US Trade Policies on Biofuels and Sustainable Development
by Jane Earley
Promoting Sustainable Bioenergy Production and Trade Series • Issue Paper 18
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US Trade Policies on Biofuels and Sustainable Development PDF • 2.83 MBTo view the Executive Summary, please click here.
Biofuel in the United States of America (USA) is primarily ethanol produced from corn. Although new legislation in the form of a recent Farm Bill and an ambitious biofuels mandate looks toward increased production of other forms of bioenergy, such as cellulosic biofuels, there is little commercial production at this time.
Without significant policy shifts, production of cellulosic biofuels on a commercial scale is unlikely to occur as rapidly as envisioned by the Renewable Fuels mandate in the face of current incentives to produce ethanol from corn. Without such shifts, increasing corn ethanol production will continue to contribute to increased stress on land and water resources, loss of wildlife habitat and conservation-dedicated land, and increased levels of hypoxia in water bodies from nitrate run-off. It will also continue to contribute to increased food and animal feed prices, low carry-over stocks and food price volatility …
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