Swedes launch first ‘verified sustainable ethanol’

The company says that its E85 and ED95 (for heavy goods vehicles) blends have been rigorously – and independently – benchmarked against the highest environmental, social and climate criteria. It spent eighteen months developing a framework with specifications covering the entire life cycle of ethanol, from harvesting the raw sugar cane in Brazil all the way through to its use in vehicles.

Requirements
The criteria include zero tolerance of child labour, non-organised working conditions (slave labour) and the felling of rainforests. There are also requirements concerning working conditions, labour laws, and wages. Harvesting must be at least thirty per cent mechanised today, increasing to one hundred per cent by 2014.

With regards to the environment and climate, SEKAB says that in terms of well-to-wheel emissions, its sustainable ethanol results in at least 85 per cent less CO2 emissions than regular gasoline.

Anders Fredriksson, vice president of SEKAB BioFuels & Chemicals, says that the criteria that SEKAB sustainable ethanol must meet are in line with those demands highlighted in the ongoing processes being led by international organisations such as the European Union, the United Nations and its International Labour Organization, and a number of non-governmental organisations.

Audit
SEKAB delivers about ninety per cent of all E85 and ED95 ethanol in Sweden. An independent international verification company will audit all production units twice a year to ensure the sustainability criteria are met.

Major step
"This initiative is the first of its kind in the world and a major step for speeding up the replacement of gasoline and diesel," says Fredriksson.

"The criteria will gradually be developed over the coming years and synchronised with international regulations when these are in place."