The Law and Policy of Biofuels

Abstract

At the most recent meeting of G7 countries, the leaders of some of the most powerful economies in the world agreed to "decarbonize" the global economy by 2100. Following in the footsteps of nascent initiatives at the national, regional and international levels, this was an additional signal that the search will be ongoing over the coming decades to find an alternative to fossil fuels as a source of energy. There are many contenders, but there is no certainty as to which will emerge as the new dominant energy source. The biofuel sector was early "out of the gate" in the race for a renewable substitute to fossils fuels, but the growth of this sector, as has been the case for competing alternatives, has raised a number of concerns and questions. The IUCN Academy of Environmental Law, a network of close to 200 law schools around the world that pursue teaching and research in environmental law, took note, early on in its existence, of the simultaneous as well as accelerating development of policies and laws in various countries on the topic. Given the dearth of law and governance analysis of biofuels policies, the Academy, with the generous financial support of the Law Foundation of Ontario and the University of Ottawa, organized a number of workshops over the years that have allowed it to identify experts in the area and to facilitate exchanges between them. This book is a direct result of these efforts as experts from around the world take an in-depth look at the challenges and opportunities emerging as the biofuels sector expands. The chapters consider the role of policies and laws, as support for, and control over, this sector. As analysis of policies and laws cuts across many disciplines, the editors invited contributions by experts from many different fields. The contributions are wide-ranging, in terms of themes and geography.