David M. Lapola, Ruediger Schaldach, Joseph Alcamo, Alberte Bondeau, Jennifer Koch, Christina Koelking, and Joerg A. Priess (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) Abstract: The planned expansion of biofuel plantations in Brazil could potentially cause both direct and indirect
ILUC (Indirect/Induced Land Use Change)
Back TO HOMEUC Merced Scientist Honored for Biofuels Research
(Central Valley Business Times) The mass production of biofuels could be a major step toward eliminating dependence on fossil fuels, but a number of factors have stood in the way, including the argument against using productive agricultural land for fuel
February 15, 2010 Read Full Article
Getting a True Measure on Biofuels: Effects of 'Indirect' Land Use Figure in Energy Future
by C. Boyden Gray (Washington Times) Little noticed outside a small policy community, an issue has quietly arisen in recent years that, while seemingly technical, has the potential to derail the nation's attempts to address the issues of energy security
February 15, 2010 Read Full Article
Food, Feed, Fiber, Fuel and Fun
by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA) I’ve taken to adding “fun” to the quartet sung by many when speaking of the uses served by our crop land and forests: food, feed, fiber and fuel. The song began as a duet
February 09, 2010 Read Full Article
California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard: Testing the Boundaries of Green Federalism
Mackinnon Lawrence (Biofuels Digest) California, a long-time pioneer in the area of environmental law and policy, is now the target of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of its recently adopted Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), given final approval by the
February 09, 2010 Read Full Article
How to Create Effective Biofuels Public Policy
by Joanna Schroeder (domesticfuels.com) One of the biggest challenges for our country lies in the issue of how to create effective public policies that will grow the biofuels industry and reduce our dependence on foreign oil. Dr. Antonio Bento, associate
January 25, 2010 Read Full Article
BIO Comments on Preliminary Draft Regulation for the California Cap-and-Trade Program
Comments by Brent Erickson, Executive Vice President, Industrial and Environmental Section of the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) to the California Environmental Protection Agency and Air Resources Board (January 11, 2010): ... The essence of the cap-and-trade program is the establishment
January 18, 2010 Read Full Article
Biofuels and Indirect Land Use Change Effects: the Debate Continues
by John A. Mathews and Hao Tan, (Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia) While debate on biofuels and bioenergy generally has sparked controversy over claimed greenhouse gas emissions benefits available with a switch to biomass, these claims have generally not taken into account
December 28, 2009 Read Full Article
Brazil Warns EU on Biofuel Sustainability
(EurActiv) EU rules for calculating indirect land-use changes caused by biofuel production would not be legitimate without an internationally-accepted methodology, a group of developing countries has told the European Commission. The warning was sent to Energy Commissioner Andris Piebalgs on
December 28, 2009 Read Full Article
International Technology Action Plan on Bioenergy Released
Bioenergy includes any kind of chemical energy accumulated through photosynthetic processes in organic plant matter (i.e., biomass). Example sources of bioenergy include dedicated energy crops (short rotation wood, perennial grasses), agricultural and forestry products and wastes, biogas resulting from the
December 15, 2009 Read Full Article
VIDEO: Brazilian Government Tackling Climate Change in Brazil
The Brazilian National Plan on Climate Change, launched in December 2008, comprises a set of over one hundred actions and programs to reduce carbon emissions across different sectors of the Brazilian economy. The two main tactics emphasized in the plan
December 09, 2009 Read Full Article
Can Feedstock Production for Biofuels Be Sustainable in California?
by Stephen R. Kaffka (California Agriculture) The use of crops and crop residues as feedstocks for biofuels increases domestic and global supplies, creates new industries, and may result in reduced greenhouse-gas emissions. Uncertainty about the best crop and residue sources,
December 03, 2009 Read Full Article
Model Estimates Food-Versus-Biofuel Trade-Off
by Deepak Rajagopal, Steven Sexton, Gal Hochman, David Roland-Holst, David Zilberman (California Agriculture) Biofuels have been criticized for raising food prices and reducing food production. While biofuels have rightly been blamed for contributing to reduced food security at a time
December 03, 2009 Read Full Article
Higher US Farm Productivity Will Meet Rising Ethanol Demand
(FarmOnline, Australia) Higher productivity per acre among those US farmers providing feedstock for ethanol will meet the increased demand for petrol-ethanol blends this year. Those familiar with the US agriculture sector's long history of productivity and efficiency have maintained that
November 22, 2009 Read Full Article
CO2 from Forest Destruction Overestimated – Study
by David Adam (Guardian) The carbon dioxide emissions caused by the destruction of tropical forests have been significantly overestimated, according to a new study. The work could undermine attempts to pay poor countries to protect forests as a cost-effective way to
November 10, 2009 Read Full Article
Brazil Raises Cane over U.S. Ethanol Tariff
by Chris Kraul (LA Times) Who could resent the attention being showered on electric cars? Stylish and clean, they're the darling of the renewable-energy crowd, which is hailing the scheduled rollout of several e-powered models next year as a major blow
November 06, 2009 Read Full Article
U.N. Panel Report Confirms Potential for Significant GHG Reductions from Biofuels
The Global Renewable Fuels Alliance (GRFA) today responded to a report on biofuels produced by the United Nation’s International Panel for Sustainable Resource Management. The report, “Towards Sustainable Production and Use of Resources: Assessing Biofuels”, asserts that more research and
November 04, 2009 Read Full Article
Senator Charles Grassley Speaks Out Against Inappropriate Use of International Indirect Land Use Change Analysis
Prepared Floor Statement of Senator Chuck Grassley: Biofuels and the Environmental Protection Agency Thursday, October 29, 2009 ... The first issue I’m speaking about relates to the EPA’s proposal to penalize biofuels for greenhouse gas emissions from supposed changes in international
October 30, 2009 Read Full Article
Midwestern Legislators Group Moves in Support of Ethanol and Sound Science
(National Corn Growers Association) The Midwest Legislative Conference of The Council of State Governments issued a series of resolutions recently containing policy resolutions adopted that aim to increase the use of both ethanol and blender pumps. Additionally, the group adopted
October 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Low Carbon Future Needs Low Carbon Fuel
(Novozymes) ... “The article in Science overlooks one important fact: Biofuels recycle atmospheric carbon while fossil fuels release carbon that has been stored underground for millions of years. In the transport sector, biofuels are the only viable alternative to fossil
October 28, 2009 Read Full Article
Use of Forests as Carbon Offsets Fails to Impress In First Big Trial
by Juliet Eliperin (Washington Post) More than a decade ago in the northeast corner of Bolivia, a group of polluters and environmentalists joined forces in the first large-scale experiment to curb climate change with a strategy that promised to suit
October 28, 2009 Read Full Article
Indirect Emissions from Biofuels: How Important?
by Jerry M. Melillo, et al. (Science Express) A global biofuels program will lead to intense pressures on land supply and can increase greenhouse gas emissions from land-use changes. Using linked economic and terrestrial biogeochemistry models, we examine direct and
October 27, 2009 Read Full Article
Why Sustainability Standards for Biofuel Production Make Little Economic Sense
by Harry deGorter and David R. Just (Policy Analysis, Cato Institute) The federal “sustainability standard” requires ethanol to emit at least 20 percent less carbon dioxide (CO2) than gasoline. Recent rulings by California and the Environmental Protection Agency, however, have cast doubt
October 25, 2009 Read Full Article
Towards Sustainable Production and Use of Resources: Assessing Biofuels
(United Nations Environment Programme) The number of scientific publications devoted to biofuels is growing exponentially, and the number of reviews is increasing rapidly. For decision makers it has become a hard job to find robust reference material and solid guidance.
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
The 7% Solution: Sustainable US Biofuels without International Indirect Land Use Effects
by Robert E. Kozak (Advanced Biofuels USA) Looking at some real-world numbers, it becomes clear that the fear raised in Fixing a Critical Climate Accounting Error, Science, October 23, 2009, misses the point. Growing energy crops, including perennial grasses or
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Advanced Biofuels USA Reacts to Science Magazine Article
(Advanced Biofuels USA) A study published in Science magazine promotes a policy which would penalize American biofuels industries in US legislation and regulation and in international global climate change agreements. Advanced Biofuels USA would like to point out two items
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Carbon Advantage of Biofuels May Be Overstated
by Juliet Eilperin (Washington Post) The world's policymakers and scientists have made a critical error in how they count biofuels' contribution to human-generated greenhouse-gas emissions, according to a paper published Thursday in the journal Science. ... (Steven P.) Hamburg, (chief scientist
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Growth Energy Reacts to Science Magazine Paper
Tom Buis (Growth Energy) “Ethanol is part of the natural carbon cycle. It has taken the lifetime of our planet to produce the oil that is in the ground. Biofuels come from the top of the earth, with emissions that
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Science Article on GHG Accounting Misses the Mark on Biofuels
(Renewable Fuels Association) Biofuels produced from biomass feedstocks (i.e. plant matter) are, by definition, carbon neutral because carbon dioxide tailpipe emissions from the combustion of biofuels are readily absorbed by growing plants. As such, the tailpipe emissions resulting from the use
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Accounting Error Undermines Climate Change Laws
(Nitrogen News)... “The error is serious, but we can fix it,” said lead author Tim Searchinger, a research scholar at Princeton University and a fellow with the German Marshall Fund of the U.S. “The solution is to count all the
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
They’d Shoot Trees, Wouldn’t They? Climate Laws Encourage Deforestation, Scientists Say
by Keith Johnson (Wall Street Journal) The law of unintended consequences strikes yet again. Global plans to tackle climate change, from the Kyoto Protocol to the recently-passed Waxman-Markey bill, have a fatal flaw: They essentially encourage large-scale deforestation, which pretty much
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Calculating Emissions Is Problematic
by Sindya N. Bhanoo (New York Times) ... The problem boils down to this: In emission calculations, all fuel derived from plants and other organic sources — including ethanol — is generally treated as if it has no effect on carbon dioxide in
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Fixing a Critical Climate Accounting Error
by Tim Searchinger, et al. (Science Magazine) The accounting now used for assessing compliance with carbon limits in the Kyoto Protocol and in climate legislation contains a far-reaching but fixable flaw that will severely undermine greenhouse gas reduction goals (1).
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Implications of Limiting CO2 Concentrations for Land Use and Energy
by Marshall Wise, et al. (Science Magazine) Limiting atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations to low levels requires strategies to manage anthropogenic carbon emissions from terrestrial systems as well as fossil fuel and industrial sources. We explore the implications of fully
October 23, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels Producers Warn They Are Going to Fall Far Short of Federal Mandates
by Jessica Leber (New York Times Climatewire) The emerging cellulosic biofuel industry, stung by frozen credit markets, ineffective federal loan programs and lagging federal policies, will fall far short of mandated production volumes over the next few years. U.S. EPA is
October 10, 2009 Read Full Article
Indirect Land Use Change Analysis Debate on Video
The German Marshall Fund on September 25, 2009, sponsored a debate at the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on biofuels and indirect land use change. The debaters were Tim Searchinger, transatlantic fellow at the German Marshall Fund and co-author
October 07, 2009 Read Full Article
Global Forest Watch Canada Releases Study of GHG Emissions from Oil Sands Development
A new research paper, Bitumen and Biocarbon, was released today by Global Forest Watch Canada. The paper reveals that significant amounts of greenhouse gases are emitted through the disturbance and/or removal of biocarbon (trees, shrubs, peats), which overlay Alberta's oil
October 06, 2009 Read Full Article
Scientific Data Supports GHG Reduction of Sugarcane Ethanol, Even Considering ILUC
Brazilian ethanol produced from sugarcane can help the United States meet its advanced renewable fuel targets, while helping reduce emissions. This is one of the conclusions presented by the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
October 01, 2009 Read Full Article
New Energy Economics: Can Scientists Really Estimate Indirect Land Use?
by Cole Gustafson (INFORUM) ... (Indirect land use change) LUC is thought to occur in response to rising U.S. grain prices. As additional U.S. grains are used to produce biofuels, prices for those grains rise due to a limited supply. These
October 01, 2009 Read Full Article
World Growth Launches New Campaign, Releases Report on Palm Oil
World Growth report exposes how attempts by environmental NGOs to restrict production, trade of palm oil (a sustainable oil) would harm successful strategies to end poverty, restrict opportunities for developing countries to reduce emissions. Today (September 29, 2009) at the
October 01, 2009 Read Full Article
NGOs, Scientists Hit Back at Food vs Fuel, Indirect Land Use Change Proponents with Hard Data
Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) From Bangkok to Fargo, biofuels scientists have hit back at what they term faulty research and misguided priorities – with a series of presentations on palm oil, indirect land use change, and food vs fuel. READ
October 01, 2009 Read Full Article
EPA Rule Will Reflect 'Uncertainty' on Indirect Biofuels Emissions, Fending Off Amendment
Letter from EPA Administrator, Lisa Jackson to Senator Tom Harkin, former chairman of the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee (below). Upon receiving these assurances, Senator Harkin and co-sponsors withdrew an amendment to the EPA's fiscal 2010 spending bill that
September 30, 2009 Read Full Article
Council on Sustainable Biomass Production Invites Comments on Draft Standards
The Council on Sustainable Biomass Production (CSBP) is a multi-stakeholder organization established in 2007 to develop comprehensive voluntary sustainability standards for the production of biomass and its conversion to bioenergy. CSBP intends for its Standard to serve as the foundation
September 18, 2009 Read Full Article
Inter-American Development Bank Releases New Version of Biofuels Sustainability Scorecard
The Inter-American Development Bank has released a new version of its Biofuels Sustainability Scorecard, which will enable users to better anticipate the impacts of potential biofuel projects on sensitive issues such as indigenous rights, carbon emissions from land use change,
September 18, 2009 Read Full Article
Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities Urge Study of International Indirect Land Use Change Analysis
... We believe scientific data aren't available on a global basis to be able to accurately determine the extent to which biofuel production causes land use changes in remote locations or the greenhouse gas emissions that might exist. The possible
September 16, 2009 Read Full Article
New Fuels Alliance and 20 Companies Send ILUC Letter to Senators Kerry and Boxer
... The New Fuels Alliance submitted a letter co-signed by 20 leading advanced biofuel companies to Senators Boxer (D-CA) and Kerry (D-MA) asking for balanced carbon accounting in any upcoming climate legislation. The letter comes in the wake of the
September 10, 2009 Read Full Article
Two EPA Administrators Tour Farms, Visit Biorefinery
by O.Kay Henderson (Radio Iowa) Two top officials in the Environmental Protection Agency who've never visited an American farm were in Iowa today, at Senator Chuck Grassley's invitation. They toured Grant Kimberly's farm near Maxwell. ... Senator Grassley says he wants
September 08, 2009 Read Full Article
Minnesota Project Releases New Report: Transportation Biofuels in the United States: An Update
"(W)e do intend for Transportation Biofuels in the United States to act as a tool to provide an overview of the current status of major developments in the biofuels industry. We highlight recent changes in biofuels production processes, biomass development,
September 08, 2009 Read Full Article
Improvements in Life Cycle Energy Efficiency and Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Corn-Ethanol
(Journal of Industrial Ecology) Corn-ethanol production is expanding rapidly with the adoption of improved technologies to increase energy efficiency and profitability in crop production, ethanol conversion, and coproduct use. Life cycle assessment can evaluate the impact of these changes on
September 03, 2009 Read Full Article
Banned in Boston: Massachusetts Moves to Strike Algae, Miscanthus, Switchgrass, Oil from Microorganisms, from Qualifying Under Clean Energy Biofuels Act
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Massachusetts, the state Department of Energy Resources, in coordination with the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, announced that it would ban all biofuels not made using waste feedstocks from qualifying under the
August 19, 2009 Read Full Article
Row Over US Biofuel Rules Intensifies
by Cath Everett (BusinessGreen.com) Corn ethanol industry accuses EPA of influencing independent panel to boost support for controversial biofuel carbon life cycle regulations. An independent peer review of proposed US biofuel regulations has only served to intensify a long-running dispute
August 14, 2009 Read Full Article
EPA Announces Peer Review Findings on the Lifecycle Analysis for the Proposed Rule to Implement the Expanded Renewable Fuel Standard Program
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (''EPA'') announces the availability of documents pertaining to the expert peer review record completed on the Renewable Fuel Standard Program (RFS2) Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Analysis. On May 5, 2009, EPA announced proposed revisions to
August 12, 2009 Read Full Article
Renewable Fuels Association Team, Other Stakeholders Unable to Verify EPA ILUC Analysis Results
In a letter to the US Environmental Protection Agency Administrator, the Renewable Fuels Association explains that stakeholders are unable to replicate or verify the analysis used by EPA in its international indirect land use change model. The best and most common way for
August 11, 2009 Read Full Article
Corn Farmers Coalition Publishes The Corn Fact Book
.... There is plenty of corn to eat and plenty for making ethanol and plenty for feeding cattle and plenty more to export and still more to make chemicals and fabric. After peaking briefly in July 2008 at more than
August 05, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels 'Done Right' Can Curb Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Provide Other Benefits
by Chris Emery (Princeton News) Biofuels derived from renewable sources can be produced in large quantities and address many problems related to fossil fuels, including greenhouse gas emissions, but only if they are made from certain sources, according to a new
July 21, 2009 Read Full Article
Senate Energy and Natural Resources Chair Wants to Refine the Renewable Fuel Standard
by Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) (Politico) ...(W)e envisioned a biofuels industry that would move beyond corn ethanol. Scientists, the environmental community and some cutting-edge entrepreneurs were confident that biofuels could come from a wide array of feedstocks and use an
July 17, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels are a Long-Term Renewable Solution
by Senator John Thune (R-SD) (Politico) As Congress, the administration and the private sector look for ways to reduce our consumption of imported oil, we should not overlook the most readily available domestic alternative to imported oil: biofuels. The development
July 13, 2009 Read Full Article
Senate Ag Panel's Members Look to Stake Major Claim in Climate Bill
by Allison Winter (New York Times, ClimateWire) ... Chairman Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and other members of his panel say they want to ensure any effort at wide-ranging climate legislation in the Senate will include all of the provisions that House Agriculture
July 10, 2009 Read Full Article
EPA Extends Renewable Fuel Standard Comment Period to September 25
EPA is extending the comment period for the proposed rule "Regulation of Fuels and Fuel Additives: Changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard Program." Under the Federal Register Notice, published May 26, 2009. the public comment period was set to end
July 06, 2009 Read Full Article
New Zealand Green Party Introduces Sustainable Biofuels Legislation
A bill introduced in the New Zealand Parliament re-instates the legal framework for selling sustainable biofuels in New Zealand without violating World Trade Organization obligations. It does not distinguish between imported and locally produced biofuel, but requires both to meet the sustainability
July 02, 2009 Read Full Article
EPA Grants California Greenhouse Gas Emissions Standards Waiver Request
EPA is granting California’s waiver request enabling the state to enforce its greenhouse gas emissions standards for new motor vehicles, beginning with the current model year. ... The first California waiver request was made in December 2005 and was subsequently
July 01, 2009 Read Full Article
House Ag Committee Chair Reaches Climate Change Bill Agreement
House Agriculture Committee Chairman Collin C. Peterson issued the following statement on an agreement with House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Henry Waxman on the American Clean Energy and Security Act of 2009. "We have reached an agreement that works for
June 24, 2009 Read Full Article
A Fair Accounting of Greenhouse Gases For All Potential Transportation Fuels
by Bob Dinneen, Renewable Fuels Association It is troubling--and, at the same time, sadly amusing--that an enterprising reporter at USA Today has done more homework on the possible indirect effects of increased renewable electricity generation than scores of analysts at
June 24, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels and Greenhouse Gas Emissions on a Collision Course
by Dr. Robert Wisner, Biofuels Economist, Ag Marketing Resource Center, Iowa State University The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007 (1) requires a gradual increase in the volume of various kinds of biofuels to be blended with U.S. motor
June 24, 2009 Read Full Article
BIO Focuses on Advanced Biofuels Asking EPA to Maintain Flexibility in Life Cycle Analysis for Renewable Fuel Standard
Large uncertainties in calculating international land use change effects and associated greenhouse gas emissions remain in the Environmental Protection Agency's life cycle assessment of biofuels for the Renewable Fuel Standard. The Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) today asked EPA to maintain
June 17, 2009 Read Full Article
Harkin: Indirect Land Use Won't Stand Up to Scientific Scrutiny
by Dan Looker. Talking to reporters, Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) said he doubts that the final rule from the Environmental Protection Agency on a new renewable fuel standard will have the same use of indirect land use that
June 16, 2009 Read Full Article
Pelosi, US House Farm Chief Discuss Climate Bill
Speaker Nancy Pelosi met the House Agriculture Committee chairman Collin Peterson to discuss the climate change bill that he opposes but which is a priority for House Democrats this year. ... Peterson announced opposition to the climate bill a month ago
June 16, 2009 Read Full Article
“Drama Building for Biofuels in California”: a Biofuels Digest Special Report
Being a standard-bearer requires heroic endeavors, and perhaps inevitably, epic miscalculations as well. This is the situation of the California Air Resources Board (ARB) in its recent announcement of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard for alternative fuels .” For so long the
June 16, 2009 Read Full Article
DTN and The Guardian/Greenpeace Report on Brazil Deforestation
By Kieran Gartlan (DTN): The transformation began last year when a controversial study was published in Science Magazine by environmentalist Tim Searchinger. It introduced the innocuous four-letter acronym ILUC, or Indirect Land Use Change. According to ILUC theory, corn used for
June 01, 2009 Read Full Article
Nowhere Does the Energy Independence and Security Act Mention “International Indirect Land Use Change”
Thoughts from Joanne Ivancic, Executive Director, Advanced Biofuels USA. There has been a lot of controversy about “indirect land use change” analysis related to figuring out how much greenhouse gas emissions result from the production of biofuels. Looking closely at
May 29, 2009 Read Full Article
Manning Feraci, National Biodiesel Board Concerned About Proposed EPA RFS GHGRule
... It appears that the EPA, in determining the ghg profile for biodiesel, is penalizing the U.S. biodiesel industry for land use decisions made outside the U.S. that have little if anything to do with the domestic biodiesel production. A
May 12, 2009 Read Full Article
Biofuels in Asia: An Analysis of Sustanability Options
(Clean Energy Asia) The purpose of this report is to provide an objective and comprehensive regional analysis summarizing the benefits and risks of biofuels development in Asia, and examining the istribution and use of biofuels through the lens of global
March 30, 2009 Read Full Article
Defining Sustainability: Science, Standards, and Scorecards: An Industrial Perspective on Sustainability
by Peter Halling (Novozymes, Inc.) He talked about an industry perspective, from the point of view of Novozymes, a company that actively pursues sustainability in its business practices. Novozymes is the world leader in industrial enzymes and microorganisms with 700