Clinton Global Initiative launches two biofuel projects for poverty alleviation

The Clinton Global Initiative is launching two biofuel projects aimed at alleviating poverty. The first, a project with an estimated value of $100 million, involves the production by rural communities of biodiesel from Jatropha curcas in the West Indies. In the second, worth an estimated $300 million, FourWinds Capital Management, in collaboration with local partners and a team of scientific experts, will develop investment programs in closed systems that focus on sustainable tropical biofuel production projects that maximize environmental and social welfare.

Biodiesel in the Caribbean
The Petra Trust and the Governments of St Vincent and Grenadine plan to initiate a wide-ranging public and private partnership in the West Indies region bringing together the Governments of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG), Guyana and the technology and management expertise of the Petra Group to develop a world leading biodiesel facility.

Employing technology developed by Petra Group in Malaysia, the technology and agricultural programme which will alleviate rural poverty in Guyana, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and provide employment for Haitians.

The commitment is based on a four-step programme. The project would first establish a joint-venture between Petra Group and the Governments of Guyana, St Vincent and the Grenadines to manage, administer and benefit from the biodiesel project. This central corporation would be responsible for developing the business plan, selecting the properties, commissioning the plant, distributing the seeds, transportation, and managing the programme.

The Petra Group would then work with the Government of SVG to establish nurseries on the islands to grow the Jathropa curcas plant. It would provide the first 10-20 million seeds - starting with the pilot nursery of 2 million seeds. These will be grown in state-run nurseries or on individual farmers' small holdings – providing both wealth and employment. The central agency would collect the saplings and then transport the young plants to Guyana to be grown and harvested:
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In Guyana, where there is land in abundance – the project will set up plantations to grow the Jathropha plants. Individual farmers would be offered the saplings – enabling them to create their own small holdings. On larger plantations, where labour may be limited, the projects envisages to employ workers from Haiti travelling to Guyana to work the harvest, thus creating new employment for many Haitians.

The seeds would be collected by the 'Central Corporation' and transported to the biodiesel facility where it would be refined into biofuel and exported. The proceeds of the sale would be split between Petra and the participating Governments – thus ensuring that all parties work together to secure success of the programme. Clearly proving a commercially driven project can be developed in such a way as to ensure significant socio-economic progress without damaging the economic value.

The project will initially provide and source the professional management expertise to set up the programme; but in time it is intended that local people will be trained to take over the development and management of the project. Over the course of the next decade it is expected other refineries could be established across the region and an extensive network of Jathropha nurseries and plantations would be set up.

In addition this project has enormous potential to be replicated in other areas of the world – employing the same public-private partnership and technology expertise.

Sustainable tropical biofuels
The objective of the FourWinds program is to offer viable alternative energy solutions that are net positive for the environment in terms of carbon emissions and biodiversity, and that achieve a balance of nature together with an equitable treatment of local peoples.

In addition to the biofuel component, other elements that are expected to be included in the program are reforestation, biodiversity management, bio-prospecting, land rehabilitation and water table management.

Not all biofuels have been shown to offer net positive benefits for the environment across the production value chain, and many are not truly energy efficient. In addition, the planting of crops for biofuels has led in some cases to deforestation and acreage stress for agriculture land that was traditionally used for food or feed production.

As targets for biofuel use rise, the impact of the type of biofuels produced on both the environment and on the local communities is becoming increasingly critical.

There are many types of materials that can be used for biofuels. They vary not only in yield, but also in labor requirements, energy consumption, water usage, soil stress, biodiversity impact, and carbon efficiency.

Integrating the full system and resources of the environment into a community program can produce more eco-friendly biofuels, but can also provide other sources of return from biodiversity and reforestation to conservation and medicinal applications.

About the Clinton Global Initiative
President Bill Clinton launched the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) in 2005 as a non-partisan catalyst for action, bringing together a community of global leaders to devise and implement innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing challenges.

As a non-profit, 501(c)(3) endeavor of the William J. Clinton Foundation, CGI draws strength from a highly diverse membership base that represents the full spectrum of political, ideological, religious, ethnic, and geographic backgrounds. Members include current and former heads of state, top business executives, preeminent scholars, and representatives of key non-governmental organizations working together for a common cause.

The defining characteristics of the Clinton Global Initiative are its action-oriented nature and its track record of converting pioneering ideas into viable solutions with tangible results. CGI members develop ‘commitments to action’, focusing on practical, effective problem-solving measures that can be taken now. Member commitments are comprehensive, formal plans of action with timetables for evaluating progress. They are developed within one or more CGI areas of focus, which change annually to address the most imperative global issues requiring attention. We have designated education, energy & climate change, global health, and poverty alleviation as the areas of focus for 2007.

In this era of remarkable global interdependence, ensuring more equitable access to existing and future resources is a moral and practical imperative for us all.

References:
Clinton Global Initiative: Eco-Integration, 2007 - September 2007.

Clinton Global Initiative: Development of a Jethropha Curcus powered Bio-diesel project, 2007 - September 2007.