BIOFUELS SUPPLEMENT
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A bi-weekly summary of world developments on biofuels, produced by the Global Knowledge Center on Crop Biotechnology, International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-biotech Applications SEAsiaCenter (ISAAA)
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November 21, 2008
In This Issue:
News and Trends
- Bioenergy Project Saves Cheetah Habitats and Wins 2008 Intel Award
- UNFCCC Report: 2.3% Increase in GHG Emissions in Industrialized Countries
- International Energy Agency (IEA) Releases World Energy Outlook 2008
Energy Crops and Feedstocks for Biofuels Production
- Cassava-based Ethanol Plant Opens in China
Biofuels Processing
- Tropical Fungus Converts Cellulose to Fuel-based Hydrocarbons
Biofuels Policy and Economics
- Analysis of Biofuel Subsidy Support in China
- USEPA Renewable Fuels Standard for 2009 Increased to 10.21%
* NEWS AND TRENDS *
Bioenergy Project Saves Cheetah Habitats and Wins 2008 Intel Award
http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/the-tech-awards-honor-five-global-innovators-with-250000,620293.shtml
https://www.cheetah.org/?nd=38
http://biopact.com/2008/11/bioenergy-projects-win-big-environment.html
The Biomass Energy Project of the Cheetah Conservation Fund (CCF) (a Namibia-based international NGO with charity status) was awarded the 2008 Intel Environment Award. In an attempt to develop an “ecologically sound and economically viable habitat improvement program”, the CCF looked into the viability of an income generating initiative which utilizes an invasive African thorn bush as a resource. It came up with a biomass project which uses a technology to convert this invasive African thorn bush into clean biomass fuel. In so doing, the habitats of cheetahs and other wildlife species that have been threatened by the bush are saved. The biomass processing plant of the “Bush Project” uses a “high-pressure extrusion process” to convert the bush into a clean and economically viable alternative to firewood and charcoal. Aside from ensuring the survival of the cheetah and its ecosystem, the project provides income-generating opportunities for self-employed entrepreneurs in Namibia..
UNFCCC Report: 2.3% Increase in GHG Emissions in Industrialized Countries
http://unfccc.int/files/press/news_room/press_releases_and_advisories/application/pdf/081117_ghg_press_release.pdf
http://unfccc.int/press/items/2794.php
http://biopact.com/2008/11/unfccc-emissions-in-industrialized.html
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Executive Secretary, Yvo de Boer, recently gave a press briefing on the highlights of the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Data for 2008. The emissions data are from 41 industrialized countries that have GHG reporting obligations. Given the recent trends in GHG emissions, Mr. Boer also mentioned about the tasks that need to be addressed in the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan, Poland (1-12 December 2008). The 2008 emissions data report shows that the GHG emissions (from the 41 industrialized countries) in 2006, was 5% below the 1990 levels. However, between the year 2000 and 2006, a disturbing rise in emissions (by 2.3%) was observed. For countries that have ratified the Kyoto Protocol, the 2006 GHG emissions were 17% below the “Kyoto baseline”. Canada was reported to have one of the highest increases in GHG emissions in 2006 (21.3%). According to Executive Secretary Boer, the rising emissions “underscore urgent need for political action on climate change. This is an important issue which needs to be discussed at the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan.".
International Energy Agency (IEA) Releases World Energy Outlook 2008
http://www.iea.org/weo/docs/weo2008/fact_sheets_08.pdf
http://seekingalpha.com/article/105842-the-iea-annual-report-a-dire-picture-of-energy-supply-and-demand?source=feed
http://www.iea.org/weo/docs/weo2008/fact_sheets_08.pdf
A country report released by the Global Subsidies Initiative (GSI) of the International Institute for Sustainable Development gives an analysis of the types and magnitude of support for biofuels production in China. Like in many countries, the promotion of large-scale biofuel production in China is backed up by some financial support (i.e. subsidies). Among the highlights of the report are: (1) China provided an equivalent of US$115 million in biofuels support for ethanol in 2006, in the form of direct output-linked subsidies paid to licensed producers, tax exemptions, low-interest loans for capital investment, and mandates for compulsory ethanol blending. (2) There is no current available subsidy for biodiesel in China, but it may likely be introduced before 2010. (3) Realizing the inherent conflict between grain-based (example, corn-based) biofuels production in China, the government responded by “halting the construction of new maize-based ethanol plants and promulgating policies to encourage the production of biofuels from non-grain feedstocks grown on marginal land." (4) “Subsidies for growing biofuel feedstocks on marginal land are higher than subsidies for setting aside such land for environmental purposes, encouraging cultivation of conservation areas”.
The report also made recommendations for the (1) elimination of direct production-linked subsidies for fuel ethanol production with no introduction of direct subsidies for biodiesel production, and (2) government support for biofuel demonstration projects that are limited to those that do not compete with food supply, and those that encourage genuinely non-food-based feedstock (i.e. lignocellulosic biomasss). The complete report can be accessed at the URL above.
The “Renewable Fuels Standard” (RFS) in the United States, is a program under the Energy Policy Act of 2005. The program requires the blending of renewable fuels into the country’s motor-vehicle fuel supply. The United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) has been given the responsibility for “revising and implementing regulations to ensure that gasoline sold in the United States contains a minimum volume of renewable fuel”. The program requires a yearly increase in the use of renewable fuels (for example, biofuels) through 2012. In order to keep up with the targets established by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, the USEPA has set the 2009 RFS to 10.21%. This means that gasoline refiners and importers are mandated to displace 10.21% of their gasoline with renewable fuels. This would guarantee the sale of 11.1 billion gallons of renewable fuel in 2009. In 2008, the RFS was 7.76%, equivalent to 9 billion gallons of renewable fuel blended into gasoline.
Related Information on Renewable Fuel Standard: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels/index.htm