Growing awareness of the damage being done in Indonesia by the biofuel industry has lead to an apparent backtracking by the EU in its targets for the sourcing of renewable fuel by 2020.

In 2008, EU leaders agreed upon a proposal for 10 percent of transport fuels to come from renewable sources by 2020. Implicit in this figure was that the vast majority of it would be made up by biofuels, as even by 2020, electric cars and railways would still be in their infancy.

The EU’s most comprehensive biofuels modelling exercise to date was made public on Thursday. But its analysis of the impact of biofuels on the environment are based on just 5.6 percent use in road fuels.

This figure appears to have been arrived at as a margin at which a compromise between positive and negative effects is reached: “Indirect land use change effects do indeed offset part of the emission benefits, but are not a threat at the currently estimated volume of 5.6 percent of road transport fuels required,” a European Commission statement said.

Experts say the it is possible to shave the 10 percent figure in the EU2020 proposal down to 5.6 percent for biofuels alone as a result of exaggerating the possible contribution of electric cars.

“The 5.6 percent figure is not based on an honest reflection of reality, or else the Commission is preparing to backtrack on its target,” one EU official said.

The report stated that if the amount of biofuels were raised above 5.6 percent, “there is a real risk that indirect land use change could undermine the environmental viability of biofuels.”

Environmentalists slammed the EU when the initial target of 10 percent was set, saying the goal would indirectly affect the way land is used around the world, forcing up food prices and encouraging deforestation. Their concerns are only likely to be deepened by this new report, and the EU should be prepared for close scrutiny of whether they have moved the green goalposts.

The disparity of figures is a result of misjudgement or deceit it is equally worrying as it points towards the EU being either incompetent or dishonest. Environmental science has been plagued recently with accusations of exactly this, and so the EU must ensure that its admirable attempts to provide a greener future are not undermined by poor communication.

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