Challenges and Opportunities of Bioenergy With Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) for Communities

Purpose of Review: What do we know about community scale perceptions and desirability of BECCS? What does research on the governance of BECCS say about policy relevant to community scale challenges and opportunities? Recent Findings: The social acceptability of BECCS is influenced by contextual factors such as the source and use of the CO₂, and the policy environment. Sustainable BECCS has a particular geography, and communities may be affected by its system boundaries and requirements in terms of feedstocks, transport, and infrastructure design. Summary: BECCS cannot be viewed on just the community scale without considering how national and global scales influence system design. The limited research relevant to BECCS on the community scale looks at public acceptance or social license, rather than opportunities for communities. Future research can move beyond “social impact” to study “social demand” for BECCS, and identify opportunities for communities along the farm-to-underground or farm-to-product chain.