Opportunities for a forest energy industry in a developing country: an example from Moldova

Abstract

Developing sustainable energy from forest biomass presents both opportunities and challenges for the future generations of Moldova. Located in the southeastern part of Europe between Ukraine and Romania, Moldova is a relatively poor country with limited natural resources compared with other developing European countries such as Albania or Bosnia. This lack of fossil fuels (natural gas, oil and coal) has resulted in a strong economical and political dependence on large neighboring countries including Russia and Ukraine. Historically, agriculture has been the dominant land use; however, poor land practices in the country has degraded some of the formerly richest soils in the world to a greatly diminished economy with few alternatives. The development of a forest biomass and energy industry based on forest resources could diversify and greatly improve the economy.

Citation

Gulca, Vitalie; Deal, Robert. 2010. Opportunities for a forest energy industry in a developing country: an example from Moldova. Northwest Woodlands. 26(3): 26-27.