COP21 Offers Opportunity to Relaunch Biofuels Debate

by Robert Wright (Ethanol Producer Magazine/ePURE ) While the EU has put strict sustainability rules on biofuels, little to no discussion has taken place about developing similar rules for fossil fuels, writes Robert Wright. -- It’s time to relaunch the debate about the decarbonization benefits offered by biofuels. The use of biofuel reduces damaging GHG emissions and lessens the dependency on oil use in transport. It therefore enables sustainable development and helps mitigate climate change. By fulfilling this core purpose, it provides an important link in the transition from a fossil-fuel-dominated economy towards a new, innovative biobased economy. These are key tenets of the biofuel sector which, while often repeated, should not be forgotten.

(W)hile strict sustainability rules were being agreed for biofuels put on the EU market, little to no discussion was taking place about the development of similarly strict sustainability rules for fossil fuels. The result of such political selectivity is that while the sustainability of biofuels is constantly improving and being challenged, the sustainability of fossil fuels is not.

The fundamental purpose of biofuels is to reduce dependency on and use of oil—a finite, nonrenewable and polluting energy source that is the cause of much political instability in the world. While the search for sustainability perfection in biofuels may be a politically laudable objective for politicians, it is in danger of becoming self-defeating because the only fuel alternative to biofuels is more oil use and therefore more GHG emissions.

Climate concerns and the positive role of ethanol as an alternative fuel are not unique to Europe. The challenge facing the world’s policymakers at COP21 is to agree to a climate deal that is achievable in a world of increasing mobility and transport emissions. In the battle ahead, biofuels are not a luxury that society can afford to ignore. Rather, they are a necessary tool to tackle climate change. In the short- to medium-term, biofuels are the only realistic and commercially viable carbon abatement solution to decarbonize transport fuels. There is no alternative to this sustainable fuel alternative. COP 21 must take this key fact on board.

The U.N. has just agreed upon a set of new sustainable development goals for 2030 that will underpin its work. These goals include increasing the share of renewable energy and the phasing out of inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. READ MORE