バイオ燃料の利用拡大とその発展途上国に及ぼす影響について : 食料供給および生活・労働環境面を中心に
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Today, global warming has become one of the big worldwide issues. As the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) stated "Warming of the climate system is unequivocal" in the IPCC Fourth Assessment Report released in November 2007, a number of countries and regions have launched to introduce new energy source as an alternative to petroleum energy on combating global warming. Especially in transport sector, biofuel , which is derived from cereals, sugar canes, or oil crops, have been focused as a substitute for petrol and diesel oil.The United States government has cut back farm subsidy inducing expanded demand for corn, driving its price higher and increasing income of farm house by the policy to promote production of maize-based bioethanol. EU government has focused on bioethanol production as other usage of sugar beet, because sugar beet would become overproduction within the territory by prohibition of export subsidy. In addition, the amount of production and consumption of canola-based biodiesel has been bigger than that of bioethanol in EU. As it has lagged behind in the establishing a domestic biofuel production framework in Japan, it is necessary to import biofuel to achieve the target for reduction of green house gas emission at the moment. Since oil crisis in 1970s, the Brazil government has promoted production and diffusion of sugarcane-based bioethanol, which have led Brazil to have capacity to export of bioethanol. Malaysia and Indonesia have exported palm-oil-based biodiesel and palm oil as feedstock of biodiesel. In china although bioethanol production have launched in order to get rid of the deteriorated surplus crops, the government have given priority to food over bioethanol production since competition in crop usage between food and fuel become actual. In India, non-food-crop-based biofuel production has been planed because sugarcane-based bioethanol production was restricted due to a huge demand for sugar. European and American companies have pursued to acquire lands for production of biofuel and/or its feedstock in African countries.Prices of cereals recorded dramatic increase in 2007-2008 due to rapid expansion of biofuel production, which is driven by influx of speculative money in the futures market and rising oil price. Although the prices of cereals have dropped in late 2008, the prices have not returned to the levels of a decade ago. It is predicted that the prices of cereals will increase in the future, especially since the growing demand for food in emerging countries. In addition, the movement to give priority to domestic food supply and limit the export of food has spread across the globe. Although the rise in the prices of cereals would affect developed countries and developing countries both, especially for developing countries, in particular for poor countries that have weak economic potential or that receive food aid from aid organization, it has a much greater impact on food security. It is necessary for the global society to create the structure to store and to ensure the food supply regardless of the impact of changing prices for cereals.Concerning the expansion of the usage of biofuel, it has been pointed out that various issues such as competing usage between crop for food and fuel, destruction of forest caused by the increase of the demand for biofuel as raw materials, the deterioration of living condition of indigenous people, labor problems under the bad working condition. On the other hand, owing to the fact that the increase of the demand for agricultural products by expanding use of biofuel, agriculture and the other industries are promoted and job opportunities are grown. It means that especially in developing countries biofuel is expected as a means of poverty reduction rather than as the resolution of environmental issues. It may be possible for them to precede the economic development by utilizing of biofuel if they have achieved the food self-sufficiency or the low dependency on imports and aids. In addition, establishing the self-sufficient in energy by biofuel will reduce the use of firewood and charcoals, making possible for environmental conservation by bringing diminishing of deforestation.
- 2009-09-30