Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production

Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production Volume 5 biomass and biofuel production 5 08 – ethics of biofuel production

5.08 Ethics of Biofuel Production I Waller, FiveBarGate Consultants Ltd, Cleveland, UK © 2012 Elsevier Ltd 5.08.1 5.08.2 5.08.3 5.08.4 5.08.5 5.08.6 5.08.7 5.08.8 5.08.9 5.08.10 5.08.11 5.08.12 5.08.13 5.08.14 References Introduction A Model for Sustainability Management Systems RTFO RED ISCC RSB RSPO RTRS CEN Standard on Biomass for Transport Biofuels ISO Standard on Biomass for Energy Various Standards in the Retail Sector International Labor Laws Indirect Land Use Change Conclusions 99 99 103 103 104 104 104 105 105 105 106 106 107 107 107 5.08.1 Introduction The issue of ethical aspects of biofuels production requires consideration of multiple and varied factors These include the impact of a biofuels production pathway on the stakeholders affected by the supply chain and the environment within which the supply chain operates The scope of influence of any biofuels supply chain has effectively been drawn wider and wider as debate on the extent of actual and potential impacts develops For example, impact assessment is considered at local level, around a biofuels production pathway in terms of emissions to water sources or use of energy to dry crops or producing a fuel Discussion has however also considered global impacts as the consideration of land use change practices turns from direct impacts of clearing land to grow a crop to the potential indirect effects of using crops from one unit of land for biofuels and therefore having to clear further forest land in order to produce sufficient crop for other uses These factors are generally considered within a framework of sustainability management and reporting Sustainability is itself widely defined However, at a very high and conceptually simple level with regard to biofuels, it can be considered as delivering fuels today in a way that does not undermine our planet’s future The breadth of this definition requires further development in order to make it useful and provide rigorous and appropriate measures that can help resolve the potential direct and indirect impacts of biofuels production Working toward more useful definitions of sustainability has been the subject of intense activity in the biofuels sector over recent years A framework for evidence of sustainability management systems may be drawn from a number of regulations and standards in existence or in development Many of these are European regulations or standards It is generally recognized that European policy and markets are well ahead of other regional policy and industrial practice with regard to sustainability assurance This stems from concerns raised through the late twentieth century relating to the application of genetically modified (GM) technology within human food supply chains This chapter begins by proposing a model for sustainability management systems in general It then goes on to examine eight specific sustainability standards that have been used in various ways in the biofuels sector, drawing out similarities and differences in emphasis The chapter concludes by looking at a number of voluntary standards used in the retail sector, some relevant aspects of international labor laws, and the impact of indirect land use change (iLUC) on biofuels sustainability 5.08.2 A Model for Sustainability Management Systems In general, sustainability management systems are defined at a national or regional policy or regulatory level in order that societal concerns are managed consistently This approach has developed following growing understanding of society’s impact on the environment and a desire to reduce the impact of road transport on global warming Occasionally, these management systems are more international in nature, developed from multistakeholder or environmental groups However, all these systems have become more involved and detailed in nature as the requirements to provide assurances regarding the potential direct and indirect impacts have surfaced A generic model of a sustainability management system is illustrated in Figure 1, with the first step being to establish standards Comprehensive Renewable Energy, Volume doi:10.1016/B978-0-08-087872-0.00509-6 99 100 Issues, Constraints & Limitations Establish standards Review targets and standards Set targets Verify performance Monitor performance Figure A generic model for a sustainability management system This approach has been taken in a number of regions, starting with the United Kingdom in developing the Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) Figure provides some more detail on the RTFO as developed with the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership The RTFO approach to sustainability management developed from the original European Biofuels Directive, which was later superseded by the Renewable Energy Directive (RED) The RED sets a reporting standard, defining biofuel properties according to sustainability criteria and then requiring European Community Member States to gradually introduce more and more biofuels meeting this standard into the transport fuel pool This type of approach to sustainability management has developed a range of standards The standards are generally constructed from a top-down approach to concepts, married with a bottom-up approach which considers how to find evidence that helps make the concepts measurable Figure illustrates this generic model for construction of standards This generic model allows high-level principles to be developed into detailed indicators of performance through criteria developed for each principle The kinds of principles generally considered are broadly shown in Figure Looking across a range of sustainability standards that have been developed or adapted for biofuels, a pattern begins to emerge as illustrated in Figure Will specify reporting criteria but minimum performance standards Renewable transport fuels obligation Social/ Environmental Reporting requirement Incentive scheme? GHG saving Biofuels Sustainability Standard Social standard Environmental standard Acceptable performance Crop–specific schedules Gold standard performance Step–specific schedules Figure Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) sustainability management approach Carbon intensity calculator Will specify criteria and performance standards Ethics of Biofuel Production 101 Principles Criteria Indicators Figure Generic model for construction of standards Principles Criteria Ecology Biodiversity Labor rights, e.g., child Land use and rights Soil, air, water emissions Waste management Legal structures GHG emissions Fair price Indicators Figure Typical principles included within sustainability standards Principles 7–12 Criteria Typically up to per principle Indicators Typically up to per criterion Figure Typical structure observed across a range of sustainability standards This kind of structure enables verification, as the indicators are items that a suitably qualified and experienced auditor can seek objective evidence for (see Figure 6) The requirement for third-party verification raises a number of questions and challenges for supply chains Generally, this verification is required at the point that a biofuel is placed into the market However, in order to demonstrate compliance with the standard, the party placing the fuel into the market must have knowledge of the land use history relating to the soil in which the biomass from which the fuel was derived was grown Third-party verification must be able to demonstrate product provenance all the way back to the soil This gives rise to the concept of a chain of custody, which passes ownership of different products or commodities along a supply chain, from soil to fuel (see Figure 7) Issues, Constraints & Limitations Increasing ability to find data points for verification 102 Principles Criteria Indicators Figure Approach to verification in an auditing context Chain of custody GHG reporting Data flow Supply chain assurance Seed Seed Seed Fuel Stock blending and control systems Product flows ian@5barg8.com Figure ‘Chain of custody’ greenhouse gas reporting This chain of custody must enable a third party to assess information transmitted along the chain of custody and information retained within the chain of custody in order to demonstrate that claims made relating to the finished fuel can be justified with objective evidence These chains of custody may be very long For example, a land owner A may grow a crop and harvest it They may then sell their crop to a trader B, who in turn aggregates this crop with other similar crops and sells the total to another trader C, who further aggregates crops and then sells to a further trader D before the crop arrives with a biofuels producer E, who is buying crops from multiple aggregated sources The biofuel producer may sell their product to a trading partner F, who subsequently sells the biofuels to a further trader G, who blends the biofuels with other biofuels and sells a blend onto a further trader H This trader then finally sells to a party I, who mixes the biofuels with fossil fuel and sells this blended fuel to a party J, who uses it as transport fuel Generally it is the final party, J, who has to demonstrate compliance with a standard Party J in this example is 10 steps away from the soil where the crop was grown but needs to have objective evidence of the sustainability characteristics of the land in which the crop was grown on in order for the biofuels to have sound provenance and qualify as sustainable biofuels Such a supply chain would not be uncommon, given the global trade in agricultural commodities and fuels The following sections review a range of relevant standards, examining the linkages between principles, criteria, and indicators Ethics of Biofuel Production 103 5.08.3 RTFO RTFO is the policy that has set the precedent within bioenergy sectors for carbon and sustainability (C&S) reporting of bio-based energy vectors [1] This policy was developed during the early years of the twenty-first century in response to the European biofuels policy and came into force in April 2009 In addition to implementing the EU biofuels policy, the RTFO sets a framework for reporting the provenance of the biofuels placed on the market and sets targets for both the level of sustainability achieved and the transparency of the information made available The RTFO approach to C&S reporting was developed by adopting a multistakeholder approach to setting a benchmarking standard against which all biofuels can be measured The standard developed included a greenhouse gas (GHG) assessment methodology as well as environmental and social criteria indicators The GHG methodology is not considered here as it is addressed elsewhere in this volume The environmental and social criteria and indicators were set into a framework that was developed by drawing consistent themes from multiple existing similar standards This approach created a ‘standard of standards’, or meta-standard, against which all standards can be benchmarked The RTFO meta-standard has retained its industry leading profile as it has been revised in order to enable comparison with a broader set of standards The meta-standard considers seven broad principles as listed in Table Up to the time the RTFO was introduced, energy markets enabled the use of biomass in energy applications, such as power and transport, but did not require the power or transport sectors to be accountable for the broader environmental impact of the supply chains they engage with This arguably led to some potential unintended consequences associated with the opportunity for suppliers of biomass-based feedstocks to indirectly create consequential environmental harm The example often quoted is the use of palm-based products in energy, where the rate of expansion of palm forests may have caused adverse destruction of long-established forests which have retained high carbon stocks and supported highly biodiverse ecosystems Whether this is the case is unclear, as protagonists argue that the palm sector is growing rapidly due to continuing demand for palm oil for food and oleochemical applications However, what is clear is the wide-ranging press opposition to the RTFO biofuels promotion policy that was instigated by single interest groups working in partnership to influence decision makers 5.08.4 RED The RED has developed a wide response to the concerns raised in response to the development of the RTFO C&S reporting framework [2] This is particularly evident in the definition of a liquid biofuel A series of requirements relating to the use of biofuels is defined within Articles 17 and 18 of the Directive Article 17 provides sustainability characteristics of a biofuel as properties of the fuel itself • The fuel properties shall – exclude wastes and residues derived from everything except agriculture, aquaculture, fisheries, and forestry – have a minimum GHG saving of at least 35%, rising to 50% and then 60% – not come from land of high biodiversity, including • primary forest • designated areas for – nature protection – species protection • highly biodiverse grassland • where the land use is classified from January 2008 – not come from land of high carbon stock, including • wetland • continuous forest • woodland of more than in size with average tree height greater than m Table The seven broad principles in the RTFO meta-standard Biomass production will not destroy or damage large above- or belowground carbon stocks Biomass production will not lead to the destruction of or damage to high-biodiversity areas Biomass production does not lead to soil degradation Biomass production does not lead to the contamination or depletion of water sources Biomass production does not lead to air pollution Biomass production does not adversely affect workers’ rights and working relationships Biomass production does not adversely affect existing land rights and community relations RTFO, Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation 104 Issues, Constraints & Limitations • where the land use is classified from January 2008 • peatland as defined in January 2008 – Where derived from within the European Community the fuel must be demonstrably grown according to EU common agricultural policy environmental protection standards and the fuel must be shown to deliver at least a default GHG emission reduction when assessed at a regional level The region is defined according to a European Union National Unit of Territory level Article 18 then requires all these properties to be assured by third-party verification Parties providing third-party assurance must be able to demonstrate independence from the supply chain and demonstrate suitable organizational and individual qualifications and experience The RED allows any party to develop a scheme of sustainability assurance that may seek approval by the European Commission Such a voluntary scheme, once approved, must be accepted by all parties within the European Union There are no approved schemes at the time of writing 5.08.5 ISCC The International Sustainability & Carbon Certification (ISCC) System has developed in response to the RED [3] It is intended to deliver all the requirements of the RED, including verification, by providing assurance at each stage of the supply chain ISCC has applied for recognition as a voluntary scheme In order to demonstrate ISCC compliance, a member company must pay fees to ISCC and undergo an audit of the management systems they have in place, to demonstrate that they meet the requirements of ISCC Audits are provided by audit companies recognized by ISCC The requirements of the management systems are set out in detailed documents, covering requirements for data capture and data flow 5.08.6 RSB Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels (RSB) was established with broad stakeholder involvement including environmental activists [4] The RSB standard offers a set of principles and a verification structure The standard offers 12 principles as listed in Table 5.08.7 RSPO The Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) is a voluntary standard established by parties trading palm oil [5] RSPO originally had seven principles, which have developed to the eight principles defined in Table Governance of the RSPO is via membership and active contribution to standard setting Membership includes environmental activists, who tend to have shown deep concern for biodiversity as well as human rights Table The 12 principles in the RSB standard Legality Planning, monitoring, and continuous improvement GHG emissions Human and labor rights Rural and social development Local food security Conservation Soil Water Air Use of technology, inputs, and management of waste Land rights Biofuels operations shall follow all applicable laws and regulations Sustainable biofuel operations shall be planned, implemented, and continuously improved through open, transparent, and consultative impact assessment and management process and an economic viability analysis Biofuels shall contribute to climate change mitigation by significantly reducing life-cycle GHG emissions as compared to fossil fuels Biofuel operations shall not violate human rights or labor rights, and shall promote decent work and the well-being of others In regions of poverty, biofuels operations shall contribute to the social and economic development of local, rural, and indigenous people and communities Biofuel operation shall ensure the human right to adequate food and improve food security in insecure regions Biofuel operations shall avoid negative impacts on biodiversity, ecosystems, and conservation principles Biofuel operations shall implement practices that seek to reverse soil degradation and/or maintain soil health Biofuel operations shall maintain or enhance the quality and quantity of surface water and groundwater resources and respect prior or customary water rights Air pollution from biofuels operations shall be minimized along the supply chain The use of technologies in biofuels operations shall seek to maximize production efficiency and social and environmental performance and minimize the risk of damage to the environment and people Biofuel operations shall respect land rights and land use rights GHG, greenhouse gas; RSB, Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels Ethics of Biofuel Production Table 105 The eight principles in the RSPO standard No Principle Commitment to transparency Compliance with applicable laws and regulations Commitment to long-term economic and financial viability Use of appropriate best practice by growers and millers Environmental responsibility and conservation of natural resources and biodiversity Responsible consideration of employees and individuals and communities affected by growers and mills Responsible development of new plantings Commitment to continuous improvement in key areas of activity RSPO, Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil 5.08.8 RTRS The Round Table on Responsible Soy (RTRS) covers five broad principles as listed in Table [6] The RTRS structure is therefore similar to other standards, offering parties the opportunity to be assured against RTRS and subsequently to offer RTRS-assured product to market The standard has been established over many years of stakeholder engagement including environmental activists 5.08.9 CEN Standard on Biomass for Transport Biofuels The EN standard-setting body began work on developing a supply chain assurance standard for all biomass-based energy vectors in parallel with development of the RED [7] However, as the CEN process is a multistakeholder, multination process that seeks consensus between industry bodies, the committee structure was unable to develop appropriate standards in a time frame that met with the requirements of the RED Therefore, the CEN process has now reduced the scope of its efforts to consider bioliquids only, in order to feed into the RED requirements where further clarification is required by industry and Member States in order to deliver the RED The CEN process initially developed a workgroup approach with the following broad working areas: nomenclature; GHG accounting methodology; environmental impacts; social impacts; chain of custody assurance; indirect effects Work continues in the areas of environmental impacts and chain of custody assurance Table lists some of the factors included in the CEN process 5.08.10 ISO Standard on Biomass for Energy During 2009, the broader international community recognized the importance of developing broad-based carbon and sustainability assurance standards [8] This has developed into an agreement to produce an international standard on these issues via ISO (International Organization for Standardization) The high-level work for this global standard-setting process has not fully Table RTRS principles Responsible community relations Legal compliance and good business practice Good agricultural practice Responsible labor conditions Environmental responsibility RTRS, Round Table on Responsible Soy Table Some factors considered in the CEN process Does the biomass come from a region that has defined protection, including grassland, peatland, or other registered nature protection/conservation area since January 2008? Does the biomass come from a region that has terrestrial or aquatic biodiversity value? Does the biomass come from a region that has a management plan in place to manage the impact on the environment? This includes impacts on soil, water, and air and considers nutrient management and agricultural practice 106 Issues, Constraints & Limitations commenced at the time of writing However, it is likely to build on the early work of the CEN looking at biomass for energy in the broadest sense and potentially may build on the CEN workgroup structure The timescale for an ISO PC248 process is likely to conclude in a standard being accepted in the time frame from 2015 to 2020, which is within the time frame of the RED 5.08.11 Various Standards in the Retail Sector There are a number of voluntary standards in the retail sector These include the Rainforest Alliance standard [9], Traidcraft [10], Fairtrade [11], Linking Environment and Farming (LEAF) [12], Little Red Tractor mark [13], and the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) mark [14] These standards generally allow a retail product to carry an approved mark or label, once the supply chain has been reviewed for conformity assessment with the managing agent’s standard requirements Since they are already in use for other products, they provide a quick route to product assurance for biofuels and their feedstocks Some of these standards cover environmental sustainability, while others cover social aspects of sustainability The FSC mark for forestry products defines broad principles of compliance with environmental and social factors (see Table 6) These again fit very well with the RTFO meta-standard The LEAF mark is another well-developed, structured, and detailed standard, this time associated with agricultural production The LEAF mark covers the principles listed in Table Again, there is a strong fit with the RTFO meta-standard Some of these standards focus more on human capital, such as land and labor rights and workforce needs Specific social supply chain requirements found here tend to align with those of the RTFO and the RED, with the social requirements offering standards guidance in relation to the principles of paying a fair price to cover costs of production, paying a premium that allows investment in future production, and entering long-term contracts to provide stability 5.08.12 International Labor Laws The International Labour Organization defines a series of standards aimed at improving the rights, livelihoods, security, and opportunities of people, families, and communities around the world Since 1919, the International Labour Organization has maintained and developed a system of international labor standards aimed at promoting opportunities for women and men to obtain decent and productive work, in conditions of freedom, equity, security, and dignity In today’s globalized economy, international labor standards is an essential component in the international framework for ensuring that the growth of the global economy provides benefits to all The list of standards developed is detailed and complex (see Table 8) These standards offer a much more detailed structure than the RTFO Table FSC compliance principles (environmental and social) Compliance with laws and FSC principles Tenure and use rights and responsibilities Indigenous peoples’ rights Community relations and worker’s rights Benefits from the forest Environmental impact Management plan Monitoring and assessment Maintenance of high conservation value forests Plantations FCS, Forestry Stewardship Council Table LEAF principles Organization and planning – integrated farm management Soil management and crop nutrition Crop protection Pollution control and waste management Energy and water efficiency Wildlife and landscape Animal husbandry and the environment LEAF, Linking Environment and Farming Ethics of Biofuel Production 107 Table Standards developed by the International Labour Organization Freedom of association, collective bargaining, and industrial relations Forced labor Elimination of child labor and protection of children and young persons Equality of opportunity and treatment Tripartite consultation Labor administration and inspection Employment policy and promotion Vocational guidance and training Employment security Wages Working time Occupational safety and health Social security Maternity protection Social policy Migrant workers Seafarers Fishermen Dockworkers Indigenous and tribal peoples Specific categories of workers Final articles conventions 5.08.13 Indirect Land Use Change The final aspects to consider with regard to biofuels supply chains are captured within the thinking relating to iLUC Providing useful methods for objectively assessing indirect effects and their impact has proven to be very difficult Recent work has developed from economic analysis published by Searchinger et al [15] Searchinger et al postulated that biofuels use drives land use change by creating additional demand There has been a flurry of academic, political, and press activity following this work The Gallagher [16] review aimed to build on Searchinger et al.’s work by calling for scientific and technical submissions to consider indirect effects This led to a great deal of work within the European Community [17] Further work has been developed by the Low Carbon Vehicle Partnership [18] also In general, there is consensus that there may be indirect effects of creating additional demand for products of agricultural production, including the potential for this demand to lead to land use change However, the supply chain mechanisms and influence through which this additional demand may create this land use change are varied and complex Some aspects of biofuels use may have created additional demand for land use Some aspects of biofuels use may reduce demand for land use The complex nature of the supply chains therefore makes agreement and resolution of the underlying science base complicated What is generally agreed is that land use demand is created by a broad set of factors, including biofuels, but more widely associated with other demands, such as food and materials It is also generally agreed that if all land-based sectors were to assess the direct impacts of their operations on the environment, in a similar way to the many and varied biofuels sustainability standards, then indirect effects might well be eliminated To put it another way, every indirect impact is a direct impact from another land-based sector 5.08.14 Conclusions The factors impacting upon biofuels sustainability are many and diverse There is broad agreement on the high-level principles that should apply to sustainable biofuels production, with signs of increasing convergence Because of the range of possible feedstocks and the length and complexity of supply chains, several different standards have been developed They draw to varying extents on existing, tried-and-tested assurance mechanisms The ultimate requirement is for verifiable, auditable data that assure regulators that fuels sold comply with evolving sustainable production principles A generic model linking those high-level principles to measur­ able, auditable data has been proposed here and exemplified with reference to existing approaches and some topical developments References [1] http://www.renewablefuelsagency.gov.uk/abouttherfa [2] Directive 2009/28/EC of the European parliament and of the council of 23 April 2009 on the promotion of the use of energy from renewable sources and amending and subsequently repealing Directives 2001/77/EC and 2003/30/EC 108 [3] [4] [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] Issues, Constraints & Limitations http://www.iscc-system.org/ http://rsb.epfl.ch/ http://www.rspo.org/?q=page/9 http://www.responsiblesoy.org/ http://www.cen.eu/cen/Sectors/TechnicalCommitteesWorkshops/CENTechnicalCommittees/Pages/TCStruc.aspx?param=648007&title=CEN/TC%20383 http://www.iso.org/iso/pressrelease.htm?refid=Ref1282 http://www.rainforest-alliance.org/ http://www.traidcraft.co.uk/ http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/ http://www.leafuk.org/leaf/home.eb http://www.redtractor.org.uk/site/REDT/Templates/Home.aspx?pageid=1&cc=GB http://www.fsc-uk.org/ Searchinger T, Heimlich R, Houghton RA, et al (2008) Use of U.S croplands for biofuels increases greenhouse gases through emissions from land-use change Science 319(5867): 1238–1240, DOI: 10.1126/science.1151861 [16] http://www.renewablefuelsagency.gov.uk/reportsandpublications/reviewoftheindirecteffectsofbiofuels [17] http://ec.europa.eu/energy/renewables/biofuels/land_use_change_en.htm [18] FWG-p-11-02  ... demand may create this land use change are varied and complex Some aspects of biofuels use may have created additional demand for land use Some aspects of biofuels use may reduce demand for land... shall respect land rights and land use rights GHG, greenhouse gas; RSB, Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels Ethics of Biofuel Production Table 1 05 The eight principles in the RSPO standard No Principle... use of technologies in biofuels operations shall seek to maximize production efficiency and social and environmental performance and minimize the risk of damage to the environment and people Biofuel