Posted on 06/17/2014 8:17:23 PM PDT by Lorianne
EU ministers have agreed to 7% cap on the use of food-based biofuels in transport fuel. The agreement comes after a long-standing controversy, with biofuels being criticized for adding to environmental problems.
The so-called "first generation" biofuels are made from crops such as maize, beetroot, or rapeseed. They were initially backed by the EU as a way to tackle climate change and reduce EU dependence on imported oil and gas. However, research has since shown that biofuels do more environmental harm than good.
Making fuel out of crops has been criticized for displacing other crops and forcing the clearing of valuable habitats and virgin vegetation, particularly mangrove swamps in Southeast Asia. Biofuels have also been blamed for inflating food prices by competing with food production, which leads to shortages and higher prices in some of the world's poorest countries.
In response to the criticism, EU energy ministers agreed on a reduction of biofuels use at a meeting on Friday. The new deal is aimed at capping the use of fuel made from food products to seven percent of transport sector energy use by 2020.
An original target set in 2009 was 10 percent, but the European Commission originally backed a five percent limit. Acknowledging that the current seven percent agreement is weaker than hoped, EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said the result is “better than no decision at all.”
"We need to support research and development in advanced biofuels so we can move forward from generation one into generation two and generation three," Oettinger told the Luxembourg meeting of ministers. The deal must now be considered by the newly-elected European Parliament, which is expected to begin dealing with it later this year.
(Excerpt) Read more at rt.com ...
Just eliminate the subsidies and the food-based biofuels will go away.
>> They never mention who thought it was a good idea to use food based crops for fuel in the first place.
C’mon — they don’t want to insult their idiotic buddies.
If these morons had any background in science, math, economics, farming etc., then... they would still be narcissistic redistributors of other people’s money - because they’re inherently flawed and downright evil.
Correct, this has been the on going issue while the price of corn has gone through the roof for what it is really worth. Here in the states the price of all foods is going through the roof. All this being done by the fascists who want everyone but themselves to live like thirdworld countries.
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