Brussels, 15/10/2012 (Agence Europe) - The new rules proposed by the Commission to take into account greenhouse gas emissions linked to indirect land use change related to biofuels are already coming in for some criticism from the first generation biofuels industry.
On Wednesday 17 October, the European Commission will unveil its draft amendment to the directives on renewables and fuel quality, relating to the sustainability of biofuels that take into account greenhouse gas emissions linked to indirect land use (ILUC). The proposal intends to introduce a 5% ceiling on the contribution made by first-generation biofuels (products based on food crops) to the target of including renewable energies in transport. It also intends, however, to put an end to subsidies for first generation biofuels from 2020. At the same time, the Commission wants to boost development of second-generation biofuels produced from waste (see EUROPE 10694).
This project has already been criticised by EU agricultural and cooperative organisations represented by Copa-Cogeca (see EUROPE 10709). It has also been criticised by the first-generation biofuels industry lobbies, the vegetable oil industry (Fediol), biodiesel producers (EBB), the renewable ethanol association (e-Pure) and the grains and oil grains trade committee (Coceral). They believe that new rules on biofuel sustainability will immediately kill off their sector, including the agricultural production chain and lead to the loss of thousands of jobs in the industry, which has already made €14 billion of investment in this field and created 100,000 jobs. (EH/trans.fl)