Sustainability is the ability of a process to be continued indefinitely without damaging and/or degrading the environment on which it depends. The RFA is committed to encouraging the sourcing of biofuels that can be shown to have been produced in a sustainable manner.
The RFA collects information from companies on the biofuels they use, including the type of fuel supplied (e.g. bioethanol or biodiesel), the crop (or feedstock) from which the fuel has been derived (e.g. sugar cane or palm oil) and the country of origin of the crop. The RFA also collects information on any appropriate social or environmental standards met in growing the feedstock. Suppliers can report that their fuell was grown in line with a certification scheme that has been becnhmarked against the RTFO Sustainable Biofuel Meta-Standard. The ‘Meta-Standard' includes criteria for monitoring land use change, biodiversity conservation, soil conservation, water use and air quality, in addition to social minimum standards including respect for workers rights and land rights. The RTFO Meta-Standard is a higher standard than most existing sustainability assurance schemes, and it is hoped that over time existing schemes will be enhanced to become increasingly consistent with this standard.
The RFA also collects data on the greenhouse gas emissions savings provided by use of the biofuels, taking into account any reported direct land-use changes.
Last Modified: 05 Nov 2009