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Jeff McNeely, a scientist with the World Conservation Union writing for BBC News, writes a whole article about "biofuels" that makes not one mention of biodiesel, though he does dub ethanol "deforestation diesel," claiming that:

Much of the fuel that Europeans use will be imported from Brazil, where the Amazon is being burned to plant more sugar and soybeans, and Southeast Asia, where oil palm plantations are destroying the rainforest habitat of orangutans and many other species. Species are dying for our driving.

and

The grain required to fill the petrol tank of a Range Rover with ethanol is sufficient to feed one person per year. Assuming the petrol tank is refilled every two weeks, the amount of grain required would feed a hungry African village for a year.

The solution? Biotechnology, says McNeely. Although its reputation has been "sullied by public protests over GM foods," biotech "is already available that could enhance ethanol yield, reduce environmental damage from feedstock, and improve bioprocessing efficiency at the refinery."

For instance:

The Swiss biotech firm Syngenta is developing a genetically engineered maize that can help convert itself into ethanol by growing a particular enzyme.

Not surprisingly, McNeely's Swiss-based World Conservation Organization, whose German acronyn is IUCN, has entered into a partnership with the Swiss-based biotech giant Syngenta [link opens a .PPT of IUCN conference]"for ecoagriculture." Syngenta also supports IUCN's conferences.

I don't dispute McNeely's assertions about ethanol, but ethanol is not the only "biofuel," and genetic engineering is hardly the only solution. Isn't this more probably called paid advertising in the BBC News?

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