Annex 1
1. What are the possible positive and negative
social, environmental and economic consequences of biofuels? How
might trade-offs between climate benefits and environmental and
social impacts be made? Is there a need to develop a new biofuel
strategy for the UK or EU, to balance the environmental, social,
economic and climate impacts of biofuels?
Growth of biofuel crops may impact on the amount
of land available for the growth of food. In addition, the use
of crops already grown for food will reduce the amount of that
food available for human consumption. Focusing on second generation
biofuels (eg use of straw and agricultural waste as a feedstock)
may help to address this problem. The amount of land available
in the UK for cultivation of biofuel crops should be taken into
account when developing a UK strategy.
4. At what stage is biofuel technology? Is
there enough support for the development of biofuel technology?
A UN report found that the climate change benefits of solid biomass
fuels outweigh those of liquid biofuels. Are current policies
promoting the development and deployment of a range of biofuel
technologies? How successful have EU strategies and Directives
been in stimulating biofuel usage? Will the 2010 biofuel target
be reached? How effective are the Government's fiscal arrangements
for biofuels?
Biofuel technology development is still in its
infancy. Research groups around the world are taking different
routes to the development of biofuels, depending on the type of
feedstock which grows readily in their country. In the UK the
main focus is on the use of willow and Miscanthus as feedstocks
for co-firing, use of oil seed rape (OSR) for biodiesel production
and use of various crops for bioethanol generation. Further research
is needed to develop plants which grow faster and convert carbon
dioxide to biomass faster and using less fertiliser. Improved
microbes and enzymes for lignocellulose degradation are required
to make the process more efficient. Research is needed into environmental
consequences of growing bioenergy crops. BBSRC is currently investing
up to £20 million in its Bioenergy Initiative to build capacity
in bioenergy research and address appropriate research areas.
Further ringfenced funding will be dependent on the outcome of
CSR07.
In implementing its bioenergy initiative (www.bbsrc.ac.uk/science/initiatives/bioenergy.html),
BBSRC will have regard to the wider socioeconomic and environmental
contexts of growing crops for energy production. In addition,
under the cross-Research Council Rural Economy and Land Use Programme
(www.relu.ac.uk), BBSRC is already contributing to a major interdisciplinary
project that is examining the social, economic and environmental
implications of increasing rural land use for perennial dedicated
energy crops. The RELU Biomass project (www.relu-biomass.org.uk/index.php),
which is led by Rothamsted Research, a BBSRC institute, aims to
examine the sustainability of short rotation coppice willow and
Miscanthus grass in comparison with arable crops and grassland,
by comparing rural economics, social acceptability, landscape
character, water use and biodiversity. Besides its core support
from RELU, the project has attracted supplementary funding from
DEFRA, the Environment Agency and English Heritage.
5. The EU Strategy for Biofuels claims that
biofuels "are a direct substitute for fossil fuels in transport
and can readily be integrated into fuel supply systems".
What proportion of UK domestic transport and energy generation
could be fuelled by UK-produced biofuels? Is it possible for biofuels
to entirely replace oil for transport purposes? Is there a role
for public procurement or public transport? Will biofuels improve
fuel security? How secure are biofuel crops from unexpected events
such as drought or disease?
Biofuel crops are no more secure from drought
or disease than any other crops grown in the UK. The Foresight
Report into "Detection and Identification of Infectious Diseases"
considered the effects of climate change on plant/pathogen interactions;
there is a risk of new diseases of crop plants entering the UK
and becoming endemic. Biofuels can only address security of supply
if they form the majority of the UK's transport fuel (which may
have an impact on the UK's food supply).
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