Biofuels are fuels made from plant materials, like soya or wheat. However, if biofuel production is not carried out with care, it can have serious side effects, like destruction of wildlife habitats and increased food prices.
Biofuels are fuels for transport made from plant or animal materials. Two common biofuels are:
Biofuels can help improve energy security because they reduce our dependence on oil and gas.
A 5 per cent blend of biodiesel is already widely used throughout Europe and, since April 2008, in much of the UK. This is suitable for use in all diesel vehicles without any modification, and it is dispensed through normal pumps. A 5 per cent blend of ethanol is also sold in some filling stations.
There are also a small number of UK filling stations supplying higher blends of biofuel which are only suitable for use in special vehicles.
Some biofuels can lead to loss of important habitats and wildlife, and can have negative social impacts such as rising food prices. Some potential problems include:
Many governments around the world are trying to encourage increased biofuel production and this increase is happening rapidly. The scale and speed of these changes mean that the balance between benefits and potential negative effects from biofuels are still not fully understood.
The Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation requires UK fuel suppliers to include a certain amount of biofuel in the fuel that they supply. In order to encourage them to source the best biofuels, fuel suppliers are obliged to report on:
The government has said that no more than 5 per cent fuel in the UK will be biofuel until it can be sure that it is supplied in a way that avoids negative side effects (like habitat loss or impacts on food prices). They are also campaigning for the EU's proposed target, of 10 per cent of vehicle fuel to be biofuel by 2020, to be conditional on the indirect impacts of biofuels being adequately addressed.
Environment and greener living
