Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'even worse than fossil fuels'

The UK's "illogical" use of biofuels will cost drivers around ₤ 460 million over the next 12 months, a think tank states.

A report by Chatham House, external states the growing reliance on sustainable liquid fuels will also increase food prices.

The author states that biodiesel made from grease was worse for the environment than nonrenewable fuel sources.

Under EU law, external, biofuels are set to make up 5% of the UK's transport fuel from today.

Since 2008, the UK has actually required fuel suppliers to include a growing percentage of sustainable products into the petrol and diesel they provide. These biofuels are mainly ethanol distilled from corn and biodiesel made from rapeseed, utilized cooking oil and tallow.

Deep fried fuel

But research study brought out for Chatham House says that reaching the 5% level suggests that UK drivers will need to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year since of the greater expense of fuel at the pump and from filling up more frequently as biofuels have a lower energy material.

The report say that if the UK is to satisfy its commitments to EU energy targets the expense to vehicle drivers is most likely to rise to ₤ 1.3 bn per year by 2020.

"It is difficult to discover any good news," Rob Bailey, senior research fellow at Chatham House, informed BBC News.

"Biofuels increase expenses and they are a very pricey way to decrease carbon emissions," he stated.

The EU biofuel mandates are also having extremely distorting results in the market. Because used cooking oil is considered as among the most sustainable types of biodiesel, the rate for it has actually increased quickly. Rob Bailey says that towards the end of 2012 it was more expensive than refined palm oil.

"It develops a monetary reward to buy refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into utilized cooking oil and after that offer it at revenue,"

"It is insane however the rewards are there."

There are also frets that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in particular is producing more climate problems than it resolves. The more fuel of this type that is put into cars and trucks the larger the deficit created in the market. This had lead to increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, frequently produced on deforested land.

"Once you consider these indirect impacts, biofuels made from veggie oils really result worldwide in more emissions than you would get from utilizing diesel in the first place," stated Rob Bailey.

"Plus you are asking vehicle drivers to pay more for the fuel - it makes no sense, it is an entirely irrational technique."

Biofuel advantages

The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the industry, external across the EU, stated it was conscious of the problems brought on by the required. But it believes that biofuels have lots of positives.

"Blaming biofuels for all the troubles in the world is a bit too overstated," stated Isabelle Maurizi, project supervisor at the EBB.

"It has brought lots of benefits. It has enhanced the security of our diesel; it has actually reduced EU dependence on animal feed imports, thanks to the rapeseed we grow for biodiesel."

"If there was no biodiesel farmers would simply make their land idle - no food, no feed!"

As the UK hits the 5% of liquid fuels mark, the federal government faces some challenging decisions on how to move forward on this concern as it deals with tripling the expenses for vehicle drivers by 2020.

Insiders suggest its choice would be to try and get contract in Brussels on the effects of indirect expenses which might constrain what counts as biofuel. However getting contract from nations with powerful farming sectors who gain from the existing plan will be difficult.

"When you have a lobby which consists of the farming sector and the oil sector it is really difficult for Governments to make a U-turn," said Rob Bailey.

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