At first sight, biofuels look like the ideal solution to our energy needs — simply grow all the fuel we need.
Unfortunately, it’s not that simple:
● creating fuel from foods, such as soyabeans & sugarcane requires diversion of the food supply
● growing fuel crops requires arable land & fresh water
● commercial food production requires many fossil fuel calories for each food calorie — 10 in USA*
http://www.economist.com/news/science-and-technology/21648630-investment-biofuels-dwindling-and-scepticism-growing-thin-harvest
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* Melissa C. Lott: “10 Calories in, 1 Calorie Out – The Energy We Spend on Food”, http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/plugged-in/2011/08/11/10-calories-in-1-calorie-out-the-energy-we-spend-on-food/
Thomas Starrs: “Gas Guzzling Food”, https://www.organicconsumers.org/old_articles/btc/gasfood112105.php / making fuel solar energy stored living organisms photosynthesis green biofuel fermenting starch recycling cooking oil algae jet fuel investment Bloomberg New Energy Finance BNEF research Venn diagram sets biofuels compete commercially green green compete commercially ungreenness biofuels food crops plants grown on land produce such crops hurt food supplies committee European Parliament first-generation biofuels current European target renewables energy used in transport by 2020 new proposal first-generation fuels waste feedstocks food production European demand advanced biofuels Claire Curry of BNEF advanced fuels large-scale production waste cooking oil fats diesel ethanol from cellulose enzymatic hydrolysis commercial production renewable jet fuel South African Airways SAA Boeing fuel seeds tobacco plant crop specially bred strain tobacco nicotine-free seeds fertiliser food crop residue animal feed Ian Cruickshank cost tobacco-based product jet fuel refined fossil sources airline blended 50-50 jatropha bush toxic vegetable investors grow grown grower animal fodder oil diesel fuel biofuel sweet spot Venn diagram damage environment food security grown controversial issue genetic modification improve yields insects resistance biofuel crops grown on unirrigated marginal land GM crop researchers University of Manchester University of Turku Finland Imperial College London enzyme currently produce bio-butanol propane commercialised at scale algae-to-fuel high-value chemicals sunlight source energy biology /
