Has Europe decided biodiesel may be good for cars but bad for rainforests?
European Union regulators have acknowledged that the benefits of fueling vehicles with biodiesel may be offset by the impact of how it is sourced. In 2019, the EU adjusted renewable-energy targets to account for the impact of deforestation caused by expanding palm oil production to meet demand from European fuel producers. Transport & Environment, a Brussels-based advocacy group, says that when the impact on tropical land use is taken into account biodiesel fuel generates almost twice the emissions of diesel derived from petroleum--even though emissions from cars using biodiesel may be much less than emissions from petroleum-derived diesel.
The U.S. Energy Information Administration says that the environmental detriments of land clearing "may be greater than the potential benefits of using biodiesel produced from soybeans and palm oil trees."
