Biofuels: ethical issues

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "Biofuels: ethical issues"

Marsha Austin
6 years ago
Views:

1 Biofuels: ethical issues Dr Alena Buyx, University College London and University of Münster Former Assistant Director of the Nuffield Council on Bioethics

2 Nuffield Council on Bioethics Established 1991 Independent body examines ethical questions raised by advances in biology and medicine Contributes to policy making and stimulates debate

3 Biofuels: ethical issues Report published April 2011 Sets out an ethical framework to guide policy making for both current and future biofuels Working Party approach

4 The problem Fossil fuels increasingly unsustainable Efforts to reduce consumption are essential, but short and mid term need for liquid transport fuel will remain Biofuels are one of the few alternatives for energy for transport

5 Biofuels Currently only a small proportion of world energy use Drivers and potential Energy security Economic development Mitigation of climate change

6 Current policies Many targets and policies encourage uptake of biofuels for transport: The US Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) The European Commission Renewable Energy Directive (RED) The European Fuel Quality Directive The UK Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (Amendment) Order

7 Current biofuels Two main types currently in production: Bioethanol (to blend with petrol) Biodiesel (to blend with diesel) Case studies examples of ethical concerns: Deforestation Risks to food security Human rights breaches Concerns of inequity

8 New approaches Waste products Straw, used cooking oil, municipal waste Local and smaller scale solutions Lignocellulosic biofuels E.g. willow, miscanthus and switchgrass Uses all of the plant biomass Algal biofuels Mostly at the experimental stage Will not compete for agricultural land

9 Case study 1: US Food security: tortilla riots in Mexico GHG savings: indirect land-use change Water security: high water demand

10 Case study 2: Brazil Environmental sustainability: deforestation Workers rights: slave labour, unhealthy working conditions; informal child labour

11 Case study 3: Malaysia Environmental sustainability: deforestation and biodiversity losses Human rights: land grabs, disruption of subsistence economies Food security: rising price of palm oil and foods that use palm oil

12 The story so far Production of current biofuels is largely unsustainable. We need to: Improve current production methods Continue to develop alternatives for the future Our report offers an ethical framework for policy making to enable more ethical production of biofuels.

13 Moral values Human rights and global justice Solidarity and the common good Stewardship Sustainability Intergenerational equity

14 Five ethical principles and one ethical duty 1. Biofuels development should not be at the expense of people s essential human rights 2. Biofuels should be environmentally sustainable 3. Biofuels should contribute to a net reduction of total greenhouse gas emissions 4. Biofuels should adhere to fair trade principles 5. Costs and benefits of biofuels should be distributed in an equitable way 6. If the first five principles are respected, depending on certain key considerations, there is a duty to develop such biofuels

15 Not just biofuels We recommend that our Ethical Principles be applied, ultimately, as a benchmark to all comparable technologies and products

16 1. Human Rights Some key recommendations: Biofuels targets to avoid incentivising human rights abuses. Effective monitoring systems in and outside UK and Europe. Compulsory certification of human rights standards

17 2. Environmental Key recommendation sustainability An international environmental sustainability standard for biofuels production should be developed, for example by the United Nations Environment Programme.

18 3. Global Climate Change Some key recommendations: Single international regulatory standard for life cycle greenhouse gas emissions assessment Address land use change directly with global, co-ordinated response

19 4. Just Reward Some key recommendations: Biofuels production targets should promote fair pay and fair trade principles Licensing schemes should address all Intellectual Property Rights issues

20 5. Equitable Distribution Some key recommendation: Policies should ensure benefits are shared equitably, e.g. through public-privatepartnerships Biofuels policy and future sustainability initiatives should not discourage local, small-scale biofuel production, particularly in fuel-poor developing countries

21 6. An Ethical Duty If the first five principles are respected, depending on certain key considerations, there is a duty to develop such biofuels

22 Applying ethical principles Compare broad energy portfolios rather than individual technology options Ethical principles are a basis for evaluation Policy makers should incentivise research and development of new biofuels technologies that need less land and other resources avoid social and environmental harms reduce greenhouse gas emissions

23 Bringing it all together Sophisticated target-based strategy Comprehensive ethical standard Enforced through a certification scheme The standard should include: protection of human rights protection of the environment full assessment of greenhouse gas emissions fair reward and trade principles access and benefit-sharing schemes Plus: Investment in new biotechnologies

24 The problem with current targets Lack of incentives Established biofuels New biofuels Financial rewards Avoiding penalties

25 New technologies policy support? RED: Proposals for revised targets announced October 2012 Limit (5% of the total energy for transport) those biofuels that are produced from cereal and other food crops; aimed at increasing development of other types of biofuels which do not compete with food

Biofuel policies for dynamic markets

Biofuel policies for dynamic markets BEHIND BIOFUELS... I. The problem: Increased demand for biofuels could have significant long-term impacts on several commodity markets. Current disputes on this issue