Serious questions are being raised about the environmental impacts of producing liquid biofuels for transport, the costs of policies to promote them and their possible unintended consequences.
Even though production of biofuels such as ethanol and biodiesel is growing rapidly, their contribution to total transport fuel consumption in the coming decades will remain limited. In contrast, the effects of increased biofuel production on global agricultural markets, the environment and on food security are already significant and are stirring controversy.
What could be the future role of biofuels for agriculture, food security and climate change?
Insights are provided by the GreenFacts summary of 2008-State of Food and Agriculture report of the FAO.
Read the GreenFacts summary on Liquid Biofuels for Transport – Prospects, risks and opportunities
Currently, conventional incandescent lamps are being replaced with more energy-efficient compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs). Do these energy-saving lamps aggravate the symptoms in patients with certain diseases? GreenFacts faithfully summarized the recent assessment by the European Commission Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR)
Read the GreenFacts summary on: Energy-Saving Lamps and Health
Rising food prices have fuelled controversy about the production of liquid biofuels for transport. Currently, biofuels are produced from food crops, such as sugar cane or rape seed, and have been criticized for yielding low economic and environmental benefits compared to fossil fuels. If sustainably managed, large forested areas could serve as a source for a new generation of biofuels derived from wood that is better than current biofuels from food crops in terms of energy efficiency, environmental benefits and socio-economical impacts. This is one of the conclusions of a recent report by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization that has been summarised by GreenFacts.
Read the GreenFacts summary on Forest and Energy
The growing use of energy that underlies current economic growth puts unsustainable pressure on natural resources and on the environment. What options do we have for switching to a cleaner and more efficient energy future? How much will it cost? And what policies could achieve this? GreenFacts faithfully summarized the Executive Summary of the ‘Energy Technology Perspectives 2008′ by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
Read the GreenFacts summary on Electromagnetic fields.”>summary on Energy technologies.
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New Digest on Drug-resistant Tuberculosis
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Carbon dioxide (CO2) is a major greenhouse gas that contributes to Earth’s global warming. Over the past two centuries, its concentration in the atmosphere has greatly increased, mainly because of human activities such as fossil fuel burning. One possible option for reducing CO2 emissions is to store it underground. This technique is called Carbon dioxide Capture and Storage (CCS). How does it work? Could it really help addressing climate change? GreenFacts has faithfully summarized the IPCC’s “Special Report on Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage: Technical Summary (2004)”
Summary available in [en] [es] [fr] [nl]
In light of the 20th anniversary of the Chernobyl nuclear accident, which happened on 26th April 1986, GreenFacts has sent out a press release on its latest Digest which highlights the findings of the Chernobyl Forum Report. The Forum included hundreds of experts from, among others, the International Atomic Energy Association (IAEA), the World Health Organisation (WHO), and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
Read the GreenFacts summary: Chernobyl Nuclear Accident
