FoES comment: Biofuel targets reviewed - Friends of the Earth Scotland

FoES comment: Biofuel targets reviewed

08 July 2008
Topics: Other

Royal Bank of Scotland biofuel investments look increasingly shaky

Friends of the Earth Scotland tentatively welcomed yesterday's acknowledgements by the UK Transport and Environment Secretaries that biofuels may not be the environmental solution they've been previously sold as. However, the campaigning group urged that biofuels targets should be replaced with more meaningful targets, linked to reducing climate changing emissions.

EU Ministers are reconsidering the target to have 10% of fuel for cars and lorries coming from biofuels by 2020 and reinterpreting this to mean that 10% of transport needs should be met by renewable energy, which could included energy for trams and trains. Meanwhile in the UK Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly has pledged to "consult on slowing down the rate of increase in the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation"

FoES have been concerned at the impact of biofuel production on the environment and upon people, and are awaiting confirmation of claims made last week that an internal Wold Bank study reports that diverting land from food to biofuel production has forced global food prices up by 75% [1]. Although this document is not yet in the public domain, the UK Government’s Gallagher Review [2], published on 7 July, states that, “we cannot continue producing biofuels which are ultimately more environmentally and socially damaging than the fossil fuels they seek to replace”.

Duncan McLaren, Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland said:

"We need to stop this rush towards fuels produced from food crops, many which have been shown to be socially and environmentally damaging - destroying tropical forests and forcing up food prices. If we are to get energy from plants and trees we need to ensure it is only done when there is a clear positive social and environmental impact."

"We can't use tinkering with biofuels to cover up and delay the real changes we need to make - increasing the fuel efficiency of vehicles and getting people onto public transport and other means of travel."

Closer to home financial institutions such as the Royal Bank of Scotland need to consider how best to manage the transition that they claim they are making from financing oil and gas to financing renewable energy. Currently, either directly or through their subsidiaries such as ABN Amro, the Royal Bank is financing companies like Cargill, Bunge and Brasil Ecodiesel in the production of 2.2 billion litres of agrofuel yearly, or a hundred thousand tonnes of soya beans per day [3].

ENDS

NOTES

[1] Secret report: biofuel caused food crisis http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jul/03/biofuels.renewableenergy
[2] http://www.dft.gov.uk/rfa/_db/_documents/Report_of_the_Gallagher_review.pdf
[3] http://www.foeeurope.org/agrofuels/financers_report_May08.pdf

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FoES comment: Biofuel targets reviewed
Royal Bank of Scotland biofuel investments look increasingly shaky

Friends of the Earth Scotland tentatively welcomed yesterday's acknowledgements by the UK Transport and Environment Secretaries that biofuels may not be the environmental solution they've been previously sold as. However, the campaigning group urged that biofuels targets should be replaced with more meaningful targets, linked to reducing climate changing emissions.

EU Ministers are reconsidering the target to have 10% of fuel for cars and lorries coming from biofuels by 2020 and reinterpreting this to mean that 10% of transport needs should be met by renewable energy, which could included energy for trams and trains. Meanwhile in the UK Transport Secretary Ruth Kelly has pledged to "consult on slowing down the rate of increase in the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation"

FoES have been concerned at the impact of biofuel production on the environment and upon people, and are awaiting confirmation of claims made last week that an internal Wold Bank study reports that diverting land from food to biofuel production has forced global food prices up by 75% [1]. Although this document is not yet in the public domain, the UK Government’s Gallagher Review [2], published on 7 July, states that, “we cannot continue producing biofuels which are ultimately more environmentally and socially damaging than the fossil fuels they seek to replace”.

Duncan McLaren, Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland said:

"We need to stop this rush towards fuels produced from food crops, many which have been shown to be socially and environmentally damaging - destroying tropical forests and forcing up food prices. If we are to get energy from plants and trees we need to ensure it is only done when there is a clear positive social and environmental impact."

"We can't use tinkering with biofuels to cover up and delay the real changes we need to make - increasing the fuel efficiency of vehicles and getting people onto public transport and other means of travel."

Closer to home financial institutions such as the Royal Bank of Scotland need to consider how best to manage the transition that they claim they are making from financing oil and gas to financing renewable energy. Currently, either directly or through their subsidiaries such as ABN Amro, the Royal Bank is financing companies like Cargill, Bunge and Brasil Ecodiesel in the production of 2.2 billion litres of agrofuel yearly, or a hundred thousand tonnes of soya beans per day [3].

ENDS

Media contact: Owen Davis: 0131 243 2719 (office), 0131 243 2715 (redirect to mobile)

NOTES

[1] Secret report: biofuel caused food crisis http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/jul/03/biofuels.renewableenergy
[2] http://www.dft.gov.uk/rfa/_db/_documents/Report_of_the_Gallagher_review.pdf
[3] http://www.foeeurope.org/agrofuels/financers_report_May08.pdf

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