In 2008 UN official Jean Ziegler, called biofuels “a crime against humanity”and called for a five-year moratorium…".
3/23/14, "Biofuels do more harm than good, UN [IPCC] warns," UK Telegraph, Robert Mendick
"Growing crops to make “green” biofuel harms the environment and drives up food prices, admits the United Nations [IPCC]."
"The United Nations will officially warn that growing crops to make “green” biofuel harms the environment and drives up food prices, The Telegraph can disclose.
A leaked draft of a UN report condemns the widespread use of biofuels made
from crops as a replacement for petrol and diesel. It says that biofuels,
rather than combating the effects of global warming, could make them worse.
.
.
The draft report represents a dramatic about-turn for the UN’s
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
.
Its previous assessment on climate change, in 2007, was widely condemned by
environmentalists for giving the green light to large-scale biofuel
production. The latest report instead
puts pressure on world leaders to
scrap policies promoting the use of biofuel for transport.The summary for policymakers states: “Increasing bioenergy crop cultivation poses risks to ecosystems and biodiversity.”
The report into the impact of man-made climate change is the most
authoritative of its kind. For the first time, it considered the impact of
biofuels on the environment.
Biofuels were once billed as the green alternative to fossil fuels, but environmental campaigners have voiced concern about them for some time.
They note that growing biofuel crops on a large scale requires either the conversion of agricultural land used for food crops or the destruction of forests to free up land, possibly offsetting any reduction in carbon emissions from the use of biofuels.
Other concerns include increased stress on water supplies and rising corn prices as a result of increased demand for the crop, which is fermented to produce biofuel.
Biofuels were once billed as the green alternative to fossil fuels, but environmental campaigners have voiced concern about them for some time.
They note that growing biofuel crops on a large scale requires either the conversion of agricultural land used for food crops or the destruction of forests to free up land, possibly offsetting any reduction in carbon emissions from the use of biofuels.
Other concerns include increased stress on water supplies and rising corn prices as a result of increased demand for the crop, which is fermented to produce biofuel.
A European Union directive set a target for biofuels used in transport to double to 10 per cent by 2020, although it has limited the amount from food crops to 5 per cent.
Around 5 per cent of fuel sold in the UK comes from biodiesel. The latest Department for Transport figures show 1.33 billion litres were consumed here for the 12 months to April 2013. The IPCC report appears to recognise environmentalists’ concerns. It states: “If production [of biofuels] is not carefully managed, biofuel feedstocks can displace land for food cropping or natural, unmanaged ecosystems.”
Referring in part to deforestation, it says any benefit of biofuel production on carbon emissions “may be offset partly or entirely for decades or centuries by emissions from the resulting indirect land-use changes”.
On biofuel production from corn, it adds:
“Resulting increases in demand for corn contribute to higher corn prices and may indirectly increase incidence of malnutrition in vulnerable populations.”
An IPCC spokesman said she could not comment until the final report is published on March 31."
====================
Biofuels define the US Ruling Class:
“Ban Ki-moon speaks out amid global food shortage, 33 countries facing unrest as families go hungry.”
“The UN’s own special rapporteur on the right to food, Jean Ziegler, called biofuels “a crime against humanity”,
and called for a five-year moratorium….The UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, has called for a comprehensive review of the policy on biofuels as a crisis in global food prices – partly caused by the increasing use of crops for energy generation - threatens to trigger global instability.”…
Biofuels have driven up global food prices by 75%:
7/4/2008, “Biofuels May Be Even Worse than First Thought,” Der Spiegel
“Biofuels have driven up global food prices by 75 percent, according to the Guardian report, accounting for more than half of the 140 percent jump in price since 2002 of the food examined by the study. The paper claims that the report, completed in April, was not made public in order to avoid embarrassing US President George W. Bush….
“Political leaders seem intent on suppressing and ignoring the strong evidence that biofuels are a major factor in recent food price rises,” Oxfam policy advisor Robert Bailey told the Guardian on Friday."…
.
Even billionaire Michael Bloomberg who has financial interests in the CO2 industry says ethanol causes mass starvation (translation: ethanol is genocide):
2/11/08, "Bloomberg slams U.S. energy law over corn ethanol" Reuters by Louis Charbonneau and Timothy Gardner
.
"A new U.S. energy law will cause an increase in global food prices and lead to starvation deaths worldwide because it continues to promote corn ethanol, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Monday.
.
and called for a five-year moratorium….The UN secretary-general, Ban Ki-moon, has called for a comprehensive review of the policy on biofuels as a crisis in global food prices – partly caused by the increasing use of crops for energy generation - threatens to trigger global instability.”…
=========================
Biofuels have driven up global food prices by 75%:
“Biofuels have driven up global food prices by 75 percent, according to the Guardian report, accounting for more than half of the 140 percent jump in price since 2002 of the food examined by the study. The paper claims that the report, completed in April, was not made public in order to avoid embarrassing US President George W. Bush….
“Political leaders seem intent on suppressing and ignoring the strong evidence that biofuels are a major factor in recent food price rises,” Oxfam policy advisor Robert Bailey told the Guardian on Friday."…
.
=========================
Even billionaire Michael Bloomberg who has financial interests in the CO2 industry says ethanol causes mass starvation (translation: ethanol is genocide):
2/11/08, "Bloomberg slams U.S. energy law over corn ethanol" Reuters by Louis Charbonneau and Timothy Gardner
.
"A new U.S. energy law will cause an increase in global food prices and lead to starvation deaths worldwide because it continues to promote corn ethanol, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said on Monday.
- "People literally will starve to death in parts of the world,
- it always happens when food prices go up," Bloomberg told reporters
.
======================
.
.
3/20/13, "Corn Ethanol Fuels Riots" Walter Russell Mead, The American Interest
"Corn ethanol gets just about everything wrong: it increases emissions, it starves the world’s poor, it isn’t efficient, and it drains billions of taxpayer dollars in subsidies. As it turns out, it might also be responsible for last year’s violent labor protests in South Africa and food protests in Haiti and Argentina. The story was covered here at The American Interest last October, but on Monday Real Clear Energy gave a nice summary touching on the correlation between food prices and civil unrest...
.
"The UN urged
the US to cut its ethanol mandates last August to help ease spiking
world food prices....If not for the sake of emissions, efficiency, or the world’s
starving poor, then for a more stable geopolitical landscape."...
.
.
==========================
.
.
In 2012 World Bank begged genocidal US
to end ethanol quotas:
8/9/12, "Easing US ethanol mandate would help prevent food crisis-UN," Reuters
.
"Global pressure on the United States to relax its ethanol quota mounted on Thursday as the top World Bank food official said an "immediate, temporary suspension" of the mandate could help head off another world
to end ethanol quotas:
8/9/12, "Easing US ethanol mandate would help prevent food crisis-UN," Reuters
.
"Global pressure on the United States to relax its ethanol quota mounted on Thursday as the top World Bank food official said an "immediate, temporary suspension" of the mandate could help head off another world
food crisis."...
.
.
==========================
.
.
7/19/12, "Ethanol Added $14.5 Billion to Consumer Motor Fuel Costs in 2011, Study Finds," GlobalWarming.org, Marlo Lewis
.
===========================
.
.
Big banks love ethanol, say it's a matter of 'national security:'
9/5/12, “Bankers: Ethanol at heart of corn, farm
pricing structure,” Reuters
.
“The facts, they say, show that ethanol is now bolted
on to the core of three huge industries: energy, meat
9/5/12, “Bankers: Ethanol at heart of corn, farm
pricing structure,” Reuters
.
“The facts, they say, show that ethanol is now bolted
on to the core of three huge industries: energy, meat
“Corn can be a national security issue for this
country,” said Curt Covington, senior vice president
for agricultural and rural
banking
at Bank of the West, the second largest
commercial lender to U.S.
farmers. “That’s where we are right now.”"...
.
at Bank of the West, the second largest
commercial lender to U.S.
farmers. “That’s where we are right now.”"...
.
====================================
.
.
7/19/13, "The Ethanol Tax," Wall st. Journal. "It's costing you 10 cents a gallon this summer."
"The summer is high driving season, so $4 gasoline in many parts of the country will add to the cost of family vacations. The gas price is mostly dictated by supply and demand, but Washington is helping to keep prices high. We warned in "The Ethanol Gas-Pump Surcharge" on March 13 that the 2007 ethanol mandate was starting to raise prices at the pump. Congress and the White House did nothing and now the problem is getting worse.
In 2007 the Bush Administration and Congress mandated how much ethanol the oil and gas industry must purchase each year to be blended into gasoline. This year it is 13.8 billion gallons. The quotas were established when Washington thought gas consumption would rise year after year, but instead it has fallen.
Lower consumption means refiners are now nearing a "blend wall" of 10% ethanol per gallon. Most American motorists won't buy gas with more than 10% ethanol, partly to protect engines from damage and partly because of higher prices. The volume mandates are so high they would require more than 10% ethanol.
So under federal law refiners must comply with a complicated system of buying renewable energy credits to make up for the ethanol they don't use.
These credits are called Renewable Identification Numbers, or RINs. Demand for RINs has surged and so their price has exploded. In January the RIN price was less than 10 cents a gallon, then it hit $1 in March and is now $1.40. This translates into a roughly $14 billion a year gas tax, or 10 cents a gallon more for consumers.
The quickest way for Washington to lower prices would be to repeal the ethanol quotas. But White House energy adviser Heather Zichal said this week that repeal would be "shortsighted" because the mandate combats climate change. But even environmentalists (including Al Gore) now concede that ethanol probably increases carbon emissions.
The ethanol quota is scheduled to rise again in 2014 and many energy market experts believe this could add another 10 to 25 cents per gallon of gas. Only Washington could come up with such a scheme."
"The summer is high driving season, so $4 gasoline in many parts of the country will add to the cost of family vacations. The gas price is mostly dictated by supply and demand, but Washington is helping to keep prices high. We warned in "The Ethanol Gas-Pump Surcharge" on March 13 that the 2007 ethanol mandate was starting to raise prices at the pump. Congress and the White House did nothing and now the problem is getting worse.
In 2007 the Bush Administration and Congress mandated how much ethanol the oil and gas industry must purchase each year to be blended into gasoline. This year it is 13.8 billion gallons. The quotas were established when Washington thought gas consumption would rise year after year, but instead it has fallen.
Lower consumption means refiners are now nearing a "blend wall" of 10% ethanol per gallon. Most American motorists won't buy gas with more than 10% ethanol, partly to protect engines from damage and partly because of higher prices. The volume mandates are so high they would require more than 10% ethanol.
So under federal law refiners must comply with a complicated system of buying renewable energy credits to make up for the ethanol they don't use.
These credits are called Renewable Identification Numbers, or RINs. Demand for RINs has surged and so their price has exploded. In January the RIN price was less than 10 cents a gallon, then it hit $1 in March and is now $1.40. This translates into a roughly $14 billion a year gas tax, or 10 cents a gallon more for consumers.
The quickest way for Washington to lower prices would be to repeal the ethanol quotas. But White House energy adviser Heather Zichal said this week that repeal would be "shortsighted" because the mandate combats climate change. But even environmentalists (including Al Gore) now concede that ethanol probably increases carbon emissions.
The ethanol quota is scheduled to rise again in 2014 and many energy market experts believe this could add another 10 to 25 cents per gallon of gas. Only Washington could come up with such a scheme."
.
====================================
.
7/17/13, "Hitting the “blend wall”: Renewable fuel credit prices hit an all-time high," Hot Air, Erika Johnsen
"The Renewable Fuels Standard — that oh so ingenious method of creating a fake market for a not-green, not-clean, food-price-spiking, special-interest-serving and overall terrible product — requires that the nation’s refiners blend an ever-increasing volume of specified and so-called biofuels into the fuel supply. Refiners, however, are insisting that we’re now getting to a point at which mixing the required volumes will exceed the 10 percent ethanol threshold they find acceptable for use in cars and trucks, a.k.a. hitting the “blend wall.”
"The Renewable Fuels Standard — that oh so ingenious method of creating a fake market for a not-green, not-clean, food-price-spiking, special-interest-serving and overall terrible product — requires that the nation’s refiners blend an ever-increasing volume of specified and so-called biofuels into the fuel supply. Refiners, however, are insisting that we’re now getting to a point at which mixing the required volumes will exceed the 10 percent ethanol threshold they find acceptable for use in cars and trucks, a.k.a. hitting the “blend wall.”
Refiners that don’t manage to
achieve the mandated volume of biofuels are required to purchase credits
(RINs), and heightened demand for the credits is steadily pushing up their prices as the “blend wall” gets closer:
"The price of US ethanol credits has notched a new high as oil companies scramble to comply with a biofuels mandate that Washington has given no hint of easing.
The small, illiquid market has surged more than 2,300 per cent this year as petrol refiners and importers fear scarce future stocks of the credits.
The credits, known as renewable identification numbers, jumped to a record $1.25 per gallon early on Monday, surpassing previous levels reached in March, according to Starfuels, a broker. …
The US Environmental Protection Agency, which administers the mandate, has said it plans to announce targets for ethanol consumption this summer."
And you can count on the EPA planning to hike up the mandate still further — seeing as how they’ve been known to not only model some of those requirements after their completely fanciful projection models for cellulosic biofuels that aren’t actually commercially available in the required amounts, but to then try to penalize companies for not complying. …And then raise those requirements for said non-existent biofuels, again. Yes, this is real life.
And while they definitely do not constitute a complete reason for the rise in gasoline prices, these mandated credits are definitely a factor in prices at the pump.
"A leading U.S. oil executive urged legislators on Tuesday to relax a requirement to use renewable fuel in gasoline, blaming an “out of control” market in biofuel credits known as RINs for adding to fuel costs in a recent run-up in gasoline prices.
At a Senate Energy Committee hearing, lawmakers sought answers for why a surge in domestic crude oil production to the highest level in over two decades had failed to bring down fuel prices. Average U.S. gasoline rates jumped 15 cents over the past week to $3.64 a gallon on Monday, data showed.
Oil refiner Valero Energy Corp Chief Executive Bill Klesse said the government’s renewable fuel mandate is affecting prices in the refined fuel market, repeating a long-standing source of aggravation for the energy industry. …
“The thing the government can do is to get a hold of RINs,” Klesse said. “RINs are out of control.”"
.
"The price of US ethanol credits has notched a new high as oil companies scramble to comply with a biofuels mandate that Washington has given no hint of easing.
The small, illiquid market has surged more than 2,300 per cent this year as petrol refiners and importers fear scarce future stocks of the credits.
The credits, known as renewable identification numbers, jumped to a record $1.25 per gallon early on Monday, surpassing previous levels reached in March, according to Starfuels, a broker. …
The US Environmental Protection Agency, which administers the mandate, has said it plans to announce targets for ethanol consumption this summer."
And you can count on the EPA planning to hike up the mandate still further — seeing as how they’ve been known to not only model some of those requirements after their completely fanciful projection models for cellulosic biofuels that aren’t actually commercially available in the required amounts, but to then try to penalize companies for not complying. …And then raise those requirements for said non-existent biofuels, again. Yes, this is real life.
And while they definitely do not constitute a complete reason for the rise in gasoline prices, these mandated credits are definitely a factor in prices at the pump.
"A leading U.S. oil executive urged legislators on Tuesday to relax a requirement to use renewable fuel in gasoline, blaming an “out of control” market in biofuel credits known as RINs for adding to fuel costs in a recent run-up in gasoline prices.
At a Senate Energy Committee hearing, lawmakers sought answers for why a surge in domestic crude oil production to the highest level in over two decades had failed to bring down fuel prices. Average U.S. gasoline rates jumped 15 cents over the past week to $3.64 a gallon on Monday, data showed.
Oil refiner Valero Energy Corp Chief Executive Bill Klesse said the government’s renewable fuel mandate is affecting prices in the refined fuel market, repeating a long-standing source of aggravation for the energy industry. …
“The thing the government can do is to get a hold of RINs,” Klesse said. “RINs are out of control.”"
.
==========================
.
.
11/16/12, “EPA rejects governors’ requests to waive ethanol mandate,” Houston Chronicle, Jennifer Dlouhy
“The Obama administration on Friday rebuffed requests by Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the leaders of several other states to waive a federal renewable fuel mandate that requires ethanol to be blended into the nation’s gasoline supply.
In rejecting the waiver requests, the Environmental Protection Agency effectively disagreed with the states’ concerns that the mandate was spiking corn demand and prices following a drought that devastated crops in the Midwest. The EPA concluded the Renewable Fuel Standard would not cause “severe economic harm” to states and regions."...
.
“The Obama administration on Friday rebuffed requests by Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the leaders of several other states to waive a federal renewable fuel mandate that requires ethanol to be blended into the nation’s gasoline supply.
In rejecting the waiver requests, the Environmental Protection Agency effectively disagreed with the states’ concerns that the mandate was spiking corn demand and prices following a drought that devastated crops in the Midwest. The EPA concluded the Renewable Fuel Standard would not cause “severe economic harm” to states and regions."...
.
=====================
.
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Al Gore admits he lied about the efficacy of corn ethanol in an attempt to get elected president:
11/22/10, "US corn ethanol "was not a good policy"-Gore," Reuters
.
11/22/10, "US corn ethanol "was not a good policy"-Gore," Reuters
.
================================================
.
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Jeb Bush promotes ethanol in Latin America as a "hemispheric security" matter which takes precedence over mere US corn farmers:
.
.
10/9/06, "The Saudis of the Southern Hemisphere," Forbes, David Adams
"Gov. Bush is discussing the creation of a joint commission with Brazil to promote ethanol as a hemispheric vehicle for energy security. While he recognizes the concerns of U.S. corn producers, he says national security should take precedence.
.
"Gov. Bush is discussing the creation of a joint commission with Brazil to promote ethanol as a hemispheric vehicle for energy security. While he recognizes the concerns of U.S. corn producers, he says national security should take precedence.
.
“That to me is a heck of a lot more important than whether or not
============================
.
12/18/06, "State [Florida] partners with Brazil for ethanol future," South Florida Business Journal
"The governor's (Jeb Bush) admiration of Brazil's
ethanol use has taken another step forward with
the launch of the
- the corn guy in Des Moines is protected
- so that we continue to consume foreign sources of oil,” he said."...
============================
.
12/18/06, "State [Florida] partners with Brazil for ethanol future," South Florida Business Journal
"The governor's (Jeb Bush) admiration of Brazil's
ethanol use has taken another step forward with
the launch of the
- Inter-American Commission on Ethanol.
commitment and collaboration on greater ethanol use.
To launch the commission, Gov. Jeb Bush joined Roberto Rodrigues,
president of the Superior Council of Agrobusiness and Brazil's former
minister of agriculture, and Luis Alberto Moreno, president of the Inter-American Development Bank.
"Alternative fuels, such as ethanol, promise to reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil, strengthen our national security, spur economic development, and protect our environment," Bush said.
"Brazil has demonstrated strong leadership in creating a reliable and solid ethanol industry, and I am confident that the commission established today will allow us to form a formidable partnership
- to encourage ethanol use throughout the Western Hemisphere."
Also, his "15 by '15" ethanol initiative recommends the United States develop a plan to pump 15 billion gallons of ethanol into the marketplace by 2015. That's more than twice the goal of 7 billion gallons Congress set in the Energy Act of 2005....
In June, Bush signed the Florida Renewable Energy Technologies and Energy Efficiency Act, creating the Florida Energy Commission. The act is to match grants with research and development projects for ethanol.
- In September, Bush joined Florida Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Colleen M.
- Castille in opening the first ethanol pump
- in Florida.
- investing in the technology.
- from biomass including urban, agricultural and forestry waste."
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