Kristen Baumlier

When we think of biofuel – corn usually comes to mind.  There are many other plants that have qualities that make them possible future sources of fuels.  Some of these plants include castor bean, barley, mustard, sugarcane, switchgrass, tobacco, sorghum, algae, sunflowers, and peanuts.

The original 1970s appeal of biofuels was the opportunity during the oil crisis to move away from dependence on oil from other countries.  Later, it was seen as an opportunity to fight global warming – a way to make gas from plants, and with no emissions of carbon dioxide.

Today, the most common biofuel sources in the U.S. are corn, which is fermented into ethanol and blended into gasoline, and soybeans, which are converted to biodiesel. The ethanol, which stores less energy per gallon, tends to absorb water and is corrosive – people only use it if they are forced to or if it is cheap.

In Brazil, however, the price of ethanol got low enough for people to use it after the 1970s oil crisis, thanks to highly productive sugar plantations and distilleries in the country. Today Brazil is a biofuel superpower.   The ethanol made from sugar is more efficient, and less harmful on the environment than American ethanol distilleries, often fueled by coal.

In has been reported that today’s biofuel policies are not solving the climate or fuel crises but are instead contributing to food insecurity and inflation.  Oxfam calculates that rich country biofuel policies have dragged more than 30 million people into poverty, according to evidence that biofuels have already contributed up to 30% to the global rise in food prices.

“Biofuel policies are actually helping to accelerate climate change and deepen poverty and hunger. Rich countries’ demands for more biofuels in their transport fuels are causing spiraling production and food inflation,” said report author, Oxfam’s biofuel policy adviser Rob Bailey.  “If the fuel value for a crop exceeds its food value, then it will be used for fuel instead. Thanks to generous subsidies and tax breaks, that is exactly what is happening. Grain reserves are now at an all-time low.”

The biofuels being grown today are not an effective answer to climate change, Oxfam says. Instead, biofuels are taking over agricultural land and forcing farming to expand into lands that are important carbon sinks, like forests and wetlands. This triggers the release of carbon from soil and vegetation that will take decades to repay.

Today’s biofuel policies are not solving the climate or fuel crises but are instead contributing to food insecurity and inflation.  Another problem seen with the corn ethanol is that the biofuel use contributes to a 30% global rise to food prices, and contributes to the food crisis in some countries in the world.

“Biofuel policies are actually helping to accelerate climate change and deepen poverty and hunger. Rich countries’ demands for more biofuels in their transport fuels are causing spiraling production and food inflation,” said report author, Oxfam’s biofuel policy adviser Rob Bailey.

Another issue is that biofuels are causing agricultural land to expand, into lands that are “carbon sinks,” like forests and wetlands. This triggers the release of carbon from soil and vegetation that will take decades to repay.

Is Biofuels in our future?  The European Union currently has a mandatory 10 percent goal for transportation fuels such as biofuels, electricity and hydrogen is included in the renewable energy increase by 2020.

The directive offers incentives for more sustainable biofuels by allowing second-generation biofuels to be double-credited in the 10 percent target. Second-generation biofuels don’t compete with food or feed production, and include wastes, residues, nonfood biomass such as algae, wood residues or paper waste.

Links:

Oxfam’s report “Another Inconvenient Truth”