They wanted the world to increase the use of bio-fuels, which are replenishable and pollute less. The Kyoto agreement includes compliance with their demands, and world governments are out to increase the use of this resource.

Now the radical environmentalists are changing their minds -- claiming that their favored "environmentally friendly" energy source is not so friendly to the environment after all.

An alternative fuel source once considered more Earth-friendly than petroleum is now being derided by some environmentalists and farming experts for allegedly hastening the destruction of the world's rainforests.

Bio-fuels, fuel made from corn, sugar cane or vegetable oil, can be used to power up everything from sport utility vehicles (SUVs) to diesel engines. Yet in spite of its reputation as a viable alternative to petroleum, this alternative fuel has prompted some environmental groups to point to the potential for environmental damage.

The British government, hard pressed to meet emission restrictions laid out by the greenhouse gas limiting Kyoto Protocol, is being criticized by the environmental group Friends of the Earth (FOE) for proposing to force oil companies to include bio-fuels in five percent of their gas and diesel fuels by 2010.

FOE is concerned that increased production of bio-fuels will cause the destruction of the world's rainforests.

"We live in a global marketplace and the worry is that some of these fuels will be imported," said Roger Higman of FOE, according to the UK Telegraph on Nov. 11. Higman is concerned that much more land will be needed to grow the crops necessary to produce bio-fuels and in turn increase deforestation.

"It could be genetically modified crops or palm oil from freshly cleared rainforests. There is also a concern that British farmers could flatten the countryside in order to grow bio-fuels," Higman added.

Now let me get this straight -- you want bio-fuels, but you don't want an increase in agricultural production to produce them. How did you think we were going to get them in the first place?

I wonder -- how much energy could be produced and how many acres of rainforest could be saved by using environmentalists as a source for bio-fuel?

Posted by: Greg at 08:50 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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