Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
strict environmental regulation with regard to biofuels production, there
will be an increasing possibility of negative environmental consequences
in those countries as the demand for biofuels increases globally in the
future.
The biofuels progress report, however, sees more benei ts than costs
for both the EU and its trading partners from growth in the biofuels
industry. In addition to the much discussed benei ts from the reduction
of greenhouse gas emissions, it not only sees short- and long-term secu-
rity of energy supply in the EU through the increasing use of biofuels,
it also posits that the demand for biofuel imports from the EU can help
improve trade relations and provide opportunities for developing coun-
tries to produce and export biofuels at competitive prices (European
Commission, 2007b, p.10). In the likely absence of second generation
biofuels in the highly competitive fuel market for another decade or so,
Europe has to rely heavily on countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia (for
biodiesel) and Brazil (for bioethanol) to meet its growing biofuel needs,
at least in the foreseeable future. Taking a similar line to the EU Strategy
for Biofuels (European Commission, 2006) and the Biomass Action Plan
(European Commission, 2005), the biofuels progress report calls for non-
discriminatory access to the biofuels market for both domestic production
and imports, as long as they meet sustainability criteria in the production of
biofuels (European Commission, 2007b). Furthermore, the report argues
that the target of 10 per cent biofuels by 2010 could be met with limited
use of the second generation biofuels through (1) further development of
rapeseed cultivation in the EU and its neighbours to the east; (2) proper
incentives to biofuels producers, both in the EU and other countries, for
environmentally friendly production of biofuels and (3) 'implementation
of the balanced approach to international trade in biofuels, so that both
exporting countries and domestic producers can invest with coni dence in
the opportunities created by the growing European market' (European
Commission 2007b, p.13). However, the report argues that the likely
failure to meet the directive's biofuels target for 2010 (as a whole in the
EU) cannot be described as 'justii ed', and hence calls for the revision of
the directive to make it more ef ective. It calls for the biofuels directive to
be revised to (1) reiterate the EU's determination in reducing its depend-
ence in oil for transport; (2) set minimum targets for the share of biofuels
and (3) discourage unsustainable production of biofuels in favour of those
produced in an environmentally friendly fashion (European Commission,
2007b). Nonetheless, it recognizes that revision of the biofuel directive will
not work by itself, and that the changes will require 'sustained ef ort on
the part of industry, agriculture and Member States as well as the EU' to
make them work (European Commission, 2007b, p. 13).
