Biofuels and biodiversity in South Africa
Date
2011-05-03
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Academy of Science of South Africa
Abstract
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: The South African government, as part of its efforts to mitigate the effects of the ongoing
energy crisis, has proposed that biofuels should form an important part of the country’s
energy supply. The contribution of liquid biofuels to the national fuel supply is expected
to be at least 2% by 2013. The Biofuels Industrial Strategy of the Republic of South Africa
of 2007 outlines key incentives for reaching this target and promoting the development of a
sustainable biofuels industry. This paper discusses issues relating to this strategy as well as
key drivers in biofuel processing with reference to potential impacts on South Africa’s rich
biological heritage.
Our understanding of many of the broader aspects of biofuels needs to be enhanced. We
identify key areas where challenges exist, such as the link between technology, conversion
processes and feedstock selection. The available and proposed processing technologies have
important implications for land use and the use of different non-native plant species as desired
feedstocks. South Africa has a long history of planting non-native plant species for commercial
purposes, notably for commercial forestry. Valuable lessons can be drawn from this experience
on mitigation against potential impacts by considering plausible scenarios and the appropriate
management framework and policies. We conceptualise key issues embodied in the biofuels
strategy, adapting a framework developed for assessing and quantifying impacts of invasive
alien species. In so doing, we provide guidelines for minimising the potential impacts of
biofuel projects on biodiversity.
Description
CITATION: Blanchard, R. et al. 2011. Biofuels and biodiversity in South Africa. South African Journal of Science 107(5/6), Art. #186, 8 pages. doi: 10.4102/sajs.v107i5/6.186.
Keywords
Citation
Blanchard, R., Richardson, D.M., O'Farrell, P.J. and Von Maltitz, G.P. (2011). Biofuels and biodiversity in South Africa. South African Journal of Science 107(5/6), Art. #186, 8 pages. doi: 10.4102/sajs.v107i5/6.186