205
13.1.2 Current Study into Sustainable Deployment Strategies
Amid such issues, the United Nations and other organizations are at the center of
various international trends such as policy proposals aimed at promoting the sustainable use of biofuels at the global level. Several of these initiatives including
UNEP’s proposal of measures for the sustainable production of biofuels with an
emphasis on environmental aspects as a UN initiative and a study by the FAO done
principally from the perspectives of food security and agricultural promotion are
introduced briefly in this section. We also describe UN-Energy’s principles on sustainable biofuels from the perspective of renewable energy use, and biofuel initiatives by the Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP), which was launched by the G8
as a more comprehensive and concrete effort with the involvement of major stakeholder countries and organizations. Lastly, OECD policy proposals that cover economic aspects from the perspective of developed countries are presented.
UNEP released the Assessing Biofuels report (UNEP 2009), which was prepared
by an international panel on sustainable resource management. The report points
out that countries’ current biofuel policies do not have adequate scientific bases for
their estimates of GHG reductions and that biofuels currently offer only a slight
overall potential for GHG reduction, while the costs so far, as identified by the
OECD (OECD 2008), are extremely high. It also states that the sustainable production of biofuels is achievable if a strategy is implemented to enhance resource productivity and identifies four measures to enhance resource productivity: (1) the use
of obligations for biofuel use and biofuel targets and standards, encompassing the
development of resource management programs by country and region, and development and implementation of standards and certifications for biofuel production;
(2) promotion of sustainable land use for biomass production, encompassing measures such as the study of comprehensive guidelines for land use management; (3)
more efficient use of biomass including the use of residues and waste and cascading
use of biomass; and (4) increased energy and material productivity in transport,
industry, and households as the basis for advancing a low-carbon, recycle-oriented
society.
The FAO pursues efforts with a particular emphasis on five policy principles and
areas, focusing in particular on the relationship between food security and biofuels.
These are the following: (1) protecting the impoverished and their food security,
including the stable supply of food at appropriate prices to developing countries that
import food; (2) using opportunities for agricultural and rural development, including financing and technical support to small-scale farmers; (3) securing the environmental sustainability of efforts to create climate change mitigation benefits, through
the study of sustainability standards and certification systems and the deployment of
biofuels; (4) reviewing existing biofuel policies encompassing the review of trade
barriers for biofuels, the shift to second-generation biofuels, policy consistency
such as for carbon taxes and emissions trading, and a less rapid shift to biofuels; and
(5) strengthening international systems for supporting sustainable biofuel development, including mechanisms for achieving environmental targets that use
13 Key Strategies for Policymakers
13.1.2 Current Study into Sustainable Deployment Strategies
Amid such issues, the United Nations and other organizations are at the center of
various international trends such as policy proposals aimed at promoting the sustainable use of biofuels at the global level. Several of these initiatives including
UNEP’s proposal of measures for the sustainable production of biofuels with an
emphasis on environmental aspects as a UN initiative and a study by the FAO done
principally from the perspectives of food security and agricultural promotion are
introduced briefly in this section. We also describe UN-Energy’s principles on sustainable biofuels from the perspective of renewable energy use, and biofuel initiatives by the Global Bioenergy Partnership (GBEP), which was launched by the G8
as a more comprehensive and concrete effort with the involvement of major stakeholder countries and organizations. Lastly, OECD policy proposals that cover economic aspects from the perspective of developed countries are presented.
UNEP released the Assessing Biofuels report (UNEP 2009), which was prepared
by an international panel on sustainable resource management. The report points
out that countries’ current biofuel policies do not have adequate scientific bases for
their estimates of GHG reductions and that biofuels currently offer only a slight
overall potential for GHG reduction, while the costs so far, as identified by the
OECD (OECD 2008), are extremely high. It also states that the sustainable production of biofuels is achievable if a strategy is implemented to enhance resource productivity and identifies four measures to enhance resource productivity: (1) the use
of obligations for biofuel use and biofuel targets and standards, encompassing the
development of resource management programs by country and region, and development and implementation of standards and certifications for biofuel production;
(2) promotion of sustainable land use for biomass production, encompassing measures such as the study of comprehensive guidelines for land use management; (3)
more efficient use of biomass including the use of residues and waste and cascading
use of biomass; and (4) increased energy and material productivity in transport,
industry, and households as the basis for advancing a low-carbon, recycle-oriented
society.
The FAO pursues efforts with a particular emphasis on five policy principles and
areas, focusing in particular on the relationship between food security and biofuels.
These are the following: (1) protecting the impoverished and their food security,
including the stable supply of food at appropriate prices to developing countries that
import food; (2) using opportunities for agricultural and rural development, including financing and technical support to small-scale farmers; (3) securing the environmental sustainability of efforts to create climate change mitigation benefits, through
the study of sustainability standards and certification systems and the deployment of
biofuels; (4) reviewing existing biofuel policies encompassing the review of trade
barriers for biofuels, the shift to second-generation biofuels, policy consistency
such as for carbon taxes and emissions trading, and a less rapid shift to biofuels; and
(5) strengthening international systems for supporting sustainable biofuel development, including mechanisms for achieving environmental targets that use
13 Key Strategies for Policymakers