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Climate modification: Growing doubts over chip fat biofuel

21 April 2021

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New research study concerns the environmental effect of rising imports of used cooking oil (UCO) into the UK and Europe.

Chip fat and other oils are considered waste, so when they are utilized to make biodiesel it saves carbon emissions by displacing fossil oil.

But such is the need throughout Europe that imports now account for over half of the UCO that's made into fuel.

According to the study, external, there's no chance to show these imports are sustainable.

With no testing of what's being available in, professionals think it is likewise ripe for scams.

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Reducing emissions from transportation is proving to be among the most difficult difficulties for federal governments all over the world.

They've encouraged using biofuels as an important methods of curbing carbon from cars and trucks and lorries.

Biofuels are usually a blend of nonrenewable fuel source and oil made from plants or vegetables.

The truth that these crops can be re-grown and absorb more CO2 means they counteract the carbon released when utilized in engines.

Soy and palm oil were when widely utilized as elements of biodiesel but this practice has been commonly challenged since it motivates deforestation.

So for the last decade approximately, making use of utilized cooking oil has broadened enormously as an alternative feedstock for fuel.

Chip fat and other waste oils have become an essential part of biodiesel with an efficient industry emerging across Europe to gather and process the product.

But with the quantity of biodiesel made from UCO increasing by around 40% every year since 2014, there just isn't adequate chip fat to walk around.

According to a report from the campaign group Transport & Environment, external, more than half of the UCO used in Europe is imported.

Their study recommends this is highly bothersome when it comes to effect on the environment.

While UCO is considered a waste product in the UK, in China, Indonesia and Malaysia it has actually long been used to feed animals. The report raises the question of what individuals in these countries are changing the UCO with, when it is exported.

In 2019, Malaysia exported 90 million litres of UCO to the UK and Ireland. Figures for their exports to other European nations aren't offered however the flow of UCO is likely to be similar.

With a population of around 33 million, that's close to three litres per head of used oil that's gathered and exported to the UK and Ireland alone.

By comparison, Thailand, which has a population of 70 million individuals, managed to gather around 5 million litres of UCO in 2019.

"Because we are buying it, they have actually less utilized cooking oil to use on the things that they were previously using it for," stated Greg Archer with Transport & Environment.

"And they're simply purchasing more virgin oil which virgin oil is mostly palm oil, since that's the most inexpensive oil offered.

"So indirectly, we're just encouraging more logging in Southeast Asia."

Another major issue with UCO is the suspicion of scams.

Because of demand from Europe, the price of UCO is often greater than palm oil. The worry is that some deceitful traders are merely watering down shipments of UCO with palm.

As oils of different types are mixed in bulk for transport, and no testing of the products is carried out, some professionals think scams is rife.

The recommendation of fraud anywhere along the chain of supply is rejected by the European Waste-to-Advanced Biofuels Association (EWABA), who say there are robust accreditation plans in place.

"It is widely known that the European Commission has taken appropriate steps to totally suppress unsound market practices in biofuel markets," said Angel Alberdi, EWABA's secretary general.

He states a brand-new database being established by the EU will ensure that trading, certification and sustainability data on all bio-liquids will have to be registered.

"The combination of modified certification schemes and the pan-EU track and trace database will ensure that no sustainability issues develop in the entire biofuels and bio-liquids supply chain," he informed BBC News.

Others in the field are worried that the database idea, which was first mooted in 2018, may not work in stemming suspected scams.

The report from Transport & Environment mentions that with shipping and aviation looking to decarbonise by utilizing biofuels, need for UCO could double over the next years.

"Rising the demand beyond levels would increase these concerns, and dangers of utilizing 'phony' UCO, potentially causing indirect impacts such as logging."

Follow Matt on Twitter @mattmcgrathbbc, external.

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