biofuels

Orangutans Struggle to Survive as Palm Oil Booms

KOTA KINABALU, Malaysia - Cinta, a baby orangutan found lost and alone in a vast Borneo palm oil plantation, now clings to a tree at a sanctuary for the great apes, staring intently at dozens of tourists.

She is one of the casualties of the boom in palm oil -- used extensively for biofuel and processed food like margarine -- which has seen swathes of jungle felled in Borneo, an island split between Malaysia and Indonesia.

Posted in biodiversity, biofuels, conservation

Developed Countries' Demand for Biofuels has Been 'Disastrous'

The production of biofuels is fuelling poverty, human rights abuses and damage to the environment, Christian Aid warned today.

The charity said huge subsidies and targets in developed countries for boosting the production of fuels from plants such as maize and palm oil are exacerbating environmental and social problems in poor nations.

Posted in biofuels

US Continues Down Perilous Biofuels Path

When the motor manufacturers are in dispute with the US Environmental Protection Agency, you wouldn't win much for guessing which side I'm likely to be on. But this time you'd be wrong.

Posted in biofuels

Ethanol's Drug Problem

The Food and Drug Administration found recently that samples of a feed by-product from dozens of corn-ethanol plants were contaminated with antibiotics. With that news, producing vehicle fuel from grain is looking not only like a wasteful and inefficient process, but also like a danger to human health.

Growing corn is a leading cause of soil erosion as well as water depletion and pollution. Corn ethanol plants further stress our water supplies by consuming four gallons of water for every gallon of fuel produced.

Posted in agriculture, biofuels

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 5, 2009
2:00 PM

CONTACT: Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Erin Allweiss, NRDC, 202-513-6254

Administration Moves Ahead With First-Ever Global Warming Standards for Biofuels

WASHINGTON - May 5 - Secretaries from three federal agencies requested public comments today on a proposed new rule for a Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), which will establish the first-ever greenhouse gas performance standards for biofuels. Industry and environmental groups have anticipated this announcement, which came from Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, Secretary of Energy Steven Chu and Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson.

A statement follows from Nathanael Greene, Director of Renewable Energy Policy at the Natural Resources Defense Council:

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The Natural Resources Defense Council is a national, nonprofit organization of scientists, lawyers and environmental specialists dedicated to protecting public health and the environment. Founded in 1970, NRDC has 1.2 million members and online activists, served from offices in New York, Washington, Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Beijing.

Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) Links:

Posted in biofuels

How Britons Fuel Destruction of the Rainforest

A cooking oil that is driving the destruction of the rainforests, displacing native people and threatening the survival of the orangutan is present in dozens of Britain's leading grocery brands, an investigation by The Independent has found.

Palm oil - blamed for a tree-felling rampage in south-east Asia - is present or suspected in 43 of 100 best-selling brands in UK, far more than the one in 10 products estimated by Friends of the Earth four years ago.

Posted in biofuels, deforestation, Environment

Shell Dumps Wind, Solar and Hydro Power in Favor of Biofuels

Shell will no longer invest in renewable technologies such as wind, solar and hydro power because they are not economic, the Anglo-Dutch oil company said today. It plans to invest more in biofuels which environmental groups blame for driving up food prices and deforestation.

Executives at its annual strategy presentation said Shell, already the world's largest buyer and blender of crop-based biofuels, would also invest an unspecified amount in developing a new generation of biofuels which do not use food-based crops and are less harmful to the environment.

Posted in biofuels, Energy, renewable energy

Biofuels Do Far More Harm Than Good

Is there any trade crazier than the liquid biofuel business? Apart from a handful of cars and vans running on used chip fat, it exists only because of government rules and subsidies. So what social benefits do these buy?

Biofuels are supposed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. They do the opposite. Almost all of them produce more greenhouse gases than petrol (gasoline) or diesel, for two reasons:

Posted in biofuels, climate change, global trade

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 31, 2008
12:23 PM

CONTACT: Environmental Groups
Nick Berning, Friends of the Earth, 202-222-0748
Jonathan Lewis, Clean Air Task Force, 617-894-3788
Don Carr, Environmental Working Group, 202-939-9141

Biofuel Industry Attempts to Undermine Global Warming Standards

Environmental groups send letter to EPA calling on it to reject industry’s request and uphold the law

WASHINGTON - October 31 - Environmental groups delivered a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency today calling on it to meet its responsibility under the law and reject a biofuel industry attempt to weaken global warming standards for ethanol.

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Founded in 1996, the Clean Air Task Force is a nonprofit organization dedicated to restoring clean air and healthy environments through scientific research, public education, and legal advocacy. Our unique and singular focus on atmospheric issues has allowed us to go deep on the issues, and be persistent and effective.

EWG is a nonprofit research organization based in Washington, DC that uses the power of information to protect human health and the environment.

Friends of the Earth (foe.org) is the U.S. voice of the world's largest grassroots environmental network, with member groups in 70 countries. Since 1969, Friends of the Earth has fought to create a more healthy, just world.

Posted in biofuels, Environment, Politics