Biofuels need enforceable ethical standards

Europe's renewable energy targets have "went".More stringent ethical and environmental principles are standards needed to land use for food and for bio-fuels offset.LUST ON

European policies for biofuel use boost an "unsustainable" and "unethical" expansion of global production have driven Bioethicists warn in a report today.

Directives such as the European directive for renewable energy, the European Union (EU) States have committed 2008 source 10% of their energy needs transport from renewable fuels by 2020 "backfired badly", Joyce Tait, a science expert and lead author of the study says.

The rapid growth of the bio-fuel production in developing countries such as Brazil, deforestation, rising food prices and the displacement of indigenous peoples, has led, according to the report - biofuels: Ethics - released today the Nuffield Council on bioethics, a think tank in London.

The report says that existing directives with a new enforceable strategy and strict ethical and environmental standards to replace. He suggests six principles as a basis for future biofuels policy. This includes respecting the rights to food, work and health in the production of biofuels. In addition should be environmentally sustainable biofuels, to contribute to a net reduction in the total greenhouse gas emissions and adhere to fair trade principles.

The report proposes the establishment of a mandatory scheme to certify that biofuels produced or imported, meet the EU human rights standards. He also proposes that monitoring systems set up swift should sanctions against those found abused human rights enable the European Commission.

In addition, the report on the United Nations calls environment programmes, to develop an international standard for the environmental sustainability of biofuels.

Researchers are developing types of biofuels, which can be grown less land and produce less greenhouse gases, but this new generation is still years away from commercial use. The report calls for policy makers to trace research and development in these technologies, which could reduce the impact of biofuels on food security.

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If a bio-fuels technology complies with the proposed environmental and ethical standards, is a "duty" to develop, the report says, because biofuels have the potential to tackle climate change and new jobs and sources of income, especially for the poor farmers in developing countries.

Richard Templar, Director of the Institute for sustainable bio-energy research at Imperial College in London, Porter says with the ethical principles in the report he "can not agree". But he points out, that the land for the production of biofuels only a fraction is used which for agriculture. He says "We like these principles apply to all uses of the country,".

Biofuels can be economically sustainable if these sectors keep this account for the majority of the land use not also of the principles, Templar adds.

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