Developing a spatial information system of biomass potential from crop residues over India: A decision support for planning and establishment of biofuel/biomass power plant

The study demonstrates effective utilization of geospatial technology to amalgamate crop statistics, satellite derived crop maps and productivity proxies to generate spatial maps of biomass potential from crop residues over a diverse country like India. District level crop production statistics were used to estimate gross biomass potential (GBP) of the selected crops (rice, wheat, sugarcane and cotton). Multi-temporal satellite data were used to generate crop maps. District level GBP was disaggregated at 1 km grid using satellite derived crop fraction and seasonal Gross Primary Production. The GBP maps were further converted to surplus biomass potential (SBP) followed by bioenergy potential using district specific surplus factors (ground survey) and crop specific calorific values respectively. These maps could capture the spatial variations of the available biomass resources and prospective zones to prioritize its utilization. The study found the presence of rice-wheat based SBP over Punjab and Haryana (>0.30 Ktonnes km−2), eastern Uttar Pradesh (0.15–0.30 Ktonnes km−2); sugarcane-wheat based SBP over western Uttar Pradesh (>0.25 Ktonnes km−2); cotton-wheat based SBP over the southern Haryana and western Punjab (>0.20 Ktonnes km−2); and sugarcane-cotton based SBP over central India and Gujarat (>0.20 Ktonnes km−2). Geospatial maps of crop residue biomass along with other thematic layers were hosted in a geoportal (BHUVAN-JAIVOORJA) with an online query module to assess the amount and types of biomass, land resources, logistics support based on user defined point of interest and fetch/buffer area towards planning/establishment of tailor-made biofuel/biomass plants.