Bioenergy is a key option in climate change mitigation scenarios. Growing perennial grasses on recently abandoned cropland is a near-term strategy for gradual bioenergy deployment with reduced risks for food security and the environment. However, the extent of global abandoned cropland, bioenergy potentials and management requirements are unclear. Here we integrate satellite-derived land cover maps with a yield model to investigate the land–energy–water nexus of global bioenergy potentials. We identified 83 million hectares of abandoned cropland between 1992 and 2015, corresponding to 5% of today’s cropland area. Bioenergy potentials are 6–39 exajoules per year (11–68% of today’s bioenergy demand), depending on multiple local and management factors. About 20 exajoules per year can be achieved by increasing today’s global cropland area and water use by 3% and 8%, respectively, and without production inside biodiversity hotspots or irrigation in water-scarce areas. The consideration of context-specific practices and multiple environmental dimensions can mitigate trade-offs of bioenergy deployment.

生物能源是缓解气候变化方案中的关键选择。在最近废弃的农田上种植多年生草是逐步生物能源部署的近期战略，可减少粮食安全和环境风险。但是，尚不清楚全球废弃农田的范围，生物能源潜力和管理要求。在这里，我们将卫星衍生的土地覆盖图与产量模型相结合，以研究全球生物能源潜力的土地-能源-水联系。在1992年至2015年间，我们确定了8,300万公顷的废弃农田，相当于今天耕地面积的5％。每年的生物能源潜力为6–39百亿焦耳（占当今生物能源需求的11–68％），具体取决于多个本地和管理因素。通过将当今的全球耕地面积和用水量分别增加3％和8％，每年可实现约20埃焦耳的排放，而无需在生物多样性热点内进行生产或在缺水地区进行灌溉。考虑特定环境的实践和多个环境维度可以减轻生物能源部署的权衡。