Animal fat use in green jet fuel soaring and could be worse than kerosene, study warns
The fat from dead pigs and cows is increasingly being used to power planes and cars as a greener alternative, which could end up being even worse for the environment than traditional jet fuel, new research has warned.
The use of animal fat in biodiesel has increased by forty times since 2006, and demand is set to triple by 2030 compared to 2021, according to the study by green campaigners Transport and Environment (T&E).
But there is not enough waste animal fat to scale it up sustainably.
All the animal fat that already exists – usually coming from unwanted animal body parts in abattoirs – is already used in things like candles, cosmetics and pet food.
A transatlantic flight between Paris and New York would need the fat from 8,800 dead pigs each way, according to T&E calculations.
However, animal fats are just one component of sustainable fuel, along with things like vegetable fats and waste crops – and sustainable fuel is still dwarfed by kerosene.
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Tom Heap looks at what the aviation industry is doing to become more climate-friendly
But the figure “illustrates the size of the problem,” Matt Finch from T&E told Sky News. “There are hundreds of transatlantic flights every day. Animal fats will be sucked into aviation, that’s an absolute given.
“But dead animals don’t grow on trees, so if aviation suddenly wants to use a lot of animal fats in its fuels, it can’t be used by other sectors.”
Those sectors would likely turn to palm oil instead, which is cheap and has similar properties.
But all the palm oil produced is already used too, so increased demand would likely require slashing more tropical rainforest to create more plantations.
“This is the worst environmental outcome possible,” said Mr Finch.
If virgin palm oil were to substitute animal fats, CO2 emissions of animal fats biofuels could be up to 1.7 times worse than conventional diesel, the research says.
The shift in uses can “therefore significantly undermine the climate benefits of using animal fats biofuels”, it warns.
The EU is bringing in a sustainable aviation fuel mandate that would allow potentially unlimited amount of animal fats in sustainable fuels.
The UK is still consulting on plans, but is likely to cap animal fats at a maximum of 2%, or ban them altogether.
That’s “good news,” for the impact on palm oil, said Mr Finch. But he beleives the UK mandate risks relying too much on waste products, which are always only ever available in limited volumes.
According to Mr Finch, the most environmentally friendly alternative, is to replace jet fuel with a blend of “green” hydrogen – made from clean electricity – with carbon captured at source from things like factories. But this is expensive and supply is limited at the moment.
A spokesperson from Sustainable Aviation, the UK aviation industry sustainability coalition, called sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) a “here and now solution to decarbonising UK flights.
“They are made from a wide variety of feedstocks that must meet strict sustainability criteria, do not compete with food production and are rigorously certified.
“Future UK SAF production will be largely based on feedstocks like black-bag waste or waste gases.
“The UK has enough feedstock for SAF use to help aviation achieve net zero by 2050, alongside synthetic SAFs made from captured carbon and green hydrogen that we expect to see next decade.”
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Two pro-Palestinian demonstrators have thrown red powder on Tower Bridge – just moments before leading runners in the London Marathon went past.
The protesters were arrested on suspicion of causing a public nuisance and remain in custody, said the Metropolitan Police.
A video shared by Youth Demand, which is calling for a trade embargo on Israel, shows two people jumping over a barrier that separates spectators from the race course.
The pair, wearing t-shirts that say “Youth Demand: Stop Arming Israel”, are then seen standing in the middle of the road on the bridge.
Pic: LNP
They throw red powder in the air as an official marathon car goes past displaying the race time.
A motorbike with a cameraman on board continues along the route, while a second motorbike stops and one of the riders gets off and pushes the pair out of the way, just before the men’s elite runners pass.
Several police officers then jump over the barrier and detain the pair, the footage shows.
There appeared to be no impact on the marathon.
More than 56,000 participants were expected to take part in the 26.2-mile race through the capital.
Sabastian Sawe of Kenya won the men’s elite race in a time of two hours, two minutes and 27 seconds, while Ethiopia’s Tigst Assefa shattered the women’s-only world record in two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds.
Assefa beat the previous best of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set last year in London by Kenyan Peres Jepchirchir.
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Pic: LNP
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “At around 10.38am, two protesters from Youth Demand jumped over barriers at Tower Bridge and threw red paint on to the road.
“Marathon event staff intervened to remove the protesters from the path of the men’s elite race which was able to pass unobstructed.”
The force added that they were “quickly supported by police officers who arrested the protesters on suspicion of causing a public nuisance”.
The Met said the paint “appeared to be chalk-based” and was not expected to “present a hazard to runners yet to pass this point”.
Counter-terrorism police are investigating after an incident involving a crossbow and a firearm left two women injured in Leeds.
Police were called to Otley Road at 2.47pm on Saturday to reports of a “serious incident involving a man seen with weapons”, West Yorkshire Police said.
Officers arrived at the scene to find two women injured – and a 38-year-old man with a self-inflicted injury. All three were taken to hospital, with the man held under arrest, but their injuries are not believed to be life-threatening.
“Two weapons have been recovered from the scene, which were a crossbow and a firearm,” Counter Terrorism Policing North East said in a statement.
The incident happened on the ‘Otley Run’ pub crawl, with one venue saying it was closed for the evening due to “unforeseen circumstances”.
Officers guard one of the crime scenes
Officers inside the cordon in Leeds
Counter Terrorism Policing’s statement added: “Due to the circumstances surrounding the incident, Counter Terrorism Policing North East have taken responsibility for leading the investigation with the support of West Yorkshire Police.
“Extensive enquiries continue to establish the full circumstances and explore any potential motivation.”
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper described it as a “serious violent incident” and said she was being kept updated by police.
“Thank you to the police and emergency services for their swift response,” she said. “My thoughts are with the victims and all those affected by this attack.”
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