UK biofuels beat Government targets for emission reductions

According to the UK’s independent sustainable fuels regulator, biofuels have exceeded the Government’s targets in both amount delivered and emission reductions in their first year

The Renewable Fuels Agency (RFA)’s provisional data reports that over 2.5% of fuel on UK forecourts has been biofuel, beating the Government’s targets under the Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO). The supplied biofuel has also delivered a 47% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared with straight fossil fuels, exceeding the Government’s target of 40%.

On the sticky issue of sustainability, the RFA says that many suppliers are exceeding the Government’s requirements that 30% of supplied biofuels should meet environmental sustainability standards.

“These results have made tangible the evidence that sustainable biofuels are possible,” says RFA CEO Nick Goodall.

While suppliers are in general starting to rise to the challenge of tracing and reporting the sustainability of the biofuels they supply, some are “failing to show a commitment to sourcing fuels that meet the required standard”, he adds.

Overall, however, only 24% of the total reached the required level and some suppliers are not reporting any sustainable fuel.
The main problem is biofuel imported from abroad. The UK has with well established sustainability programmes for agriculture and 99% of biofuel feedstock meets the Government’s standard. This is not the case elsewhere.