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Résumé :
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More than 75 scientists from 21 countries, representing various disciplines, have prepared an assessment of the environmental consequences of biofuels. This volume presents the various facets of biofuels. On the one hand, biofuels may provide en[...]
More than 75 scientists from 21 countries, representing various disciplines, have prepared an assessment of the environmental consequences of biofuels. This volume presents the various facets of biofuels. On the one hand, biofuels may provide environmental and social benefits, for instance, when local communities in developing countries are supplied with power and process energy from oil producing plants, in particular when they are grown on land which is not suited for food production. On the other hand, the ongoing expansion of large scale energy farming for transport biofuels can lead to various environmental and social problems. Corn production for ethanol for instance resulted in nutrient pollution of the Mississippi basin and the Gulf of Mexico. The growing demand of transport biofuels in Europe can only be met by increasing imports. This contributes to the conversion of grasslands, savannahs and forests in the tropics, losses of biodiversity and additional green house gas emissions. Whereas the use of biomass for other purposes, for instance, the combined production of electricity and heat usually provides a better green housegas balance than transport biofuels, energy cropping remains problematic for various reasons. When biomass is used for material purposes first, and the energy is recovered from the subsequent waste, a multiple dividend can be gained. The authors address a number of measures for improvement. They also recommend that in view of the complex circumstances of biofuel production and application current policy mandates and targets for biofuels should be reconsidered. Biomass policies need to be integrated into a broader perspective of sustainable resource management. The proceedings of the Scientific Committee on problems of the environment (SCOPE) International Biofuels Project Rapid Assessment (Gummersbach (Germany), 22-25 september 2008) are the following : - Rapid assessment on biofuels and the environment: overview and key findings. (R. W. Howarth, S. Bringezu, M. Bekunda, ...)- Introduction: Biofuels and the Environment in the 21st Century. (R.W. Howarth, S. Bringezu, L.A. Martinelli, ...)- Government Policies and Drivers of World Biofuels, Sustainability Criteria, Certification Proposals and their Limitations. (T.D. Searchinger)- Biomass Conversion to Fuels and Electric Power. (R.C. Brown and M. Wright)- Crops for Biofuel: Current Status and Prospects for the Future. (D.J. Connor and C.G. Hernandez)- Energy Balance & Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Biofuels from a Life- Cycle Perspective. (E. Menichetti and M. Otto)- Greenhouse Gas Implications of Land Use Change and Land Conversion to Biofuel Crops. (N.H. Ravindranath, R. Mauvie, J. Fargione, ...)- Biodiversity Consequences of Increased Biofuel Production. (O.E. Sala, D. Sax, H. Leslie)- Biofuels and Water. (C. de Fraiture and G. Berndes)- Impact of Ethanol Production on Nutrient Cycles and Water Quality: The United State and Brazil as Case Studies. (T.W. Simpson, L.A. Martinelli, A.N. Sharpley, ...)- Air Qiality Issues Associated with Biofuel Production and Use. (P. Hess, M. Johnston, B. Brown-Steiner, ...)- Biofuels: Economic and Public Policy Considerations. (A.M. Bento)- Social and Distributional Impacts of Biofuel Production. (L. Vanwey)- Future Feedstocks for Biofuel Systems. (J. Woods, M. Black, R. Murphy)- Quantifying the Environmental Impacts of Biofuel Production: Knowns and Unknowns. (S. Porder, A.M. Bento, A. Leip, ...)- Biofuels and Developing Countries. (M. Bekunda, C.A. Palm, C. de Fraiture, ...)- What are the Final Land Limits. (M.M.C. Bustamante, J. Melillo, D.J. Connor, ...)- Mitigation Strategies: Biofuel Development Considerations to Minimize Impacts on the Socio-Environmental System. (D. Ojima, C. Field, P. Leadley, ...)
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