Filed under: Biodiesel, Etc., Ethanol
U.S. and European policies, which call for increased production of ethanol and other biofuels to displace fossil fuels and possibly reduce global warming, could result in more deaths and diseases worldwide. Counter-intuitive, no? Well, according to a release from the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS), here's why making more biofuels may be detrimental to our health:
The AAPS points to research conducted by the World Bank that indicates that increases in biofuel production from 2004 to 2010 has already pushed more than 35 million people into absolute poverty in third-world countries. Using statistics from the World Health Organization, Dr. Indur Goklany, a science and technology policy analyst for the U.S. Department of the Interior, estimates that the increased amount of people living in absolute poverty has led to at least 192,000 additional deaths per year. Goklany claims that death and disease from poverty are proven, whereas the loss of life and illnesses linked directly to global warming are hypothetical.Increased production of biofuels increases the price of food worldwide by diverting crops and cropland from feeding people to feeding motor vehicles. Higher food prices, in turn, condemn more people to chronic hunger and "absolute poverty" (defined as income less than $1.25 per day). But hunger and poverty are leading causes of premature death and excess disease worldwide. Therefore, higher biofuel production would increase death and disease.
[Source: Association of American Physicians and Surgeons | Image: Agência Brasil - Wikimedia Commons]
Continue reading AAPS: Making more biofuels could kill 200,000 people a year
AAPS: Making more biofuels could kill 200,000 people a year originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Tue, 05 Apr 2011 11:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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