Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
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Figure 4.6. Sugarcane production expansion in Brazil 1970-2010 - harvested area in million hectares and
production in million tonnes (IBGE, 2011).
harvested area doubled and the production almost tripled reflecting significant increase in yields.
The expansion of sugarcane has been constant since 1975 albeit much slower between 1985 and
2000 (Fig. 4.6). Cane-based energy increased by 120% in the first five years of the ethanol
program, and then doubled between 1980 and 1985. The initial target of 3.5 billion liters set for
1980 was achieved already in 1982. In 1985, 95% of the light vehicles produced and sold in Brazil
were ethanol driven.
The rapid fall in oil prices in the second half of the 1980s put a strong pressure on the Brazilian
ethanol program. The government had difficulties justifying its focus on the fuel shift at a time
when oil prices were low and climate change efforts had not started. There was not yet broad
common understanding about the multiple benefits of the sugar industry for the country. At the
same time, the Brazilian economy was being gradually opened up, and ethanol-related policies
moved towards removing price regulations and the incentives previously provided to the sector. As
a consequence, research and development on sugarcane production slowed down, while producers
shifted to sugar, where prices had recovered and offered a better return in export markets. The
situation culminated in a shortage of ethanol in the pumps leading to ethanol andmethanol imports,
undermined consumer confidence and collapse of the market for ethanol cars (Rosillo-Calle and
Cortez, 1998).
However, some positive effects came out from the challenges of the late 1980s as well. In
particular, the efforts made by producers to adapt to the new policy and market context led to
significant efficiency improvements. The average ethanol production cost declined twice as fast
in the late 1980s compared with the previous ten years (Goldemberg et al ., 2004; Moreira and
Goldemberg, 1999). The high blend of ethanol in gasoline guaranteed a market which, given
the expansion of demand, still offered potential to absorb production. Nevertheless, production
increased much slower in this period than before. The introduction of the flex-fuel technology
in 2003 boosted a new phase in favor of ethanol markets. With a well-established infrastructure
for ethanol distribution, and flexibility for consumers to choose their fuel, the flex-fuel cars
gained the new sales market very fast. In 2010, flex-fuel cars comprised 86% of new car sales
in Brazil. Today, 44% of the Brazilian fleet of light vehicles is composed of flex-fuel vehicles.
The production of ethanol doubled since the introduction of flex-fuel cars and is now at 28 billion
liters of ethanol per year (EPE, 2011c).
Since 2005, the area planted with sugarcane doubled and the production almost tripled (see
Fig. 4.6). In 2010, the area harvested reached 9.0 million hectares, while production reached
717 million tonnes. The area planted is equivalent to 2.7% of Brazil's total arable land. Yields
increased by 30% between 1990 and 2010, reaching 80 tonnes/ha in average. In the southeast
region, however, yields have reached considerably higher levels. Sugarcane amounts to 18.4% of
 
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