Biofuels are a source of renewable energy made from biomass materials. These differ from fossil fuels such as coal and oil which are not renewable and limited. The two most commonly talked about biofuels are bioethanol and biodiesel.

Bioethanol fuel production has existed since Henry Ford first started to mass produce cars. Today it is commercially produced around the world from a wide range of crops such as corn, wheat, barley, maize, sorghum, sugar beet and sugar cane.

Bioethanol is a bio-alcohol, which is produced from organic biomass materials. It is made by fermenting these organic materials to produce ethanol from their natural starch and sugar content. Bioethanol is a biodegradable and non-toxic alternative to conventional fossil fuels. A main advantage of bioethanol is that it can easily be blended with petrol; a mix of 5% bioethanol and 95% petrol can be used in any road cars today without the need for modifications to the engine.

Bioethanol has a number of advantages over conventional fuels. It comes from rotational crops and not from a finite fossil fuel resource. These sustainable crops from which it is derived grow well in Europe. Developing bioethanol production provides the rural economy with a welcome boost. There is also the potential urban benefit of using municipal solid wastes to produce ethanol fuel.

A further advantage over fossil fuels is in the lower associated greenhouse gas emissions- of which, the road transport network accounts for a significant percentage. Through the use of bioethanol, greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced as the fuel crops used to produce bioethanol absorb CO2 during their growing cycle.

• The environmental benefits that are derived from bioethanol can be seen from the diagram above.