Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'even worse than nonrenewable fuel sources'
The UK's "unreasonable" use of biofuels will cost vehicle drivers around ₤ 460 million over the next 12 months, a think tank states.
A report by Chatham House, external says the growing reliance on sustainable liquid fuels will likewise increase food prices.
The author says that biodiesel made from grease was even worse for the environment than fossil fuels.
Under EU law, external, biofuels are set to make up 5% of the UK's transportation fuel from today.
Since 2008, the UK has actually required fuel suppliers to add a growing proportion of sustainable materials into the petrol and diesel they supply. These biofuels are mainly ethanol distilled from corn and biodiesel made from rapeseed, used cooking oil and tallow.
Deep fried fuel
But research study carried out for Chatham House states that reaching the 5% level implies that UK drivers will need to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year due to the fact that of the greater cost of fuel at the pump and from filling up regularly as biofuels have a lower energy content.
The report state that if the UK is to meet its obligations to EU energy targets the expense to motorists is most likely to rise to ₤ 1.3 bn per annum by 2020.
"It is hard to find any excellent news," Rob Bailey, senior research fellow at Chatham House, told BBC News.
"Biofuels increase expenses and they are an extremely pricey method to lower carbon emissions," he stated.
The EU biofuel mandates are likewise having hugely distorting impacts in the marketplace. Because used cooking oil is related to as one of the most sustainable kinds of biodiesel, the cost for it has actually risen rapidly. Rob Bailey says that towards completion of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.
"It creates a monetary incentive to buy refined palm oil, cook a chip in it to turn it into utilized cooking oil and then sell it at profit,"
"It is insane but the rewards exist."
There are likewise stresses that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in specific is creating more climate problems than it solves. The more fuel of this type that is put into automobiles the larger the deficit produced in the edible oils market. This had resulted in increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, typically produced on deforested land.
"Once you consider these indirect effects, biofuels made from vegetable oils actually result worldwide in more emissions than you would get from using diesel in the first place," said Rob Bailey.
"Plus you are asking drivers to pay more for the fuel - it makes no sense, it is a completely illogical strategy."
Biofuel benefits
The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the market, external across the EU, said it knew the problems triggered by the mandate. But it thinks that biofuels have many positives.
"Blaming biofuels for all the difficulties in the world is a bit too overstated," stated Isabelle Maurizi, task manager at the EBB.
"It has brought lots of benefits. It has actually enhanced the security of our diesel; it has minimized EU dependence on animal feed imports, thanks to the rapeseed we grow for biodiesel."
"If there was no biodiesel farmers would just make their land idle - no food, no feed!"
As the UK hits the 5% of liquid fuels mark, the government deals with some hard choices on how to progress on this concern as it deals with tripling the costs for drivers by 2020.
Insiders suggest its choice would be to try and get agreement in Brussels on the effects of indirect expenses which may constrain what counts as biofuel. However getting agreement from countries with effective agricultural sectors who take advantage of the current arrangement will be difficult.
"When you have a lobby which consists of the farming sector and the oil sector it is extremely tough for Governments to make a U-turn," stated Rob Bailey.
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