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Supporting the work undertaken by the Mensuration Growth and Yield team, focussing on research on the carbon balances of forest systems

I currently work as a Senior Carbon Scientist in Forest Research. I am a Life Cycle Assessment practitioner that has specialised in the area of bioenergy since 2006. I started my career working at Imperial College London as a research scientist. After that I worked as an LCA consultant for a couple of years. I then did a PhD in the Sustainable Energy Research Team at the University of Bath, and a Post Doc at Rothamsted Research, where I specialised in energy crops such as Miscanthus and Short Rotation Coppice.

In 2017 I moved to the Civil Service to take up a policy role at the Department of Transport in the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation team, and the at the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero where I worked on bioenergy with carbon capture and storage and the 2023 Biomass Strategy.

Senior Carbon Scientist
Mensuration, growth and yield

Alice Holt Lodge

Wrecclesham

Farnham

Surrey GU10 4LH

Related Research

Research

Comparing Carbon Budgets for Different Land Use

This project will provide a direct comparison of the full life cycle carbon impacts of various land use change options. Land use changes examined include establishment of wind farms, solar farms, energy crops (short rotation coppice willow and Miscanthus), short rotation forests, new woodland creation and agroforestry.

Status current
Themes

Peer reviewed journal articles

[2018] The potential for production of high quality bio-coal from early harvested Miscanthus by hydrothermal carbonisation. Smith, A.M., Whittaker, C., Shield, I. & Ross, A.B.

[2018] Production of Wood Pellets from Wood Waste. Whittaker, C. In: Sustainable greenhouse gas reductions from bioenergy systems. Elsevier.

[2018] Biomass Harvesting, Processing, Storage and Transport. Whittaker, C. & Shield, I. In: Sustainable greenhouse gas reductions from bioenergy systems. Elsevier.

[2018] Dry matter losses and quality changes during short rotation coppice willow storage in chip or rod form. Whittaker, C., Yates, N. E., Powers, S. J., Misselbrook, T. & Shield, I. Biomass and Bioenergy.

[2017] Status and prospects for renewable energy using wood pellets from the southeastern United States. Dale V.H., Kline, K.L., Parish, E.S., Cowie, A.L., Emory R, Malmsheimer, R.W., Slade R., Smith, C.T., Wigley, T.B., Bentsen, N.S., Berndes, G., Bernier, P., Brandão M., Chum H., Diaz-Chavez, R., Egnell G., Gustavsson L., Schweinle, J.,  Stupak, I., Trianosky, P.,  Walter, A., Whittaker, C., Brown M., Chescheir, G., Dimitriou, I., Donnison, C., Goss Eng A., Hoyt K.P., Jenkins J.C., Johnson, K., Levesque, C.A., Lockhart, V., Negri, M.C., Nettles, J.E. & Wellisch M. Global Change Biology Bioenergy. DOI: 10.1111/gcbb.12445.

[2017] Factors affecting wood, energy grass and straw pellet durability – A review. Whittaker, C. & Shield, I. Sustainable and Renewable Energy Reviews.

[2017] Continuous weighing of a pile of poplar wood chips –  A Comparison of methods to determine the dry matter losses during storage. Lenz, H., Pecenka, R., Idler, C., Dumfort, S., Whittaker, C., Ammon, C., Hartung, E. Biomass and Bioenergy.

[2016] Testing the use of static chamber boxes to monitor greenhouse gas emissions from wood chip storage heaps. Whittaker, C., Yates, N. E., Powers, S. J., Donovan, N., Misselbrook, T. & Shield, I. Bioenergy Research.

[2016] Comparative evaluation of GHG emissions from the use of Miscanthus for bio-hydrocarbon production via fast pyrolysis. Shemfe, M. B., Whittaker, C., Gu, S. & Fidalgo, B. Applied Energy. 176 pp. 22-33.

[2016] How well does Miscanthus ensile for use in anaerobic Digestion? Whittaker, C., Hunt, J., Misselbrook, T., & Shield, I. Biomass and Bioenergy. 88 pp. 24-34.

[2016] Dry matter losses and methane emissions during wood chip storage: The impact on full life cycle greenhouse gas savings of short rotation coppice for heat. Whittaker, C., Macalpine, W., Yates, N, E. & Shield, I. Bioenergy Research.

[2016] Dry matter losses and greenhouse gas emissions from outside storage of short rotation coppice willow chip. Whittaker, C., Yates, N. E., Powers, S., Misselbrook, T. & Shield, I. Bioenergy Research. Pages 1-15.

[2015] Chapter 10: Short Rotation Woody Energy Crop Supply Chains. Whittaker, C. & Shield I. In Biomass Supply Chains for Bioenergy and Biorefining. (Eds Jens Bo Holm-Nielsen and Ehiaze Augustine Ehimen) Elsevier.

[2015] Challenge Clusters Facing LCA in Environmental Decision-Making: What we can learn from biofuels? McManus, M. C., Taylor, C. M., Mohr, A., Whittaker, C., Scown, C. D., Li-Borrion, A., Glithero, N. J. & Yin, Y.   Journal of Life Cycle Assessment. 20 pp. 1399-1414.

[2015] How certain are greenhouse gas reductions from bioenergy? Life cycle assessment and uncertainty analysis of wood pellet-to-electricity supply chains from forest residues. Roeder, M., Whittaker, C. & Thornley, P. Biomass & Bioenergy. 79 pp. 50-63

[2015] Life cycle assessment of biofuels in the European Renewable Energy Directive: a combination of approaches? Whittaker, C. Greenhouse Gas Measurement and Management. 4 pp. 124-138.

[2014] The Renewable Energy Directive and Cereal Residues. Whittaker, C., Li-Borrion, A., Newnes, L. & McManus, M. Applied Energy: 122 pp. 207-215.

[2013] A Comparison of Carbon Accounting Tools for Bioenergy and for Whole Farms. Whittaker, C., McManus, M. & Smith, P. Environmental Software and Modelling: 46 pp. 228-239.

[2012] Securing a Bioenergy Supply: UK and US. Whittaker, C., Adams, P. & McManus, M. In: Perspectives on Biofuels: Potential Benefits and Possible Pitfalls. Vol. 1116. ACS Books, pp. 171-187.

[2011] Greenhouse gas reporting for biofuels: A comparison between the RED, RTFO and PAS2050 methodologies. Whittaker, C., McManus, M. & Hammond, G. Energy Policy: 39 pp. 5950-5960.

[2011] The Life Cycle Analysis of Extracting Forest Residues for Biomass Production. Whittaker, C., Mortimer, N., Murphy, R., & Matthews, R. Biomass & Bioenergy. 35 pp. 4581-4594.

[2011] Life Cycle Assessment and Sustainability Methodologies for Assessing Industrial Crops, Processes and End Products. Black, M., Whittaker, C., Hosseini, S.A., Diaz-Chavez, R., Woods, J., & Murphy, R.J. Industrial Crops and Products. 34 pp. 1332-1339.

[2009] Integrating Spatial Estimates of Yield with Dynamic Soil C Modelling (Roth C), to Predict Emissions from Four Bioenergy Crops in England and Wales. Hiller, J., Whittaker, C., Dailey, G., Aylott, M., Casella, E., Richter, G., Riche, A., Murphy, R., Taylor, G. & Smith, P. Global Change Biology Bioenergy. 1, 267-281.

OTHER WRITTEN REPORTS

[2013] Understanding greenhouse gas balances of bioenergy systems. Adams, P., Bows, A., Gilbert, P., Hammond, J., Howard, D., Lee, R., McNamara, N., Thornley, P., Whittaker, C. & Whitaker, J. Supergen Bioenergy Hub.

[2012] The environmental impacts of utilising wheat, wheat straw or energy grasses for biofuels. Whittaker, C. & McManus, M. Conference Proceedings, 7th Conference on Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems, Ohrid, Macedonia.

[2012] The Renewable Energy Directive and Cereal Residues. Whittaker, C. & McManus, M. Conference Proceedings, 20th European Biomass Conference and Exhibition, Milan, Italy.

[2010] Understanding the carbon footprint of timber transport in the United Kingdom. Whittaker, C., Mortimer, N. D. & Matthews, R. Report for the Timber Transport Forum.

[2010] Analysis of the GHG emissions for thermochemical BioSNG introduction and use in the United Kingdom. Mortimer, N. D., Evans, A. K. F, Mwabjonje, O., Whittaker, C. & Hunter, A. J. Project funded by DECC/NNFCC.

[2009] Life cycle assessment workbooks for a selection of major renewable chemicals. Mortimer, N. D., Evans, A. K. F, Ashely A., Hatto, C., Shaw, V. L., Whittaker, C. & Hunter, A. J. Project funded by DECC and managed by NNFCC.

[2009] TSEC Theme 3.2 final report: The Life cycle analysis of bioenergy supply chains in the United Kingdom. Whittaker, C, Mortimer, N, Murphy, R, Hiller, J. & Smith, P. Imperial College London.