TheBioenergySite Latest News
EU Commission Determined to Stick with Biofuel Plan
BELGIUM - The European Commission said on Monday it was standing by its target of getting 10 percent of its road transport fuel from crops and biomass by 2020, despite mounting criticism it could worsen food shortages, writes Pete Harrison (Reuters). The January proposals have become increasingly controversial amid soaring world food prices and fears that farm land in developing countries is being diverted away from food crops towards others that can be distilled into vehicle fuel.
Asked by reporters whether media reports that the Commission was reconsidering the biofuel target were true, the spokesman said: "The answer is very simple - no."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought to take the heat off biofuels last week, saying bad agricultural policies and changing eating habits in developing nations are the main cause of rising food prices. And Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas told Reuters the 10 percent target would be subservient to strict conditions to prevent social harm.
But environmentalists say that if Europe sets effective sustainability criteria it will make its own target unachievable.
"We'd be very hard pressed to reach that target if we're only producing biofuels that are good for the environment," said a Greenpeace spokesman in Brussels.
The European Commission did not include social impacts in the criteria it proposed in January, which mostly concerned protecting rainforests and ensuring that biofuels achieve a real reduction in greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming.
A European Union working group is currently looking at how to set criteria to limit social damage, but has not been empowered to reconsider the 10 percent target.
View the Reuters story by clicking here.
Further Reading
 |
- | Go to our previous news item on this story by clicking here. |
TheBioenergySite News Desk
Latest Bioenergy Industry News
Biofuel Subsidies in China
CME: Crude Oil Prices Impact Livestock Production
€50m Set for Wind Farm Investment
Planning Notice for Aegir Offshore Wind Farm Submitted- Agreement on Viability of Mammoth Ethanol Facility
- EPA Applauded for Biodiesel Rule in 2009
Type of Physic Nut to Undergo R&D- Sweet Potatoes Entering Biofuels Arena
- Investments Funded in Ethanol-making Microbe
Sugarcane Expansion to be Restricted
