Biodiversity

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Bioenergy > Issues > Environment > Biodiversity

Note: See also the BioenergyWiki page on Wildlife

Biodiversity refers to the level of diversity among the species living within a given ecosystem or more generally in the biosphere. This applies to every phylum of organisms. It is generally agreed that a high number of species is a good indicator of biodiversity, but the existence of rare or very sensitive species, even within in a simple ecosystem, represents a major indicator as well.

Biodiversity decreases each time a species disappears from a given ecosystem. The reasons for disappearance are many, and include destruction of habitats, climatic/ecosystem changes, food web modifications, illegal hunting and/or trade and overexploitation (of fisheries, for instance) are the most common.

The state of biodiversity is closely followed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) through the Red List of Threatened Species.

Orangutan habitat has been cleared to create oil palm plantations in Indonesia and Malaysia. There is concern that orangutans could go extinct if measures are not taken immediately to protect them and their forest habitat.

Biodiversity and biofuels

Concerns have been raised about the impacts of cultivation of biofuel crops, notably oil palm, on biodiversity. (See, for example, palm oil.) Biofuel crop production can impact biodiversity through means such as:

• clearing native habitat;
• introducing invasive alien species that can supplant native species; and
• displacing agricultural activities into new areas, such as forests, which are then indirectly converted as a result of increased demand for biofuels.

• Consult the Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels' principle and criteria on Conservation and Biodiversity!
• Can one offset biodiversity values? Join the discussion!

Reports

• Biodiversity, Gender and Climate Change, Convention on Biological Diversity publication for the 2009 Copenhagen UNFCCC Climate Conference.
  • The authors present the opinion that "As with biodiversity, climate change does not affect women and men in the same way and...has a gender-differentiated impact."
  • This report argues that "all aspects related to climate change mitigation, adaptation, policy development, and decision making should include a gender perspective."
• Is biofuel policy harming biodiversity in Europe?, Eggers, et al., February 2009, GCB Bioenergy Vol 1, Issue 1, pp 18-34.
  • The authors assessed the potential impacts of biofuel policy on biodiversity in Europe.
• Results of the ongoing German “bio global” project of Oeko-Institut and Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IFEU) (sponsored by the German Ministry for Environment and the Federal Environment Agency) on sustainability issues of bioenergy trade
• Biofuels and Biodiversity: Principles for Creating Better Policies for Biofuel Production, Martha J. Groom, Elizabeth M. Gray, and Patricia A. Townsend, June 2008, Conservation Biology Vol 22, pp 602-609 (subscription required).
  • "Biofuel feedstocks should be grown with environmentally safe and biodiversity-friendly agricultural practices."
  • In order to minimize land-use requirements, "The best alternatives appear to be fuels of the future, especially fuels derived from microalgae."
  • "Biofuels that can sequester carbon or that have a negative or zero carbon balance when viewed over the entire production life cycle should be given high priority."
  • "Corn-based ethanol is the worst among the alternatives that are available at present."

Endangered leopard in Botswana's Okavango Delta. The Okavango is one of the world's largest inland deltas, supports an astounding array of wildlife, and could be highly vulnerable to the effects of global climate change.

• Potential Impacts of Biofuels on Biodiversity - Paper prepared by the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
  • Excerpts include:
    • "There currently appears to be no clear scientific justification, either from a climate change mitigation or biodiversity perspective, for broad scale policies that promote biofuel production such as production subsidies, import tariffs or minimum requirements for the use of biofuels in transport fuels. Rather, policies, subsidies and tax incentives would need to be selective for each biofuel system so that only environmentally and socio-economically sound biofuels are promoted."(para. 53)
    • "Criteria, standards and certification could be developed to help identify and promote biodiversity-friendly biofuels and these could draw on existing approaches and efforts."(para. 55)
• At the CBD COP9 in Bonn in 2008, it was decided to collect material on bioenergy and biodiversity to prepare for a more detailed discussion at the 14th SBSTTA meeting (May 2010), and the COP10 in November 2010 (Japan)

• Biodiversity impacts and use of degraded lands: see
  • 1st Joint International Workshop on Bioenergy, Biodiversity Mapping and Degraded Lands in Paris, June 2008
  • 2nd Joint International Workshop on Bioenergy, Biodiversity Mapping and Degraded Lands in Paris, July 2009
  • Section on "Development of international sustainable biofuels criteria, standards and certifications schemes"
• Biofuels And Biodiversity Don't Mix, Ecologists Warn, 10 July 2008, ScienceDaily. "A new study of the potential ecological impact of various management strategies found that very little can be done to make palm oil plantations more hospitable for local birds and butterflies."
  • Download the original paper here

Events

2010

• 18-29 October 2010, Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture, Japan: Tenth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP 10). This meeting is to include discussion of the impacts of biofuels on biodiversity.

2009

• 10-21 May 2010, Nairobi, Kenya: Fourteenth meeting of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice (SBSTTA 14). This meeting is to address impacts of biofuels on biodiversity.

2008

• 13-17 July 2008, Chatanooga, Tennessee, USA: 22nd Annual Meeting of the Society for Conservation Biology. Sessions include:
  • Biofuels and Biodiversity: An assessment of potential effects on species and ecosystems.

• 22-26 September 2008, Gummersbach, Germany: SCOPE Rapid Assessment: Biofuels: Environmental Consequences and Interactions with Changing Land Use. (Themes: biofuels, land use change, biodiversity, technology)

• 19-20 November 2008, Washington, DC, USA: Raising Cane: Biofuels, Biodiversity, and Climate Change. (Themes: biodiversity, climate change, sustainability)

High elevation rainforest in the Marojejy region of Madagascar has one of the highest rates of endemic plant and animal biodiversity in the world.

News

2010

• 'Invasive' biofuel crops require monitoring and mitigation measures, 21 January 2010 by ENN/European Consumers Bioenergy Division: "Biofuel crops will impact on biodiversity and natural ecosystems unless tightly controlled, says a panel of European experts."
  • The Bern Convention "adopted a recommendation on potentially invasive alien plants being used as biofuel crops (Recommendation 141, 2009). They warn that some biofuel crops are able to escape as pests, and in so doing impact on native biodiversity. As rural communities plan to grow more biofuel crops, the likelihood of new and harmful 'invasions' will increase apace."
  • "Therefore the Council of Europe made recommendations, which are legally binding on member states:
    

1. Avoid the use of biofuel crops already recognised as invasive;

2. Carry out risk assessments for new species and genotypes;

3. Monitor the spread of biofuel crops into natural habitats and their effects on native species;

4. Mitigate the spread and impact on native biodiversity wherever biofuel crops escape cultivation."[1]

2009

• IDB releases new version of Biofuels Sustainability Scorecard, 11 September 2009 by InterAmerican Development Bank: "The Inter-American Development Bank has released a new version of its Biofuels Sustainability Scorecard, which will enable users to better anticipate the impacts of potential biofuel projects on sensitive issues such as indigenous rights, carbon emissions from land use change, and food security."
  • "The first version of the Scorecard, an interactive, web-based tool that was released a year ago, addressed 23 key variables including greenhouse gas emissions, water management, biodiversity and poverty reduction. The IDB subsequently held five regional meetings to solicit feedback on the Scorecard and began collecting and reviewing hundreds of comments and suggestions submitted by outside experts."
  • "The new version of the Scorecard includes a spatial analysis tool that enables users to quickly access existing Geographic Information System (GIS) data regarding areas for biodiversity preservation. Future versions will add data layers to show the spatial dimensions of categories including water scarcity, cultural sites and high carbon sequestration areas, among others."[2]

• Tasmania gets Australia's first REDD deal, 27 July 2009 by mongabay.com: "A forest conservation project in Tasmania has become Australia's first Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) project to meet Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards."
  • "'The goal is to protect half a million hectares across Australia within the next 5 years...'"
  • "Recent biomass surveys have found that some old-growth forests in Tasmania store more than 650 tons of carbon per hectare, exceeding the amount of carbon stored in the vegetation of most tropical rainforests. Plantations established in place of old-growth forests after clearing store considerable less carbon." [3]
• Is Biofuel Policy Harming European Biodiversity?, 25 April 2009 by Science Daily:
  • "A recent paper by Eggers et al. presents a new method of assessing biodiversity impacts resulting from changing land use due to the production of biofuel crops in Europe, distinguishing between arable (first generation) and woody (second-generation) crop types.
  • "The results indicate that more species might suffer from habitat losses rather than benefit from a doubled biofuel target, while abolishing the biofuel target would mainly have positive effects." [4]

2008

• Biofuel Plantations on Tropical Forestlands Are Bad for the Climate and Biodiversity, Study Finds, 1 December 2008, by Business Wire: A study in the journal Conservation Biology found that converting tropical rainforests to biofuel plantations will significantly increase carbon emissions and threaten biodiversity.
  • "The study reveals that it would take at least 75 years for the carbon emissions saved through the use of biofuels to compensate for the carbon lost through forest conversion. And if the original habitat was carbon-rich peatland, the carbon balance would take more than 600 years. On the other hand, planting biofuels on degraded Imperata grasslands instead of tropical rain forests would lead to a net removal of carbon in 10 years, the authors found." [5]
  • "'It’s a huge contradiction to clear tropical rain forests to grow crops for so-called "environmentally friendly" fuels,' said co-author Faizal Parish of the Global Environment Center, Malaysia. 'This is not only an issue in South East Asia – in Latin America forests are being cleared for soy production which is even less efficient at biofuel production compared to oil palm. Reducing deforestation is a much more effective way for countries to reduce climate change while also meeting their obligations to protect biodiversity.'" [6]

• CBD Invites Submissions on Experiences on Tools Relevant to the Sustainable Production and Use of Biofuels, 6 August 2008 by Climate-L.org: "The Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) has invited submissions regarding experiences in the development and application of tools relevant to the sustainable production and use of biofuels, as well as relevant information from research on, and monitoring of, the positive and negative impacts of the production and use of biofuels on biodiversity and related socioeconomic aspects, including those related to indigenous and local communities."
  • "The deadline for sending the submissions is 31 March 2009." Download notification here (PDF file)

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