Large amounts of biomass from extensively managed and natural areas can be grown and used more efficiently than is the case today. This could be in the form of optimising the use of grass for biogas, improved recycling of nutrients and a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

The research platform Biomass from pasture areas has constituted the basis for research in substantiate solutions for designation, registration, harvest, collection, processing, transport and logistics, and utilisation of biomass grown on extensive agricultural and natural areas for energy, fertilization and bio-refined materials. The platform is part of the BioBase research initiative.

Previous experience with harvesting and recovery of biomass from marginal lands is based on occasional silage cuts and on the management of dry biomass from drier field conditions, but since water levels are expected to rise in the future, there's a need for more knowledge on how to grow and manage green biomass on these specific pasture areas. 

The platform has featured a project, where reseachers have focused on establishing how much biomass can be produced from wetlands and vulnerable areas and on the technological requirements and specifications needed for harvesting and recovering the biomass.

In addition, the researchers have looked at methods of storing and pretreating wet biomass and at the further processing of wet biomass into biogas. With regard to logistics, they have furthermore aimed to design and optimise the entire management chain from field to storage and to the processing plant.