The greasing of Lake Victoria

Biodiesel means trouble for Uganda

Posted by Julia Olmstead (Guest Contributor) at 3:37 PM on 12 Dec 2006

As reported by Reuters yesterday:

The president of Uganda asked the National Forest Authority boss to quit after he refused to license a palm oil company to destroy a pristine rainforest on an island in Lake Victoria, according to his resignation note.

According to the article, a palm oil plantation would offer economic benefits that outweigh environmental concerns. They'll need to break the law to move ahead, but according to the president's office, they have to act fast to beat out other countries that might also try to court the palm oil company.

Clearly this is an incredibly short-sighted act, as the ecological damage that ensues could soon not only make the island's soil untenable for palm trees, but alter the lake's ecosystem in ways that disrupt other income-earning activities it supports.

But we can't really blame the Ugandan government for scrambling to grab a piece of the gold rush that global demand for biodiesel has created. Our do-gooder feelings (and low fuel prices!) at the expense of their rainforest. That's not such a bad deal, is it?

For story: The greasing of Lake Victoria
9 Comments | Post a Comment

You can't blame the Ugandans

You can see what I mean about the hopelessness of stopping the destruction with certification. Once the forest is gone, its gone, certification be damned. My take is that we should not support biodiesel made from food crops, period. They can't make a dent in global warming or energy security but they are knocking rainforest carbon sinks flat.

In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world

by biodiversivist at 5:49 PM on 12 Dec 2006

Having just read the Reuter's article

I see he plans to also turn another rainforest into a sugar plantation. Do you suppose the high price of sugar (caused by turning so much of it into ethanol in Brazil) has anything to do with that?

In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world

by biodiversivist at 7:45 PM on 12 Dec 2006

Sounds plausible

Without knowing anything about the global sugar market, your theory certainly sounds reasonable to me. Ah, biofuels... Can you imagine what we could achieve if we put all this effort and money instead into solar and wind technology?

by Julia Olmstead at 7:31 AM on 13 Dec 2006

Yep Julia

"Can you imagine what we could achieve.."

The good news coming out of technological breakthroughs in solar, wind, water power and hybrid plugin vehicles, solid oxide fuel cell/turbines, geothermal heating/cooling, biogas systems, is amazing!

The solutions are here already, but largely ignored by the media and almost completely ignored by those wielding the power of government policy and corporate investment.

Meanwhile, the mostly unheard by the public, corporate/ political wrangling continues in the halls of congress ruled by lobbyists.

And we here in blogland try to illuminate the scene with the latest developments and expose' of eco-disasters like this damn fuel farming. A pox on agribizz fuel farming everywhere!!

When considering fuel farming just consult bio-d's site on it. You have all the facts assembled in one place, excellent! And the link to that article that states that 15 to 30% of uS CO2 emissions are absorbed by conservation land.

That is the key to reversing global climate disaster, and a major contraindication of curing the addiction to oil with an addiction to fuel farming. Along with the fact that it is physically impossible to replace a signifigant amount of oil with farmed fuel.

Damn you bio-willy! He looks like santa, but his shilling for biofuel makes him a huge eco-grinch!

http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog John Schneider, Northern Wisconsin

by amazingdrx at 9:21 AM on 13 Dec 2006

It has been rumored that Mr. Nelson

smoke's biodiesel, I'm just saying...

In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world

by biodiversivist at 9:31 AM on 13 Dec 2006

NORML

He is doing NORML ads on radio so I guess that redeems him a bit bio-d.

I think we could convert him to bio-algae/solar collecter-desiel-willy. If he would listen to reason.

Maybe if the algae was bio-engineered to produce hash oil he would join up?

http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog John Schneider, Northern Wisconsin

by amazingdrx at 10:53 PM on 13 Dec 2006

There's an idea,

make biodiesel out of hash oil. I'm sure it has been proposed by someone. I mean, they are making fuel out of alcohol.

In the end, it all comes down to biodiversity. Poison Darts--Protecting the biodiversity of our world

by biodiversivist at 7:01 AM on 14 Dec 2006

Sell the emissions!

You could get people to pay to suck on the tailpipe! Hehehey.

http://amazngdrx.blogharbor.com/blog John Schneider, Northern Wisconsin

by amazingdrx at 7:45 AM on 14 Dec 2006

On Catalytic Converters

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by Hodbrid at 6:34 PM on 10 Sep 2007

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