A new report by Sir David King, senior scientific advisor to UBS Investment Bank, explores the challenges facing biofuels (PDF) and the role they can play in a low-carbon future.

More than 20 per cent of carbon dioxide emissions in the EU come from burning fuels in cars, trains, ships and planes. Replacing traditional fuel with low-carbon alternatives will be key in meeting the world’s climate change goals, King asserts.

“The smart money is now on second generation biofuels, created either from crop residues such as stalks, leaves and husks, or from crops planted on marginal land that do not compete with food,” King writes in the report. “Such second generation biofuels will not solve the whole transportation problem … However, done right, biofuels will still make a significant contribution.”

The new report is the second installment of King’s Comment, a series of quarterly bulletins written by King that focus on major issues from the world of science.

Tags: biofuels