In Brief

OECD QUESTIONS BIOFUELS FIX, CALLS FOR WTO CERTIFICATION

A recent report has struck a note of caution with regard to the current biofuels craze.

Prepared for an OECD Roundtable on Sustainable Development held from 11-12 September in Paris, the report says biofuels may "offer a cure that is worse than the disease they seek to heal," citing problems such as the potential a potential conflict between food and fuel crops, threats to biodiversity stemming from land conversion. The report also asserts that biofuels subsidies in the North are expensive and inefficient, and provide limited benefits in terms of carbon mitigation.

The report notes that the only real potential for efficient first generation biofuels production exists in the South; however, countries in the North not only heavily subsidise home-grown biofuels, but also impose tariff barriers against imports. The authors say that the WTO should be used "to step up efforts to lower trade barriers to biofuels imports, allowing developing countries that have ecological and climate systems more suited to biomass production to use their comparative advantage."

Touching on the issue of sustainability certification, the report supports developments at the global level, noting that "misuse of certification schemes and sustainability standards regulations provide a continuing challenge to fair and indiscriminate trade." The authors call for "certification of biofuels - and the design criteria to use them in combination with GHG emissions reduction regulations and preferential tax treatments" - to be placed on the WTO agenda.

The report, written by Richard Doornbosch and Ronald Steenblik and entitled "Biofuels: is the Cure Worse than the Disease?" is available at http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/33/41/39276978.pdf

ICTSD reporting.