The carbon sink or energy crop question

As a final and more general environmental point on this topic, as was mentioned earlier, the realisation has been growing that using biomass in a balanced way, combining its undoubted value as a carbon sink with a progressive substitution for fossil fuels, has certain clear advantages over the sequestration-only option. Energy crop production is based on a sustainable cycle which brings benefits to the soil as well as both local biodiversity and the local economy. Land bound up in carbon sinks does not offer appreciable employment; energy-farmed biomass crops can support jobs, both directly and indirectly within the region, which has evident importance for rural diversification, itself a major countryside issue.