Climate change

Dr Nigel Mortimer

Managing Director

North Energy Associates, Sheffield

Principle 3: Climate change

Biofuels should contribute to a net

reduction of total greenhouse gas

(GHG) emissions and not exacerbate

global climate change

The current situation

• Target-based policies encourage large-scale production

• Can promote production in countries without climate change mitigation policies

• Corn-based bioethanol production in the USA

European regulation• Biofuels supplied within the EU have

requirements for GHG emission savings • Stronger controls needed for EU imports

Measuring greenhouse gas emissions

• Percentage difference between total GHG emissions of a biofuel and total GHG emissions of a conventional fuel

• Life cycle assessment of biofuels accounts GHG emissions associated with:– Cultivation/provision– Processing/conversion– Transport– Land use change (direct and indirect)?

Land use change Direct land use change (dLUC) • EC approach - no land with high carbon

stocks should be used for the cultivation of biofuels

Indirect land use change (iLUC)• RED proposes EC should develop a

methodology to minimise GHG emissions associated with iLUC

• Regulation or policy analysis?

Recommendations

• Single international standard for assessing GHG emissions across the life cycle of biofuels should be used by EC and EU Member States

• Policies on land use change should be set within a global, co-ordinated response to climate change, with strong international and local measures to prevent destruction of high carbon stocks

New technologies• Potential for reducing GHG emissions• Blunt targets for current biofuels mean few

incentives for developing new technologies Recommendation • Policy makers should incentivise research

and development of new biofuels technologies that: – reduce greenhouse gas emissions– avoid environmental harms– avoid social harms– need less land and other resources