This month, following the discussion about the need for sustainability criteria required to reach the 10% biofuels target within the EU Directive for the Promotion of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, the claim is:

"The 10% EU target is required to establish a 100% sustainable biofuels market within ten years”

This week, our guest commenting on this statement is Wolfgang Richert, Bioenergy Policy Advisor for Greenpeace International.

“No, definitely no. All evidence shows that the biological material needed to reach the 10% biofuel blending target in Europe cannot be produced in a sustainable way. Therefore I would reverse the Sustatement completely: the 10% biofuel target is a guarantee towards an unsustainable biofuel market.

Of course strict sustainability criteria are a pre-requisite for a sustainable market. But unfortunately the criteria set initially by the Commission are a joke. The European Parliament amendments’ proposals, although a step forward, are still not good enough.

Greenpeace believes that biofuels should produce at least 60% less greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuel equivalents to qualify as sustainable. Also they should not cause direct or indirect land-use changes, they should be produced environmentally and socially responsibly, and they must not threaten food security. The indirect impacts on land-use change must be included in the standard, and these, together with the 60% GHG balance, are the key political challenges for the EU and its Member States.

International agreements between producer and consumer countries could also help and Greenpeace is, in principle, in favour and supportive of these accords. Unfortunately, it has been discovered that some countries like Brazil and Malaysia are trying to sabotage such agreements.

Greenpeace is not against a biofuels target in principle, but we are against targets without guarantees that biofuels are produced under strict sustainability criteria. Therefore, the timing and the way in which Europe is proceeding are not good. First, the EU must set strict sustainability criteria and implement them in practice to be sure the verification system works. Control filters are extremely important to distinguish between the good and the bad. Only then should subsidies and other incentives come to support the sustainable biofuels. Subsequently, a review will then be needed before we can set a target.

Regarding the so-called ‘second generation’ biofuels, there is a huge misunderstanding: the technologies are different from the first generation, without a development link. Therefore it is not true that we need to develop ‘first generation’ biofuels to reach more sustainable types of biofuels.

Biofuels can only play a minor role in reducing emissions from the transport sector. The real solution we advocate is more efficient cars and transport systems.”

See 'The Sustatement Archives' for all previous Sustatements.