Biofuels legislation fails to deliver on sustainability
Jan 29 2010 by Kelley Price, Evening Gazette
BIOFUELS legislation has so far failed to deliver on sustainability, Tees Valley experts have claimed.
A report by the Renewable Fuel Agency on the impact of the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) found 99% of biofuel produced in the UK met environmental qualifying standards - yet just 9% of biofuel sold on the forecourts in 2008/2009 came from British sources.
Tees Valley biofuels experts say the RTFO - which sets out the rate at which green biofuels must be blended with traditional road fuels in the UK - has had a mixed impact, but new European legislation due this year is set to improve markets for producers and suppliers.
In 2008, the UK surpassed the Government’s 2.5% target for biofuels as a percentage of the total road fuel at 2.7% - which was more than twice the supply of the previous year.
But analysts say the achievement could be down to tax duty breaks, which have delivered significant value to some producers and agricultural suppliers and none to others who, in some cases, had struggled.
Biofuels consultant Ian Waller, MD of Stockton company Five Bar Gate, contributed to the report.
He said: “The RTFO has not fully delivered on sustainability. This is despite the efforts of UK biofuel companies, which clearly have done well with regard to sustainability.
