An “Atlantic Rendez-Vous” TV satellite debate between Washington DC and Brussels
Co-organised by Friends of Europe, the European Commission Delegation to the US and Gallup Europe
These policy recommendations represent the outcome of the sixth Atlantic Rendez-Vous (ARV) project in Friends of Europe’s 2006-2007 ARV series. The ARV series is an initiative of Friends of Europe in collaboration with the European Commission Delegation to the US and Gallup Europe. It aims to create a platform for enhanced dialogue and policy debate between the EU and the US on key transatlantic issues.
The pioneering transatlantic satellite format that connects Brussels and Washington in a lively TV-style debate, and the contributions of a wide range of American and European experts, make Friends of Europe’s ARV series unique in its genre and represent an unprecedented attempt to create a transatlantic platform for debate.
Policy recommendations:
Launch a study into the environmental impacts of the various types of biofuels. Biofuels have the potential to make a huge difference to the emissions from the transportation sector, but not all of them are effective. We need to know what are the best feedstocks, fuels and locations to focus on.
Target incentives precisely. Once we know which biofuels we need and where, we can discourage what is bad about them – deforestation of rainforests, conflict with food crops, and overuse of water – and encourage the good things – feedstocks that do not conflict with food production, crop growth that encourages development in emerging markets and processes that cut emissions such as the development of cellulosic ethanol.
Introduce an international certification system. One of the barriers to the widespread use of biofuels is fears over sustainability. The creation of globally-recognised standards would boost consumer confidence in biofuels and encourage their use more widely.
Overhaul tariff regimes. Already, distortions are appearing in the biofuels market that are preventing the best available biofuel (such as Brazilian sugarcane-based bioethanol) from being sold in the US, while encouraging the dumping of biodiesel in Europe, hurting the continent’s attempts to build up a nascent industry.
Boost R&D funds and co-operation on cellulosic biofuels. In the long term, biofuels based on food crops are unsustainable. Not only are they not very efficient, they may also lead to an increase in food prices and encourage unsustainable use of land in inappropriate places. Cellulosic biofuels solve many of the problems that first-generation biofuels have – they emit far less CO2, they do not compete with food crops and they are more energy efficient. But they are a long way from commercialisation and there needs to be a concerted effort to bring them to market.
Encourage the production of biofuels in developing countries. Not every country can strike oil, but almost everyone can grow fuel crops, particularly when cellulosic ethanol is well-established. Not only does it provide access to revenue and encourage economic growth in the poorest parts of the world, it cuts the use of fossil fuels and increase energy security.
Encourage cross-sectoral participation. Cutting emissions in transport requires a focus on all aspects of the value chain. Measures need to be targeted at fuel suppliers (to cut the carbon content of fuel); vehicle producers (to increase the fuel efficiency of engines) and consumers (to encourage them to adopt biofuels).
Focus on demand management. Demand for transport is growing at a huge rate that is unsustainable not just from a carbon management point of view but also in terms of congestion, air pollution and safety. People are so frustrated at trying to travel around cities that they are beginning to demand measures such as congestion charges. We should capitalise on this discontent and readiness to consider alternatives to travelling by car.
Overhaul public transport. The key element in cutting traffic in cities is to make public transport more appealing. This requires massive, sustained, long-term investment and a clear vision of an integrated transport system.
Incorporate environmental requirements into Formula 1, Nascar and other motor sports. Motor sports teams are at the cutting edge of automotive research. They are far more nimble and innovative than the big car manufacturers. Requirements for them to cut emissions and increase fuel efficiency would be likely to produce quick results in the fight to cut the impact of vehicles.
Contributors to this ARV series include:
Olivier Appert, Chairman and CEO of the Institut Français du Pétrole and Chairman of the EU Biofuels Technology Platform; Michael K. Blevins, Director of Government Affairs, Gas Appliance Manufacturers Association, US; Eileen Claussen, President, Pew Center on Global Climate Change and former Assistant Secretary of State for Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs, US Department of State; Ana Unruh Cohen, Chief Scientist, Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming, US House of Representatives; Fernando Conte, President, Iberia; Roscoe Bartlett, Member of the Science Committee Subcommittee on Energy and Environment, US House of Representatives; Jacques Beaudry Losikue, Programme Director for Biomass and Biofuels, US Department of Energy; Jos Delbeke, Director for Climate Change and Air, European Commission Directorate General for the Environment; Francis Dietz, Senior Director, Public Affairs, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute, USA; Michael Diekmann, Chief Executive Officer, Allianz; Rolf Eriksson, State Secretary for Agriculture, Sweden; Raffaello Garofalo, Secretary General, European Biodiesel Board (EBB); Connie Hedegaard, Minister for the Environment, Denmark; Jean-Michel Gires, Executive Vice-President, Sustainable Development and Environment, Total; Sherri Goodman, General Counsel, The CNA Corporation, US; Thomas O. Gray, Deputy Executive Director, American Wind Energy Association; Jason Grumet, Executive Director, National Commission on Energy Policy, US; Fritz Henn, Associate Director for Life Sciences, Brookhaven National Laboratory, US; Martin Hill, Vice President, Defence, Thales; Alexander Karsner, Assistant Secretary of Energy for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, US Department of Energy; Michael P. Lacy, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, US; Bogusław Liberadzki MEP, Member of the European Parliament Committee on Transport and Tourism, former Polish Minister for Transport and Maritime Economy; Frank E. Loy, Member of the Board, Pew Center on Global Climate Change and former Undersecretary for Global Affairs, US Department of State; Harold F. McFarlane, President, American Nuclear Society, US; Jacqueline McGlade, Executive Director, European Environment Agency (EEA); Bert Metz, Co-Chairman, Working Group III on Mitigation, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC); Jaroslav Mil, President, Confederation of Industry of the Czech Republic; Jennifer Morgan, Director, Energy Programme, Third Generation Environmentalism (E3G); Pierre Moscovici, Deputy Chairman of the Delegation for Relations with the European Union, French National Assembly; David A. Norcross, Executive Committee Member, Republican National Committee, US; Michael Parr, Senior Manager for Global Affairs, DuPont, US; William A. Pizer, Senior Fellow, Resources for the Future, US; Jimmie Powell, Director for Government Relations and Head of the Energy Team, The Nature Conservancy, US; Poul Nyrup Rasmussen MEP, Member of the European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs and President of the Party of European Socialists; Margaret L. Ryan, Editorial Director, Platts Global Nuclear & Coal; Steve Sawyer, Secretary General, Global Wind Energy Council; Hosein Shapouri, Senior Agricultural Economist, Office of Energy Policy and New Uses, US Department of Agriculture; Phillip V. H. Slayden, Director, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, US; Gustavo Suárez Pertierra, President, Real Instituto Elcano de Estudios Internacionales y Estratégicos, Spain; Graham Sweeney, CEO Shell Renewables and President Shell Hydrogen; Miguel Veiga-Pestana, Vice-President, Global External Affairs, Unilever; Robert Verrue, European Commission Director General for Taxation and Customs Union; Björn von Sydow, Member, National Parliament, Sweden; Charles F. Wald, General, United States Air Force (Ret.); Anders Wijkman MEP, Member of the European Parliament Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety.
About the project
These recommendations have been drawn from the following sources:
A Friends of Europe/Gallup Europe opinion poll of leaders on both sides of the Atlantic on a range of climate change and biofuels issues;
The TV-satellite debate entitled “Will biofuels unite or divide the EU and the US?”, held simultaneously in Brussels and Washington DC on June 14, 2007;
A round of high-level interviews with political, government, business, NGO and academic figures in Europe and the US.
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