Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'even worse than fossil fuels'
The UK's "unreasonable" usage of biofuels will cost 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 also increase food prices.
The author says that biodiesel made from vegetable oil 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 needed fuel providers to include a growing percentage of sustainable products into the fuel and diesel they supply. These biofuels are generally from corn and biodiesel made from rapeseed, utilized cooking oil and tallow.
Deep fried fuel
But research study carried out for Chatham House says that reaching the 5% level indicates that UK motorists will have to pay an additional ₤ 460m a year because of the greater cost of fuel at the pump and from filling more frequently as biofuels have a lower energy content.
The report say that if the UK is to fulfill its responsibilities to EU energy targets the cost to drivers is 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 costs and they are a really costly method to reduce carbon emissions," he stated.
The EU biofuel mandates are likewise having extremely distorting effects in the marketplace. Because used cooking oil is regarded as one of the most sustainable kinds of biodiesel, the rate for it has risen rapidly. Rob Bailey states that towards the end of 2012 it was more costly than refined palm oil.
"It creates a financial incentive to purchase refined palm oil, prepare a chip in it to turn it into utilized cooking oil and after that offer it at earnings,"
"It is crazy however the rewards exist."
There are also frets that taking EU land out of production to grow rapeseed oil in specific is creating more environment problems than it fixes. The more fuel of this type that is put into vehicles the bigger the deficit developed in the edible oils market. This had lead to increased imports of palm oil from Indonesia, often produced on deforested land.
"Once you take into consideration these indirect effects, biofuels made from vegetable oils in fact result worldwide in more emissions than you would obtain from utilizing diesel in the very first location," said Rob Bailey.
"Plus you are asking motorists to pay more for the fuel - it makes no sense, it is a totally illogical technique."
Biofuel benefits
The European Biodiesel Board (EBB), which represents the industry, external throughout the EU, said it knew the problems triggered by the required. But it believes that biofuels have lots of positives.
"Blaming biofuels for all the problems worldwide is a bit too exaggerated," said Isabelle Maurizi, job manager at the EBB.
"It has brought lots of benefits. It has actually enhanced the security of our diesel
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Biofuels: 'Irrational' and 'even Worse than Fossil Fuels'
George Dacre edited this page 1 week ago