Economic Researcher: EU Biofuel Policy Not Based on Science

European Union (EU), Feedstock, Field/Orchard/Plantation Crops/Residues, International, R & D Focus, Sustainability

April 20, 2010

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(Environmental Protection) Gernot Pehnelt, Ph.D., director of GlobEcon, released a study that says the Renewable Energy Directive discriminates against foreign biofuels.

“European Policies Towards Palm Oil: Sorting Out Some Facts,” demonstrates that the default assumptions embedded in the directive about the ecological impact of foreign biofuels reflect politics, not scientific or economic reality.

Warning that the side effects range from political friction and trade disputes to severe economic handicaps for developing countries, Pehnelt explains: “While the use of biofuels across the EU is rising, the chorus of environmental activists opposing their use is, too. Sadly, many of the claims that foreign biofuels, specifically palm oil, are a threat to the environment are seriously flawed, some even completely unfounded.

…The EU has embedded protectionist measures into the Directive at the behest of anti-development environmentalists and the uncompetitive European biofuels industry. These measures set unfair values on greenhouse gas savings for foreign biofuels, thus precluding market access. READ MORE and MORE Download Study

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