A\u00a0new report<\/a>\u00a0from the\u00a0Methane Matters coalition<\/a>\u00a0– a consortium of civil society organisations \u2013 finds that The EU has handed the biogas industry billions of euros of public money to expand, without ensuring adequate environmental controls.<\/p>\n The consortium warns that without an environmental impact assessment, the EU\u2019s unchecked rush to scale up biogas and biomethane production risks locking in pollution, fuelling industrial livestock farming, and undermining climate goals.<\/p>\n The findings come as \u2018Biomethane Week\u2019 (1) gets underway in Brussels and reveals a lack of oversight that opens the door wide to perverse incentives and harmful side effects, including methane leaks from biogas plants, increased air and water pollution, manure feedstocks increasing intensive animal rearing, and the possible lock-in of fossil fuel use.<\/p>\n The\u00a0report recommends<\/a>\u00a0that EU policymakers ensure appropriate regulation of the biogas sector by undertaking an immediate environmental impact assessment of the RePowerEU target, and calls for the immediate cessation of any public funding until this has been completed.<\/p>\n Caitlin Smith, Senior Campaigner, Changing Markets Foundation<\/strong> Sascha M\u00fcller-Kraenner, Executive Director, Deutsche Umwelthilfe<\/strong> Luc Powell, Senior Policy Officer for Air Quality and Agriculture, European Environmental Bureau<\/strong> Janek V\u00e4hk, Zero Pollution Policy Manager, Zero Waste Europe<\/strong> Jack Corscadden, Climate Campaigner, Environmental Investigation Agency<\/strong> Methane is a super-pollutant, more than 80 times as powerful than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Agriculture accounts for more than 57% of the EU\u2019s methane emissions, the majority from enteric fermentation (cow-burps). Tackling methane is the best emergency brake we have to avoid climate tipping points.<\/p>\n Biogas and biomethane (2) are widely promoted as renewable energy sources, and a means with which the agricultural industry can reduce methane emissions. When implemented well biogas may have a role to play in achieving methane emissions reductions, however, without stringent environmental regulation, it perpetuates the problem.<\/p>\n The EU has pledged to increase biomethane production to 35 billion cubic metres annually by 2030, under the 2022 RePowerEU target, developed to secure energy security from Russia. A steering group, the Biomethane Industrial Partnership (BIP) comprising government and industry players, was set up to achieve the target.<\/p>\n As founders of the Global Methane Pledge (3), the EU and the UK are central to global leadership and action on methane emission reduction, and the report warns that without urgent action to address these oversights, their role risks being undermined. The report analyses EU-level policies relevant to biogas and national policies from Denmark, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Poland, and Romania to reflect a balance of geographies, and biogas production capacities (4). In addition, a UK-focused case study is included.<\/p>\n Samantha Ibbott<\/strong> Caitlin Smith<\/strong> Sascha M\u00fcller-Kraener<\/strong> Janek Vahk<\/strong>Key findings<\/h4>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n\u201cThe EU has handed a blank cheque to the biogas industry, with no clear evidence that it will deliver real climate benefits. This is not a transition plan, but yet another subsidy for Big Meat and Dairy. Without a proper impact assessment, we risk locking Europe into another unsustainable energy rush. We urgently need a proper review of how much biogas can be produced sustainably. Until then, that cheque must be withdrawn before it\u2019s cashed against our future<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n“What is happening in the biogas sector in the EU, and particularly in Germany, can only be described as a dangerous craze. We urge regulators at the national and at the EU level to reconsider the lofty expansion targets for biomethane that are in no way compatible with sustainable development of the sector. Regulatory guardrails need to be put up and enforcement of existing rules needs to be ensured. Otherwise, biogas won’t be part of the solution but become part of the problem: Without proper regulation and oversight, the biogas rush incentivizes harmful farming practices, drives up methane emissions, and risks locking in fossil-based infrastructure in sectors where better alternatives exist<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cBiogas is a fossil fuel Trojan horse, sold as a green solution but in reality, forcing the EU to remain dependent on gas and drive the industrialisation of animal farming. The \u20ac37 billion put towards biogas under RePowerEU would serve citizens far better if it supported a move beyond gas, not deeper into it.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n
\n\u201cEurope must put waste prevention first – it’s the smartest and greenest solution. As for biogas in the waste sector, its role is to deal with what we cannot prevent, not to justify continued waste generation.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\u201cIn the rush to phase out Russian fossil fuels, biogas has been promoted as a silver bullet solution, despite concerns about its overall sustainability. Methane leakages from the sector pose a serious threat to the environment. If biogas is to play a meaningful role in the EU\u2019s future energy mix, it must be held to the same standards as other energy sources. The sector must be regulated, with requirements for the adoption of leak detection and repair programmes, supported by detailed monitoring and reporting of emissions from biogas facilities.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\nBackground<\/h4>\n
Notes to editors<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n
For further information, please contact:<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\nSenior Communications Officer for Agriculture and Food Systems
\nsamantha.ibbott@eeb.org<\/a><\/p>\n
\nCampaign Manager, Changing Markets Foundation
\ncaitlin.smith@changingmarkets.org<\/a>\u00a0| +44 7362589758<\/p>\n
\nExecutive Director, Deutsche Umwelthilfe
\nmueller-kraenner@duh.de<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0+49 160 90354509<\/p>\n
\nZero Pollution Policy Manager, Zero Waste Europe
\njanek@zerowasteeurope.eu<\/a><\/p>\n