Missing the point?
The BBC are today reporting on the latest experiment with biofuels - this time on a Virgin flight from Heathrow to Amsterdam. As you’re probably aware, biofuels are quite the thing at the moment, especially amongst those seeking to protect the environment from the harmful emissions of traditional, fossil-based fuels.
You’d have thought that the Green lobby would be in favour of airlines using biofuels, as they are often cited as being the biggest polluters on the planet. But you’d be wrong - the Green lobby are actually opposed to this move, saying that biofuels do not reduce emissions and that growing crops for fuel is wrong when there is not currently enough land given over to growing food.
I’m no scientist, so I can’t give you an argument about whether or not biofuels produce less emissions. I can give you an argument about not enough land given over to growing food, though. Yes, there are too many starving people in the world - but we produce more than enough food to feed the world already; it’s just that we don’t like to share. Even when large parts of the “civilised” world are dying of obesity-related illnesses, we’d still rather throw away food than give it to those that need it.
And the argument about emissions also misses the point, I think. We currently rely on fossil-based fuels for pretty much everything. Fossil-based fuels that are a finite resource which is fast running out. We either to need to change our fuel-burning ways, or we need to find alternatives. As no-one seems to want to give up their cars or their airplane trips, then we’re left looking for new sources and at the moment bio-fuels are it.
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