United Kingdom

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United Kingdom
Population: 60,776,238
GDP (PPP): $1.93 trillion (2006 est.)
Petroleum
– consumption
– imports:
– Gasoline to diesel ratio:
1.827 million bbl/day
net exporter

???

Electricity
– consumption
– Main sources:
345.2 billion kWh (2004)
 ???
Renewable energy targets:  ???
Ethanol
– production:
– target:
– feedstocks:
74 mil/gal (2006)
5.75% biofuels by 2010
 ???
Biodiesel
– production:
– target
– feedstocks:
20 mil/gal (2005)
see ethanol target
 ???

Information about biofuels and bioenergy in the United Kingdom.

Contents

Events

2010

2009

2008

2007

Policies/Issues

  • Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation
    • Starting in 2008 the RTFO will "place an obligation on fuel suppliers to ensure that a certain percentage of their aggregate sales is made up of biofuels. The effect of this will be to require 5% of all UK fuel sold on UK forecourts to come from a renewable source by 2010."[1]
    • Renewable Fuel Certificates will be issued, which can be traded by companies.
    • Biofuel producers will have to report on the green-house gas balance, and environmental impact of their biofuels.
    • This information will be used to develop sustainability standards, which may be imposed on any extension of the RTFO.[1]
    • The July 2008 report of the Gallagher Review called for slowing down the UK's biofuels goals.
      • The review found that "The introduction of biofuels should be slowed until effective controls are in place to prevent land use change and higher food prices."[1]
      • The review recommended that "the rate of increase of the UK's biofuels target should be reduced to 0.5% per annum. Targets beyond 5% by volume should only be implemented beyond 2013/14 if biofuels are shown to be demonstrably sustainable, including avoiding indirect land-use change. These higher targets should include a specific obligation on companies to use advanced technologies."[2]
  • Small biofuel producer policy -
    • The UK is eliminating duties and permit and return requirements for people who produce less then 2,500 L/yr of biofuels.[2]
    • This will allow people to produce biofuel, most likely biodiesel, for personal use without having to deal with regulations designed for business.

Reports/Papers

News

2010

  • (U.K.'s largest power station) Drax suspends plan to replace coal with greener fuel, 19 February 2010 by Times Online: "Britain’s biggest power station has suspended its plan to replace coal with greener fuel, leaving the Government little chance of meeting its target for renewable energy."
    • "The power station, which is the country’s largest single source of CO2, has invested £80 million in a processing unit for wood, straw and other plant-based fuels, known as biomass."
    • "Drax is also one of dozens of companies delaying investments in new biomass power stations because of uncertainty over the Government’s policy on long-term subsidies. Hundreds of farmers growing biomass crops may now struggle to sell their produce."
    • "Drax’s decision will make it almost impossible for the Government to meet its commitment to increase the proportion of electricity from renewable sources from 5.5 per cent to 30 per cent by 2020."
    • "The Renewable Energy Association said that plans for more than 50 biomass projects, totalling £13 billion of investment, had been suspended because of uncertainty over policy."[3]
  • Global deal on climate change in 2010 'all but impossible', 1 February 2010 by The Guardian: "A global deal to tackle climate change is all but impossible in 2010, leaving the scale and pace of action to slow global warming in coming decades uncertain, according to senior figures across the world involved in the negotiations."
    • "'The forces trying to tackle climate change are in disarray, wandering in small groups around the battlefield like a beaten army,' said a senior British diplomat."
    • "Many of those contacted say only a legally binding deal setting "top-down" global limits on emissions can ultimately avoid the worst impacts of rising temperatures. But a global deal at the next major climate summit in Mexico is impossible, says the former deputy prime minister John Prescott".[5]
'Just four per cent of biofuels imported from abroad are sustainably produced - the vast majority are causing deforestation and land use changes that are increasing climate changing emissions and pushing people off their land.
'Biofuels are not the answer to our energy woes - the UK should scrap its targets and must focus our attention on developing greener transport alternatives to cars, such as fast and affordable rail services and cycling and walking.'"[6]

2009

  • Oil giants destroy rainforests to make palm oil diesel for motorists, 15 August 2009 by TimesOnline: "Fuel companies are accelerating the destruction of rainforest by secretly adding palm oil to diesel that is sold to millions of British motorists."
    • "Twelve oil companies supplied a total of 123 million litres of palm oil to filling stations in the year to April, according to official figures obtained by The Times."
    • "Only 15 per cent of the palm oil came from plantations that met any kind of environmental standard. Much of the rest came from land previously occupied by rainforest."[7]
  • British Fight Climate Change With Fish and Chips, 21 February 2009 by the New York Times: "Last year, when the price of crude oil topped $147 a barrel, a number of large companies in Europe and the United States were spurred to set up plants to collect and refine used cooking oil into biodiesel."
    • "The global recession and the steep drop in oil prices have now killed many of those large refining ventures. But smaller, simpler ones...are moving in to fill the void with their direct-to-tank product, having been deluged by offers of free oil from restaurants."
    • "Used cooking oil has attracted growing attention in recent years as a cleaner, less expensive alternative to fossil fuels for vehicles. In many countries, including the United States, the oil is collected by companies and refined into a form of diesel. Some cities use it in specially modified municipal buses or vans. And the occasional environmentalist has experimented with individually filtering the oil and using it as fuel."[8]
  • UK gets biofuels research centre, 27 January 2009 by BBC News: "A centre that will act as the hub for biofuels research has been launched by Science Minister Lord Drayson....The £27m institute has been tasked with developing economically competitive and environmentally sound alternatives to fossil fuels."
    • "The Sustainable Bioenergy Centre, which will have hubs at six universities - including Cambridge, Dundee, York and Nottingham - has been established by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC)."
    • "By working closely with industrial partners, the centre's scientists will be able to quickly translate their progress into practical solutions to all our benefit and ultimately, by supporting the sustainable bioenergy sector, help to create thousands of new 'green collar' jobs in the UK."
    • The "UK government introduced the 'Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation' in April 2008, which required 2.5% of all the fuel sold at petrol stations to be biofuels....Ministers originally had intended to increase this to 5% by 2010, but accepted a recommendation by the Gallagher Review to delay this until at least 2013."[9]
  • Biofuels ad banned by ASA after George Monbiot complaint, 14 January 2009 by The Guardian: "A complaint to the advertising watchdog by Guardian columnist and environmental campaigner George Monbiot has caused a national press ad claiming biofuels offer a sustainable alternative to oil to be banned."
    • "Monbiot, who has previously argued against the idea of sustainable biofuels in the Guardian, lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority that the RFA claim in the press campaign was misleading."
    • "The ASA...said that the Gallagher review, commissioned in the UK by the secretary of state for transport, concluded that only with strict policies on where biofuel production could be allowed would it be viable after 2020. Without such strict policies, biofuel production would 'result in net greenhouse emissions and loss of biodiversity through habitat destruction'."
    • "The watchdog concluded that 'at the present time' references to biofuels in general as sustainable were likely to mislead and banned the ad for breaking the advertising code."[10]

2008

  • Clean-burning biomass cookstoves launched 10, December 2008 by Express News Service:
    • "Designed by an international team of globally recognised scientists and engineers, the cookstoves are designed to reduce toxic emissions by as much as 80 per cent while using 50 per cent less fuel and reducing the cooking cycle time by 40 per cent."
    • "The stoves have been developed as result of the partnership between Envirofit and Shell Foundation, UK, to deliver clean burning biomass stoves that are affordable and attractive to people who are impacted by indoor air pollution." [11]
  • British biofuels hit the environmental mark, 12 October 2008 by Farmer's Weekly: "Nearly all (97%) of biofuels sourced from British feedstocks met the government’s RTFO (Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation) environmental standards, according to the first report by the Renewable Fuels Agency (RFA) – the body set up to administer the RTFO. That compared with just 20% for all biofuels used by UK fuel companies."
    • "Speaking on behalf of the biofuel industry, the Renewable Energy Association’s Clare Wenner said the findings clearly showed the UK biofuels industry was delivering on its promises to provide biofuels that both made greenhouse gas savings and were produced in a sustainable way."
    • "The report also showed that an overall carbon reduction of 44% was achieved against a government target of 40%."[12]
  • Europe to reaffirm biofuels targets, 10 September 2008 by guardian.co.uk: "The European parliament will tomorrow reaffirm binding targets for biofuels in transport and for renewables in energy use in the face of growing political resistance."
    • "MEPs on the parliament's key industry committee will set a mandatory target of 5% of biofuels in transport by 2015, rising to 10% by 2020."
    • "They will also defy objections from several governments, including Britain, and approve in principle a system of penalties for countries which fail to meet interim targets for renewable energy."
  • Climate Camp targets biofuel site, 7 August 2008 by BBC News: "Environment demonstrators have targeted a biofuel depot in Essex as part of a week-long Climate Camp being held across the River Thames in Kent."
    • "The climate activists are concerned about the impact petrol and diesel, made from plant materials, are having on the environment."
    • "'Far from being a solution to climate change, agrofuels are so damaging they make petroleum look green,' said Climate Camp spokesman George Monbiot."[15]
  • Most biofuels fail to meet environmental standards, 8 August 2008 by MotorsToday, UK: "Less than a fifth of biofuels in UK vehicle tanks meet environmental standards, new data on the fuels shows."
    • "The first monthly report on the supply of biofuels showed that 19% met standards aimed at preventing problems such as deforestation, loss of wildlife, pollution and water contamination".
    • "The report from the Renewable Fuels Agency also showed that both the plant crop used and the country it came from are only known in slightly more than half (57%) of biofuels".
    • "It also said greenhouse gas savings of 42% on conventional fuels were achieved - but that did not take into account the possible emissions associated with "indirect" impacts such as clearing forests for cropland."
  • 'Splash and dash' hits UK biofuels firm, 9 April 2008 by the Guardian: "The enormous damage being done by "splash and dash" imports of American biodiesel were highlighted today when one of the UK's leading operators, D1 Oils, said it was closing down all its refining operations in Britain after running up a £46m loss annual loss."
    • "Splash and dash is where biodiesel is carried to the US by ship - sometimes from Europe - purely to add a drop of ordinary diesel and take advantage of public money" for refining.[16]

2007

  • UK minister confirms backing for biofuels but highlights need for sustainabilty, 30 March 2007 from Biofuelreview.com. "While outlining the UK government's backing for the development of the biofuels sector yesterday (29th March), transport Minister, Stephen Ladyman, nevertheless highlighted the need for sustainability in the market" while speaking at a renewable fuels conference.
    • He stated that "Biofuels can offer many environmental benefits such as carbon savings, reduced air pollution and waste reduction. But we still have to recognise the dangers of destabilising land prices, over-stimulating the use of fertilisers and pesticides to grow energy crops, as well as the risks to biodiversity and soil quality."

2006

Organizations

Academic organizations

Governmental organizations

Nongovernmental organizations

Industry

Companies

  • Advaced Plasma Power (UK) uses a two-stage gasification process to convert dried organic waste is into H-rich gas, which can be burnt as a power source (e.g. in cars). The remaining soot & ash can be solidified into a material stronger than granite and can be used as a building material.
  • Oxford Catalysts Plc. Company specializing in catalysts for the production of clean fuels, both biological and traditional petrochemicals.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 http://www.dft.gov.uk/pgr/roads/environment/rtfo/
  2. ↑ Government scraps duty on biofuel production


United Kingdom edit

Events | Issues | News | Policies (Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation/RTFO, Gallagher Review)
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