioenergy Criteria - Criteria Document

Audits required annually
Audit sample size specified
Sanction mechanisms in place
Training of auditors
Training opportunities for users of the standard

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