24
2 The Contested Sustainability of Biofuels …
either disproportionately benefit developing countries or exacerbate their existing
problems.
This chapter provides an overview of liquid biofuel production and utilization with
a state-of-the-art assessment of the main environmental issues raised. It first discusses
the nature, technologies, and production pathways of biofuels before addressing their
production’s ecological issues and key socio-economic debates. Finally, the chapter
synthesizes why this constitutes such an important area of governance for sustainable
development. If anything, this overview shows that, despite replacing fossil fuels,
the sustainability of the bioeconomy is far from being straightforward.
2.2 The Nature of Biofuels, Technologies, and Production
Pathways
2.2.1 From Traditional to Modern Biofuels
It might be useful to start with some definitions. Biofuels correspond to all fuels
derived from organic matter (i.e., biomass), such as wood, vegetable oils, animal
fats, or compostable wastes. Such energy has a biological origin and is also referred
to as bioenergy. The biological raw material used to produce energy (also called
the feedstock) can be used directly as a fuel (e.g., wood-burning to produce heat)
or after different processing stages, as in biodiesel or ethanol production. The final
product can be solid, gaseous or liquid, and their applications are many. They range
from heat production to electricity generation to gasoline or diesel substitution in
transportation.
The most traditional uses of biomass as fuel have been the combustion of wood
and animal wastes for heating, cooking, lighting, or protection from insects (Sagar
and Kartha 2007). These biofuels have been used for millennia. Although they have
been replaced in much of the world, they still represented 10% of the global energy
supply by the first decade of the twenty-first century (Goldemberg and Coelho 2004).
They are of particular importance in developing countries. The International Energy
Agency (IEA) estimates that over 2.5 billion people—a whole third of the global
population—still rely on traditional biomass as their primary fuel for cooking, as
much as 43% of the population in developing Asia and 80% of the people in SubSaharan Africa (IEA 2017).
However, such traditional biofuel uses pose environmental and health risks
(Domac et al. 2005; Naughton-Treves et al. 2007; Goldemberg et al. 2008). The
demand for fuelwood and charcoal from a growing population in the developing
world has sometimes represented an important deforestation driver (NaughtonTreves et al. 2007). Moreover, the burning of biomass on cookstoves or open fires
creates indoor air pollution. As women are often responsible for cooking with their
children frequently nearby, this group becomes particularly vulnerable to health
risks (Sagar and Kartha 2007). As the World Health Organization (WHO) puts it,
2 The Contested Sustainability of Biofuels …
either disproportionately benefit developing countries or exacerbate their existing
problems.
This chapter provides an overview of liquid biofuel production and utilization with
a state-of-the-art assessment of the main environmental issues raised. It first discusses
the nature, technologies, and production pathways of biofuels before addressing their
production’s ecological issues and key socio-economic debates. Finally, the chapter
synthesizes why this constitutes such an important area of governance for sustainable
development. If anything, this overview shows that, despite replacing fossil fuels,
the sustainability of the bioeconomy is far from being straightforward.
2.2 The Nature of Biofuels, Technologies, and Production
Pathways
2.2.1 From Traditional to Modern Biofuels
It might be useful to start with some definitions. Biofuels correspond to all fuels
derived from organic matter (i.e., biomass), such as wood, vegetable oils, animal
fats, or compostable wastes. Such energy has a biological origin and is also referred
to as bioenergy. The biological raw material used to produce energy (also called
the feedstock) can be used directly as a fuel (e.g., wood-burning to produce heat)
or after different processing stages, as in biodiesel or ethanol production. The final
product can be solid, gaseous or liquid, and their applications are many. They range
from heat production to electricity generation to gasoline or diesel substitution in
transportation.
The most traditional uses of biomass as fuel have been the combustion of wood
and animal wastes for heating, cooking, lighting, or protection from insects (Sagar
and Kartha 2007). These biofuels have been used for millennia. Although they have
been replaced in much of the world, they still represented 10% of the global energy
supply by the first decade of the twenty-first century (Goldemberg and Coelho 2004).
They are of particular importance in developing countries. The International Energy
Agency (IEA) estimates that over 2.5 billion people—a whole third of the global
population—still rely on traditional biomass as their primary fuel for cooking, as
much as 43% of the population in developing Asia and 80% of the people in SubSaharan Africa (IEA 2017).
However, such traditional biofuel uses pose environmental and health risks
(Domac et al. 2005; Naughton-Treves et al. 2007; Goldemberg et al. 2008). The
demand for fuelwood and charcoal from a growing population in the developing
world has sometimes represented an important deforestation driver (NaughtonTreves et al. 2007). Moreover, the burning of biomass on cookstoves or open fires
creates indoor air pollution. As women are often responsible for cooking with their
children frequently nearby, this group becomes particularly vulnerable to health
risks (Sagar and Kartha 2007). As the World Health Organization (WHO) puts it,