The International Transport Forum, part of the OECD family, has launched (7th January) an online debate on biofuels with the motion to be debated being; “Subsidizing First-Generation Biofuels is Inefficient”.  “The subject of biofuels needs an open discussion about their environmental and economic impacts. Billions of Euros for subsidies, rising food prices, use of land, fertilisers and water are all critical issues”, said Jack Short, Secretary General of the International Transport Forum at the launch in Paris. “We invite all experts and interested persons to participate in the biofuels debate on our website, the results of which will stimulate the discussion at the International Transport Forum, to be held in Leipzig 28-30 May 2008.”

The debate has been launched with an introductory statement by Dan Sperling, Professor of Civil Engineering and Environmental Science and Policy, and founding Director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis (ITS-Davis), in which he describes the different categories of biofuels and examines their potential to mitigate CO2 emissions in the transport sector. Questions for the debate concern volume-based targets for biofuels; which biofuels hold the most promise for the transport sector, and whether subsidies designed to reduce CO2 emissions are best used for biofuel production or better targeted elsewhere.

Ron Steenblik, Director of Research at the International Institute for Sustainable Development in Geneva, was invited to find answers to these questions. From his point of view, volume targets are about “the most blunt instruments” that countries could have devised to promote biofuel use. He regards subsidizing of first-generation biofuels as “inefficient”.

The debate is on the ITF website at www.internationaltransportforum.org and a summary will contribute to the 2008 Forum.