Biofuels Plans May Cause Water Shortages

Biofuels Plans May Cause Water Shortages

By MICHAEL CASEY – 6 hours ago

BANGKOK, Thailand (AP) — China's and India's plans to produce more
biofuels could cause shortages of water, which is needed for crops to
feed their growing populations, according to study results released
Thursday.

The International Water Management Institute or IWMI study said both
countries are counting on maize and sugarcane, which need large
amounts of water, for much of their biofuels.

"Crop production for biofuels in China and India would likely
jeopardize sustainable water use and thus affect irrigated production
of food crops, including cereals and vegetables, which would then need
to be imported in larger quantities," Charlotte de Fraiture, the
study's lead author, said in a statement.

"Are these countries, particularly India which has devoted so much
effort to achieving food security, adequately considering the
trade-offs involved, especially the prospect of importing food to free
up sufficient water and land for production of biofuel crops?"

Neither an Indian nor a Chinese government spokesman could immediately
be reached for comment on the study results.

The study follows one released earlier this week by the National
Research Council, which warned that increased production of these
crops for ethanol could threaten water supplies in the United States.

The IWMI study is also the latest to warn that growing demand for
biofuels could shortchange poorer countries that depend on staples
like maize to feed their populations. Setting aside more land for
biofuels could also raise prices for everything from eggs to beef, as
feed would become more expensive.

"For the 2 billion poorest people in the world, many of whom spend
half or more of their income on food, rising grain prices can quickly
become life-threatening," Lester Brown, the founder of the
Washington-based Earth Policy Institute think tank, wrote in 2006.

"The broader risk is that rising food prices could spread hunger and
generate political instability in low-income countries that import
grain," Brown wrote.

The IWMI study said China aims to increase biofuels production
fourfold to around 4 billion gallons of ethanol — 9 percent of its
projected gasoline demand — by 2020, from a 2002 level of 950 million
gallons.

India is pursuing a similarly aggressive strategy. Last month it
announced plans to double the requirement for ethanol-blend gasoline
to 10 percent in the next year.

To meet their biofuels targets, China would need to produce 26 percent
more maize and India 16 percent more sugarcane, the study found. It
said doing so would require an extra 20 gallons of irrigation water
per person per day in China, and an additional 18.5 gallons per day in
India, beyond what is needed for food.

The IWMI's David Molden said in a statement that the situation could
worsen already dire water shortages in parts of China and India.

"Without major changes in water management, how are we going to feed a
growing population, satisfy increasing demand for meat, and, on top of
that, use crops as a major source of fuel?"

The study suggested that the two countries could focus on crops that
need less water, such as sweet sorghum for ethanol, and species
including the jatropha bush and pongamia trees for biodiesel.

India has already announced plans to plant about 7.7 million acres of
jatropha plantations by 2009, and to have identified another 98.8
million acres of wasteland by then to grow the plant.

Jatropha seeds are crushed and mixed with fuel to produce biodiesel.

IWMI is a Sri Lanka-based nonprofit scientific institute that focuses
on sustainable use of water and land resources. It has 100 scientists
from 16 countries and works on research projects in 21 countries.
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