IEEP’s latest Biofuel ExChange briefing provides a concise analysis of the European Commission’s current proposal for EU legislation on indirect land use change (ILUC) and comments on its potential effectiveness in limiting the use of unsustainable biofuels.

Our key conclusions centre on the needs to:

• Preserve the 5 per cent cap on conventional biofuels in the Renewable Energy Directive and introduce a similar measure in the Fuel Quality Directive.
• Consider the introduction of ILUC factors accompanied by grandfathering clauses and by incentives to stimulate genuinely low-ILUC biofuels. 
• Re-invigorate working towards policy solutions that would mitigate ILUC more directly, one example being land-use planning approaches in producer countries.
• Announce the phasing out of support for conventional biofuels after 2020. 
• Determine the availability of genuinely sustainable wastes and residues for biofuel production, while addressing any unintended side-effects that may arise.

For further information on ILUC and wider biofuels policy, please visit the Biofuel ExChange.

• Addressing ILUC? The European Commission’s proposal on indirect land use change PDF 476.4 KB