This document summarizes the socio-environmental impacts of sugarcane ethanol production based on lessons learned. Sugarcane ethanol production can lead to soil degradation through erosion and compaction, as well as pollution of aquatic systems through sedimentation, pesticides, and waste. It can also increase nitrogen pollution through excess fertilizer runoff. Sugarcane burning causes additional soil and air pollution issues as well as health problems. Socially, it has impacted local farming and land use, increased tensions over land ownership, affected indigenous peoples, and often creates poor working conditions for laborers. Expanding agrofuel targets without proper sustainability criteria and oversight could exacerbate these problems. More sustainable, decentralized energy alternatives need to be pursued instead of

1. Socio-environmental impacts of
agrofuels
Lessons from sugarcane ethanol production
Amaranta Herrero
Corporate Europe Observatory (CEO)

2. Structure of the presentation
● Context and impacts
●Sugarcane ethanol: environmental and social
impacts
●Further considerations for climate change:
Land use change and marginal lands
● Conclusions and recommendations

3. ➔ Agrofuel context
Time of uncertainties and environmental
challenges: Climate change ; loss of biodiversity;
soil erosion
➔ Energy crisis: peak oil + other mineral peaks
➔ Financial crisis & climate change?
EU legislation in process:
● Renewable Energy Directive World oil production (EIA Monthly) for crude oil + NGL
(December 2007)

4. The importance of knowing the
impacts
Internalising unexpected side-effects. Accountability
exercise. Towards an 'ethics of responsibility'.
The 'development discourse' and 'green energy
discourse' on agrofuels
Dealing with uncertainties and assessing complex
systems – multicriteria assessments
sugarcane ethanol case

5. Environmental impacts of
sugarcane ethanol
Impacts on Soil
- Soil degradation
soil erosion (extensive areas of bare soil)
soil compaction (traffic of heavy machinery)
Impacts on Aquatic systems
- Sedimentation (deposited onto wetlands, small streams, rivers and reservoirs).
- Chemical pollution via pesticides (organochlorides and antrazine) and
heavy metals
- Waste pollution from the sugarcane industrial processing
(washing of sugarcane stems and vinasse produced during the destillation process)

6. Environmental impacts of
sugarcane ethanol II
Nitrogen pollution
- Excess of N (fertilizer) is exported in streams and rivers –
eutrophication
- The N cycle is accelerated. Emissions of N2O (about 300 times
stronger than CO2). This an important trade-off in the climate
change scenario and must be taken into account in the
energy balance.
Impacts on riparian ecosystems
and biodiversity

7. Socioenvironmental impacts of
sugarcane ethanol
Impacts due to sugarcane burning
- Soil compaction and soil erosion
- High concentration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
have been detected in soils located near sugarcane
burning areas. Risk for human health.
- Gas emissions (CO and O3 in high levels). Acid rain.
- Sugarcane burning respiratory diseases

8. Social impacts of sugarcane ethanol
Impacts on local farming
- Reconfiguration in land use
- Increase tension over land ownership
- Affecting family farming and increasing food prices
- Impacts on indigenous peoples
Impacts on Job creation and Working conditions
(quantity vs. quality debate)
- 8 to 12 hours/day of cutting and carrying sugarcane stalks,
while inhaling dust and smoke from the burned residue. Usually
lack of clean water, restrooms and food storage facilitaties.
- Typical sugarcane worker: migrant from the poor area, usually
hired and transported to sugarcane plantations by the “gatos”.
Semi-slavery working conditions.

9. Further considerations on agrofuels
(especially regarding the RED)
Land-use change:
change
Importance of agriculture and
land use for emissions!
Main indirect effects that lead to
deforestation. Brasilian soya
case.
Source: UK Government Stern Report on Climate Change, 2006
The Mith of the Marginal Lands: Proposed to respond to
Lands
critisism regarding competition with food production.
Marginal Lands are usually vital for the livelihoods of small-
scale farmers, pastoralists, women and indigenous peoples.
How sustainable can a monoculture be?

10. Conclusions and recomendations
- Industrial scale agrofuel monocultures already
have severe environmental and social impacts.
- 10% mandatory target for 2020 will lead to a
major expansion of agrofuels and therefore will
instensify its unintentional side-effects.
- It's necessary to include whole life cycle
analysis and land change use in energy
calculations
- Sustainability criteria under a mandatory target
and without moritoring and control mechanisms
is mainly a greenwash mechanism

11. Conclusions and recomendations
With the excuse of the Financial crisis
it's important not to weaken strong social
and environmental commitments
The promotion of agrofuels perpetuates
our present model of transport based on
private cars, fuel combustion engines
and dependence on fossil fuels.
Political actions are needed to face
the current problem of
overconsumption of natural
resources and finding more efficient,
non-dangerous, decentralised, fair,
and locally-based energy alternatives
to our addiction to oil.

12. thanks!