Swedish study: bioenergy reduces GHGs by 65-140 percent

September 24, 2010 |

In Sweden, researchers looked at Swedish biofuels and analyzed what impact they have on the environment, both in relation to one another and to fossil fuel alternatives. The results show that that biofuels produce between 65 and 140 percent lower greenhouse gas emissions than fossil fuel, even when direct and indirect land use changes are taken into account.  The report refutes the argument against agricultural based  biofuels.

Some claim that these do not have any climate benefit because they force new land clearance for cultivation of food in other countries. The land in these countries is often presumed to be carbon rich and release a lot of carbon dioxide. The report states there is no evidence of such a connection with the current production levels.

“We have calculated as fairly as possible and based on as similar conditions as possible. Our results do not indicate that biofuels produced from crops grown in Sweden currently lead to indirect land use changes, e.g. land clearance in South America or Asia”, says Pål Börjesson, researcher in Environment and Energy Systems at Lund University, who is responsible for the report.

The  study looked at various biofuels, and biogas from manure came out on top at 140 per cent better than fossil fuels, which is more than climate neutral.  The biofuel that came out worst performed twice as well as the EU directive requiring biofuels to reduce GHG emissions by at least 35 percent compared with fossil fuels.

More on the story.

Category: Research

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