oleovest-pl

Climate change: Growing doubts over chip fat biofuel

21 April 2021

remarks

354 Comments

New research study questions the environmental impact of increasing imports of used cooking oil (UCO) into the UK and Europe.

Chip fat and other oils are thought about waste, so when they are used to make biodiesel it conserves carbon emissions by displacing fossil oil.

But such is the demand throughout Europe that imports now represent over half of the UCO that's made into fuel.

According to the research study, external, there's no chance to prove these imports are sustainable.

With no screening of what's coming in, specialists believe it is likewise ripe for fraud.

Used cooking oil imports may boost logging

Consumers present 'growing danger' to tropical forests

Reducing emissions from transport is showing to be one of the toughest challenges for governments all over the world.

They have actually encouraged using biofuels as a crucial methods of curbing carbon from cars and lorries.

Biofuels are generally a blend of fossil fuel and oil made from plants or veggies.

The truth that these crops can be re-grown and absorb more CO2 means they counteract the carbon emitted when used in engines.

Soy and palm oil were when commonly used as parts of biodiesel however this practice has actually been extensively rejected because it motivates logging.

So for the last decade approximately, using utilized cooking oil has expanded massively as an alternative feedstock for fuel.

Chip fat and other waste oils have actually become a key element of biodiesel with an effective industry springing up across Europe to gather and process the item.

But with the quantity of biodiesel made from UCO increasing by around 40% every year because 2014, there merely isn't adequate chip fat to walk around.

According to a report from the project group Transport & Environment, external, over half of the UCO utilized in Europe is imported.

Their study recommends this is extremely problematic when it comes to impacts on the environment.

While UCO is considered a waste material in the UK, in China, Indonesia and Malaysia it has actually long been utilized to feed animals. The report raises the of what individuals in these nations are changing the UCO with, when it is exported.

In 2019, Malaysia exported 90 million litres of UCO to the UK and Ireland. Figures for their exports to other European nations aren't available however the flow of UCO is likely to be similar.

With a population of around 33 million, that's close to 3 litres per head of utilized oil that's gathered and exported to the UK and Ireland alone.

By contrast, Thailand, which has a population of 70 million people, managed to collect around 5 million litres of UCO in 2019.

"Because we are purchasing it, they have less used cooking oil to utilize on the things that they were previously utilizing it for," said Greg Archer with Transport & Environment.

"And they're simply purchasing more virgin oil which virgin oil is largely palm oil, because that's the most inexpensive oil offered.

"So indirectly, we're just encouraging more deforestation in Southeast Asia."

Another significant issue with UCO is the suspicion of fraud.

Because of need from Europe, the price of UCO is frequently higher than palm oil. The concern is that some unethical traders are simply watering down deliveries of UCO with palm.

As oils of different types are blended in bulk for transport, and no testing of the products is brought out, some specialists believe fraud is swarming.

The suggestion of fraud anywhere along the chain of supply is turned down by the European Waste-to-Advanced Biofuels Association (EWABA), who state there are robust accreditation plans in place.

"It is widely known that the European Commission has actually taken appropriate steps to totally suppress unsound market practices in biofuel markets," stated Angel Alberdi, EWABA's secretary general.

He states a brand-new database being developed by the EU will guarantee that trading, accreditation and sustainability data on all bio-liquids will need to be signed up.

"The combination of modified accreditation plans and the pan-EU track and trace database will ensure that no sustainability problems emerge in the entire biofuels and bio-liquids supply chain," he told BBC News.

Others in the field are concerned that the database concept, which was first mooted in 2018, may not be effective in stemming presumed scams.

The report from Transport & Environment points out that with shipping and aviation wanting to decarbonise by utilizing biofuels, need for UCO might double over the next decade.

"Rising the need beyond sustainable supply levels would increase these issues, and risks of utilizing 'phony' UCO, potentially causing indirect impacts such as deforestation."

Follow Matt on Twitter @mattmcgrathbbc, external.

Related subjects

COP26

Paris climate arrangement

Climate