BIOFUELS - unethical policy

Current biofuels policies are unethical, says report

Press Release (Extract)

13 April 2011

 

Current UK and European policies on biofuels encourage unethical practices, says a report by the Nuffield Council on Bioethics today following an 18-month inquiry. Policies such as the European Renewable Energy Directive are particularly weak when it comes to protecting the environment, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and avoiding human rights violations in developing countries. They also include few incentives for the development of new biofuel technologies that could help avoid these problems.

 

Biofuels are one of the only renewable alternatives we have for transport fuels such as petrol and diesel, but current policies and targets that encourage their uptake have backfired badly,” said Professor Joyce Tait, who led the inquiry. “The rapid expansion of biofuels production in the developing world has led to problems such as deforestation and the displacement of indigenous people. We want a more sophisticated strategy that considers the wider consequences of biofuel production.”

 

“Researchers are developing new types of biofuels that need less land, produce fewer greenhouse gases and do not compete with food, but commercial-scale production is many years away,” said Professor Ottoline Leyser, one of the authors of the report. “The government should do more to encourage research into these more ethical types of biofuels.”

 

In its report Biofuels: ethical issues, the Nuffield Council recommends that there should be a set of overarching ethical conditions for all biofuels produced in and imported into Europe, including:

1 Biofuels development should not be at the expense of human rights

2 Biofuels should be environmentally sustainable

3 Biofuels should contribute to a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions

4 Biofuels should adhere to fair trade principles

5 Costs and benefits of biofuels should be distributed in an equitable way

 

“These ethical conditions should be enforced through a certification scheme – a bit like the Fair Trade scheme for cocoa and coffee,” said Professor Tait. “This would create a market for environmentally sustainable and ‘human rights friendly’ biofuels.”

 

Current biofuels

The two main transport biofuels currently in use are bioethanol, made from maize and sugar cane, and biodiesel, made from palm and rape seed oil. The European Renewable Energy Directive states that 10% of transport fuel must come from renewable sources by 2020. In the UK, 5% of transport fuel must come from renewable sources by 2013. To meet these targets, biofuels are being imported from countries that do not all have responsible or enforceable policies on climate change or human rights. The targets also rely on voluntary agreements on environmental sustainability for biofuels produced outside the EU.

 

New biofuels

Researchers are developing technologies that enable all of the plant to be used in biofuel production, meaning less waste and higher energy outputs. Another avenue of research is using algae to produce biofuels that do not compete for agricultural land, but this is mostly at the experimental stage.

“There is a duty to develop biofuels that comply with our ethical principles,” said Professor Tait. “Governments should incentivise the development of new types of biofuels that need less land and produce fewer greenhouse gases, for example by creating research funding programmes or encouraging public-private partnerships.”

 

The report

Copies of the report Biofuels: ethical issues will be available to download from the Council’s website www.nuffieldbioethics.org .

Background

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics established a Working Party in 2009 to examine the ethical issues raised by biofuels. The Working Party, chaired by Professor Joyce Tait, included members with expertise in science, the environment, ethics, law, policy, economics, the commercial sector, energy security, and sustainable and international development.

The Nuffield Council on Bioethics examines ethical issues raised by new developments in biology and medicine. Established by the Nuffield Foundation in 1991, the Council is an independent body, funded jointly by the Foundation, the Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust. The Council has achieved an international reputation for addressing public concerns, and providing independent advice to assist policy makers and stimulate debate in bioethics.