Art-ology

There is a question whether we, as a society, will adopt biodiesel and we need to address a number of complex and sometimes related challenges first. While there is, as yet, only a limited amount of comprehensively researched data available, many factors are changing in favour of biodiesel fuel. Just 10 years ago, widespread adoption of biodiesel as an alternative fuel mode seemed unlikely, but that situation is certainly changing fast.

We are learning very quickly how our reliance on traditional fossil fuels is likely to cause us great concern in the future. When petroleum is made, greenhouse gases are guaranteed and we now know how this is affecting the planet’s average annual temperature. Climate change is already leading to weather pattern alterations that could potentially cause devastating problems to future generations. We know that we must make changes and reduce our reliance on these traditional forms, yet to this point change has been slow to come. We often do not like changes and challenges to the way that we exist and we certainly do not like additional economic costs associated. However, adopting alternative energy production processes and consumption patterns may put us at competitive disadvantage compared to countries that do not.

If we’re slow to act, scientists and environmentalists tell us that harm could become irreversible. Consequently, governments are starting to consider taxation of carbon itself, forcing organisations through market pressures to reduce their reliance on fossil fuels and increase their energy efficiency. This could help to balance the playing field for biodiesel fuel. If traditional petroleum fuels become even more expensive due to carbon related costs, biodiesel fuel will become more palatable.

Society will exert its own pressures and will move toward options that are seen to be far “greener” than they are now. As such, even if biodiesel fuels represent a premium over other fuels and even if they are somewhat more difficult to locate, such a trend may nevertheless push for more adoption. Ways of making biodiesel will be explored and commercial solutions will begin to spring up in more and more places.

Farmers have been worried about declining demand for their products in recent times. These days, homemade biodiesel can be made from vegetable oils and surplus oils, together with animal fats and soybeans, for example could easily provide the raw material needed to produce the fuel. This in turn would help to keep revenues from the production and sale of fuel within our communities, rather than distributing these revenues overseas. It is sobering to realise that by the 2020s, two thirds of fuel purchased revenues could be lost to foreign countries.

Sustainability is going to be a very hot topic during this new decade. The biodiesel industry should ensure that it’s front and centre to this argument. With so much at stake, not only with respect to the long term financial stability of our country, but also the priceless global sustainability which could be achieved, can any of us really afford to continue to wait until someone in power makes a decision?