By Julius Goldthorpe

The announcement that British Airways and the Solena Group will join forces to provide an environmentally friendly biofuel for some BA flights from 2014 has done little to endear them to environmentalists. Opposition groups are refusing to show any signs of support for the groundbreaking deal even though carbon emissions would be reduced significantly.

The deal will see 500,000 tonnes of waste converted to biofuel each year, a carbon saving equivalent to that of 48,000 cars being taken of the road per annum. It is a sign that airlines are aware they must reduce carbon emissions in a bid to tackle global warming.

But demonstrators are now worried about the repercussions this could have on developing countries should more airlines follow BA’s lead. John Stuart, chair of HACAN ClearSkies, said “If biofuels are used on a large scale to fuel aircraft, they are likely to be competing for land with food crops in the countries in the developing world.”

In 2008 the European Union announced it was committed to obtaining 10 per cent of all transport fuels from renewable energy sources by 2020. To reach the target the EU require approximately 17.5 million hectares of land; equivalent to half the size of Italy. A report by ActionAid claims two-thirds of this desired land will come from developing countries.

The report also said “Additional land will be required in developed nations, displacing food and animal feed crops onto land in new areas, often in developing countries.”

Opposition to the biofuel deal will come as no surprise to airline companies, even with the potential benefits that biofuel offers. The biofuel plant, which will be built in East London, will also reduce the amount of methane released into the atmosphere as a result of landfill waste, and reduce sulphur emissions which are released through the burning of kerosene.

Stuart also expressed concern when asked if the biofuel deal may increase the possibility of the third runway at Heathrow being built. “It will not change our outright opposition to a third runway. More environmentally friendly fuels will do nothing to reduce the noise impact of the third runway.”

However a spokesperson for BA refused to rule out the possibility that the biofuel deal may be used as a bargaining tool in the future should plans to build the third runway get the all clear.