State and federal subsidies to biofuels: magnitude and options for redirection
by Doug Koplow
International Journal of Biotechnology (IJBT), Vol. 11, No. 1/2, 2009

Abstract: Hundreds of government subsidies have fuelled the growth of ethanol and biodiesel in the USA, worth half or more their retail price. Cumulative costs under some mandate proposals exceed $1 trillion by 2030. Even using favourable assumptions, reduced greenhouse gas emissions from biofuels are far more expensive than other options: more than $100/mt CO₂e even for cellulosic ethanol and nearly $300/mt CO₂e for corn-based fuel. Despite rising concerns, environmental screens in existing subsidy policies remain weak or non-existent. A platform- and fuel-neutral policy structure forcing all alternatives to conventional fuels to compete for market share should be deployed instead.

Online publication date: Sat, 05-Sep-2009

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