Abstract
Biomass is a renewable source that accounts for nearly 33% of a developing country's energy
needs. In India, it meets about 75% of the rural energy needs and the rural population constitutes
70% of the total population. Sustainable management of these resources requires better and
timely decisions, which can lead to increased cost--efficiency and productivity. This would help
in regional energy planning and conservation through appropriate decision interventions. To
assist in strategic decision--making activities, considering spatial and temporal variables, Spatial
Decision Support Systems (SDSS) are required. SDSS is an interactive computerized system
that gathers data from a wide range of data sources, analyze the collected data and then present
it in a way that can be interpreted by the decision maker to deliver the precise information
needed to make timely decisions. DSS framework is designed and implemented to ease and
speed up the use of environmental systems. In this regard, to assist planners to plan and manage
bioresources in a sustainable way, Biomass Energy Potential Assessment (BEPA) decision
support system is designed and is being implemented at regional levels through proper training.
Overall objective of this DSS is the development of a set of tools aimed at transforming data
into information and aid decisions for bioresources.
This paper outlines the design and implementation of DSS for assessment of biomass energy
potential of a region considering the resources available and the demand. It is designed with
user friendly GUI’s (Graphic User Interface) using VB (Visual Basic) as frontend with
Microsoft Access database as the backend. This helps to build executive information systems
and reporting tools that tap vast data resources and deliver information in the context of daily
processes. This tool can be used to form a core of practical methodology that will result in
more resilience in less time and can be used by decision--making bodies to assess the impacts
of various scenarios and to review cost and benefits of decisions to be made. It also offers
means of entering, accessing and interpreting the information for the purpose of sound decision
making.
Keywords: Biomass, Bioenergy, DSS, Sustainable management, Regional energy planning. |