Biofuels are not "Pandora's box"

The UNEP’s UNEP recently released four reports that the world needs to adopt a comprehensive bio-energy development approach to balance its effects on greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity, water, and food security; from the national level To specific projects, reasonable planning and management are of utmost importance.

"There is no doubt that we need to reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and choose clean, more environmentally friendly energy. But we need to ensure that we solve some problems without creating more problems." UNEP Executive Director Azi M. Steiner said, "Biofuel production is a double-edged sword. We can best use the opportunities brought by biofuels only if we understand all the risks."

Prior to this, the biggest worry was that "grabbing land with food." A few years ago, the large-scale replanting of biofuel plants has caused rising maize prices in the United States and Mexico and may lead to food shortages in developing countries. The various grain and oilseed crops that should have been placed on the table were “transferred” to fuel tanks after being refined. These biofuels drive the price of food higher and higher, and make hunger a serious global problem. However, the most important difference between the current generation of biofuels and the first generation is that they no longer use food crops as raw materials, thereby minimizing the supply of food.

However, the pressure of water resources cannot be ignored either. The "water footprint" of bioenergy is up to 400 times that of traditional fossil fuels. This means that how to meet future bio-energy needs without over-exploitation or destruction of water resources, how to better manage the bio-energy supply chain, reduce the pressure on the use of water sources, and the impact on water quality become an important issue. According to the UNEP-cited research results, 2% of the world's water sources for irrigation are used for bioenergy production. If we continue to implement the current bio-energy standards and targets, bio-energy production will need to consume an additional 180 million tons of irrigation water. This will not only put additional pressure on water resources, but it may also have an impact on food production and water supply, especially in areas where water resources are scarce.

In addition, the characteristics of fast growth, higher quality than local plants, high seed yield, adaptability to soil and climate, strong insect resistance, and low natural enemies make these plants ideal raw materials for biofuels, but it also means that In a particular environment, they may be aggressive. The report emphasized the need for a comprehensive risk assessment to measure the potential impact of invasive species on biodiversity and to take measures to prevent the spread of invasive species. According to current trends and technologies, bioenergy will endanger 36% of arable land by 2030. This will have a serious impact on biodiversity. The methods and methods used to distinguish suitable and capable of developing bioenergy and areas that require special protection are currently the main issues.

From the specific operation point of view, the supply of raw materials for biofuels is scattered and inadequate. Taking China's cellulosic ethanol as an example, cellulosic ethanol is mainly based on agricultural and forestry wastes. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture of the People's Republic of China, the annual output of agricultural waste such as straw is over 700 million tons, but farmers' burning and landfilling and direct consumption of biomass are eliminated. To go, only 300 million tons or more remained. At present, there is no unified straw supplier in China, mainly relying on biofuel companies to buy from farmers and large farms themselves, which also increases the cost of straw acquisition, storage and transportation.

Moreover, the second generation of biofuels is a high-tech industry, and companies in the industry must maintain a high level of investment in technology research. Therefore, the requirements for entrants' funds are relatively high. Especially at this stage, the technology of the entire industry is not yet mature, and it will be possible to make a return after a sustained large investment. Due to the relatively high production cost and immature technology, biofuels are also challenged by other renewable energy sources including biomass direct-fired power generation, solar energy, wind energy, and hydropower.