The Edinburgh Agrofuel Action group are planning a protest for April Biofools Day on the 15th April from 12 midday-2pm. It will be at a BP petrol station (as BP are high investors in biofuels). It will be creative and fun, attracting media attention as well as engaging with the public about the issues.
It’s part of a wider day of action, with local protests happening around the UK. April 15th is the day the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) comes into force, meaning all forecourts will be legally obliged to sell only fuel which is blended with 2.5% biofuel. Targets increase to 5% by 2010 and 10% by 2020.
Please get in touch if you want to be involved: agrofuelactionedinburgh (at) googlemail.com (also email this address is you want to go on the mailing list).
What’s wrong with agrofuels? (biofuels)
Deforestation, peatland destruction and nitrogen fertiliser use mean that agrofuels are actually worse for the climate than fossil fuel. For example, a study by Paul Crutzen (nobel prize-winner) shows that rapeseed biodiesel is 70% worse for climate change than ordinary fossil diesel (even though it’s grown in the UK so involves no deforestation or peatland destruction) due to nitrogen fertiliser use, as this emits nitrous oxide, a 300x more damaging greenhouse gas than CO2.
People are being evicted from their lands to make way for agrofuel plantations, often violently with deaths and human rights abuses taking place. In Argentina 90,000 families and in Paraguay 150,000 families have been evicted due to soya expansion. These are just 2 examples but this is happening on a wide scale in South-east Asia, India, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Colombia and the list goes on.
Food prices are soaring as a result of agrofuels. According to Jean Ziegler (until recently the UN special rapporteur on the right to food) there are 12 million more people going hungry now than a year ago due to rising food prices, something which agrofuels are a big contributer to. Instead we need to dramatically reduce fossil fuel use, live closer to work and family, reducing the need to travel, while reducing speed limits and increasing efficiency of cars.
For more info visit: http://www.biofuelwatch.org.uk/
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The Solution that is even worse than the problem it is meant to solve
On 15th April, the mandatory biofuel blending (RTFO) comes in, meaning that 2.5% of fuel sold at the pump must contain agrofuel. The Government is promoting this as yet another false technical fix for climate change, despite it’s Chief Scientist’s doubts about their sustainability.
We, Bristol Rising Tide, will be at Tesco, Eastville from 16.30 – 1900 on the 15th to highlight the disastrous impact that the promotion of agrofuels (biofuels) will have on food prices worldwide, and on deforestation in South America and Indonesia. We invite groups and individuals who share our concern to join us.
Tesco, who already sell biofuel at the pump have a vested interest in the technology’s’ promotion as they own a 25% share of Greenenergy, a biofuel company.
A Bristol Rising Tider says “Not only does Biofuel production causes greater global warming emissions than the equivalent for fossil fuels but for every acre of land used for fuel this is an acre less available for food. We demand that Tesco divest from this company and admit that agrofuels are not the solution.
Burning huge quantities of food in cars is a sure way of making people go hungry. Food prices are rising due to biofuels, causing the poor to suffer more malnutrition. This has been called a “crime against humanity” by the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, Jean Ziegler
Furthermore, the United Nations has warned that 60 million people may soon become “biofuel refugees” – people forced off their land to make way for huge areas of biofuel crops due to the biofuel boom.
Indigenous organisations of Colombia and Ecuador say “We are rejecting the implementation of the palm oil project on our collective territories. Apart from the way in which this has been imposed on us, with massacres, threats, displacement of communities, bribery of some leaders there are grave environmental, social, economic and cultural impacts.”
For further information on the serious problems resulting from the mass production of biofuels visit: www.biofuelwatch.org.uk
See you on the 15th