2008-10-15

Call for Interest: Proposal to establish sustainability criteria for biofuel

The Standards Council of Canada (SCC) is seeking comments from affected stakeholders on a new International Organization for Standardization (ISO) work item proposal on sustainability criteria for biofuel.

Jointly proposed by the ISO national member bodies from Brazil and Germany – the Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT) and the Deutsches Institut für Normung (DIN) — the document addresses standardization in the field of sustainability criteria, as well as the assessment of these criteria for the production, supply chain, and application of biofuels.

According to ABNT and DIN, existing efforts in this area, including the work of ISO Technical Committee (TC) 28, Subcommittee (SC) 7, Liquid Biofuels, and of ISO TC 238, Solid Biofuels, are focused on quality requirements, and do not address the sustainability aspects of biomass and biofuel production. Citing the demonstrated worldwide interest in biomass as an alternative energy resource, the proposal seeks to establish a Project Committee to validate and legitimize global biofuel production, ensuring that the industry follows practices that are neither environmentally destructive nor socially aggressive.

Scope of the proposed work:

The Project Committee is to establish terminology and general characteristics for both the environmental aspects (such as biodiversity and greenhouse gas balance) and social aspects of biofuel production.

For more information, or to submit comments, including support for or opposition to the proposal, please contact Lynne Gibbens, Senior Program Officer ISO via email, [email protected] or by telephone +1 613 238 3222 ext. 452. 

All comments submitted to SCC will be considered to generate a recommended Canadian position and comments on this proposal.

The deadline for submission is November 3, 2008.

 

The Standards Council of Canada is a federal Crown corporation with the mandate to promote efficient and effective standardization in Canada with the goal of enhancing Canada’s economic competitiveness and social well-being. SCC is Canada’s representative to the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and is responsible for coordinating Canadian participation in the development of international standards. It also accredits standards development and conformity assessment organizations. For more information on SCC’s programs visit www.scc.ca or email [email protected].