A GIS approach for the quantification of forest and agricultural biomass in the Basilicata region

In this paper the attention has been focused on the energy from biomass by-product, including forest biomass and agricultural production, waste and other sources of renewable energy, available in the Basilicata Region. In order to determine the quantity of extractable biomass from the forests of the region data from plans for forest management were used. These data were imported in a Geographic Information System, in order to determine in which part of the Region there is the possibility to find greater quantity of biomass. As for the determination of the quantities of agricultural biomass, the energy crops and the agricultural waste (such as crop residues, grass cuttings, pruning, manure, waste coming from agro-food industries, etc.) were considered too. The reuse and exploitation of these wastes, while contributing to the solution of problems related to their disposal, promote their recovery as a primary source of energy. Once estimated the annual amount of biomass, the percentage of the annual energy contribution which this kind of by-product is able to ensure was determined; this renewable energy source may therefore significantly contribute to the development of the agro-forestry sector.