About: indirect land-use change

Biofuel debate a political hot potato as EU renewable energy law nears home straight

Talks over how to decarbonise the EU's transport fleet are heating up. As policymakers prepare the bloc's renewable energy targets for 2030, part of the debate has crystallised around the role of biofuels. And farmers are getting increasingly vocal.

Biomass and biofuels in the EU: Emotion-based policymaking?

The European Commission’s tinkering on biomass policy effectively promotes oil over economically viable and sustainable biofuels, writes Francis X. Johnson.

The real impact of palm oil and failed policies

The true negative impact of palm oil, the interests that the trade serves and the failure of policy to deal with deforestation and other consequences, write Jakub Kvapil, Stanislav Lhota and Zoltán Szabó

More biofuels with low environmental impact possible, scientists say

EU countries could increase their production of biofuels with a minimum impact on the environment, Utrecht University scientists concluded in a study published on Tuesday (13 January). 

Report: EU underestimates biofuels’ greenhouse gas savings by 50%

The European Union has underestimated the greenhouse gas emissions savings offered by biofuels by as much as 50%, according to a report published today.

EU diplomats agree to 7% biofuels cap

EU ambassadors have agreed to a 7% cap on biofuels made from food crops in transport fuel, in a move environmentalists say is a “timid step” in the right direction.

Stop ignoring farmer’s know-how on biofuels

The end of 2013 is approaching and, once again, we are facing a political biofuels showdown. Instead of relying on data from incomplete food market models, stakeholders and most notably farmers should be involved, Hans Langeveld writes.

UK proposes double-counting on biofuels to meet EU green targets

Britain has proposed a way to lower the European Union's 2020 target for renewable energy by counting the contribution from biofuels twice, avoiding the need for billions of euros in investment, a document shows. 

Biofuels: Who’s subsidising whom?

Land-use change arguments against biofuels are based on shifting sands, and neglect the massive contribution that fuel crops such as bioethanol make to Europe's economy, argue Eric Sievers and Rob Vierhout. 

Top scientists condemn EU land use values for biofuels

Over 100 top scientists and economists have written to the European Commission calling for indirect land use change (ILUC) to be accounted for in EU biofuels policy making.

EU ‘should involve developing countries’ in biofuels debate

The EU needs to consult developing countries that produce vegetable oils before making policy decisions that establish sustainability criteria for biofuels, Dato' Azhar Abdul Hamid, managing director of Sime Darby Plantation, told EURACTIV in an interview.

Palm oil producers: EU should involve developing countries in biofuels debate

The EU needs to consult developing countries that produce vegetable oils before making policy decisions that establish sustainability criteria for biofuels, Dato' Azhar Abdul Hamid, managing director of Sime Darby Plantation, told EURACTIV in an interview.

EU biofuels target borderline sustainable, report finds

Going beyond a 5.6% share of biofuels in transport fuel could harm the environment, found a new report made public by the European Commission yesterday (25 March), suggesting that the EU's current target is only borderline sustainable.