http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/feb/25/biofuels.theairlineindustry
Branson's coconut airways - but jet is on a flight to nowhere, say critics
Environmental groups raise doubts over plane that runs partly on biofuel
* Sam Jones and Dan Milmo
* The Guardian, Monday February 25 2008
Virgin Atlantic's 747 at Heathrow airport ready to take off to
Amsterdam for the first biofuel flight by an airline. Photograph:
Steve Parsons/PA
A little after 11.30 yesterday morning, a Boeing 747 running on jet
fuel and the oil from 150,000 coconuts parted company with the runway
at Heathrow and slipped into a hazy blue sky.
Forty minutes later, the first commercial aircraft to be powered
partly by biofuel touched down at Schiphol airport in Amsterdam,
paving the way for what some claim could be a revolution in
environmentally responsible aviation.
The experiment was the brainchild of the Virgin Atlantic boss, Sir
Richard Branson, who hailed the flight as a "historic occasion" and
the first step towards using biofuels on commercial flights. Three of
the 747's four tanks were filled with normal jet fuel while its
fourth carried a mixture that was 80% jet fuel and 20% coconut and
babassu palm oil.
"Today marks a biofuel breakthrough for the whole airline industry,"
Branson told a press conference held next to the aircraft in a
Heathrow hangar. "Virgin Atlantic, and its partners, are proving that
you can find an alternative to traditional jet fuel and fly a plane
on new technology, such as sustainable biofuel."
Branson has pledged to invest profits from his transport empire in
biofuel production, but serious doubts have already been raised.
Critics argue that biofuels damage developing countries by driving up
food prices and harm the environment by encouraging deforestation.
The Heathrow trial, in partnership with Boeing, engine maker General
Electric, and Imperium Renewables, attempted to assuage those
concerns by using biofuel made from coconut oil harvested from
existing plantations in the Philippines and oil from babassu palms,
which grow wild in Brazil.
However, Branson admitted that the biofuel mix that partially powered
yesterday's flight would not be used commercially.
Wild ideas
Land given to coconut plantations would have to be vastly expanded to
satisfy the demands of aviation, resulting in deforestation, while
the babassu palms used in yesterday's experiment are not available in
sufficient numbers.
The airline industry, he added, would probably have to turn to algae
in its search for viable biofuels. Algae are grown in ponds rather
than on land, so they do not require deforestation or take space that
could be used for food crops.
Branson said: "This pioneering flight will enable those of us who are
serious about reducing our carbon emissions to go on developing the
fuels of the future, fuels which will power our aircraft in the years
ahead through sustainable next-generation oils, such as algae."
Environmental groups have warned that processing algae may produce
more carbon dioxide than is saved by using it as an alternative fuel.
There are also concerns that algae will compete for fresh-water
sources as the ponds evaporate and have to be topped up.
Tim Jones, a policy officer at the World Development Movement, said
the minimal amount of biofuel used in the trial underlined the
difficulty of reducing emissions within the aviation industry. "It
only reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 20% and there is no
technology available that allows us to fly without making emissions."
Kenneth Richter, Friends of the Earth aviation campaigner, said:
"Biofuels are a major distraction in the fight against climate
change. There is mounting evidence that the carbon savings from
biofuels are negligible. If Virgin was really serious about reducing
the aviation industry's impact on the environment it would support
calls for aircraft emissions to be included in the climate change
bill."
Aircraft account for 5.5% of UK carbon dioxide emissions and Virgin
Atlantic is not the first aviation group to experiment with
alternative fuels. Earlier this month, the jet manufacturer Airbus
flew an A380 superjumbo with a mix of gas-to-liquid fuel.
A much-trumpeted biofuels trial at Virgin Trains was abandoned last
year after the group lost its CrossCountry franchise. A Virgin Trains
spokesman said the company was "considering" whether to launch a new
trial on the West Coast route.
Concerns about biofuels have spread to mainstream transport companies
including National Express, which abandoned a biofuel trial for its
buses amid fears that it was causing more harm than good to the
environment.
The government acknowledged those concerns last week when it ordered
a review of the environmental and economic impact of biofuels.
The transport secretary, Ruth Kelly, said the government might not
support an EU proposal to increase the proportion of biofuel in
petrol and diesel to 10% by 2020 if the review raises serious doubts.
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