Questioning Biofuels

The World Resources Institute has issued a report challenging the efficacy of biofuels as a major energy resource. The report asserts that because of the inefficiency of biofuels they are unlikely ever to supply a substantial fraction of global energy demand. Furthermore, the strategy is likely to use up vast tracts of fertile land that could be devoted to helping feed the world’s growing population. It has driven up global food prices, worsened some types of air pollution and done relatively little to reduce overall emissions of carbon dioxide.