Biofuels: the risks and dangers of introducing invasive species

Abstract

Biofuel crops are increasingly promoted as environmental and economical solutions to global energy needs, but actual benefits versus costs may be less favorable than advocates claim. Among the risks associated with their cultivation is the potential to exacerbate the invasive species problem. Evidence is growing that many proposed biofuel crops are ideally suited to become successful invaders. We compared actual and candidate terrestrial biofuel crops suitable for temperate and tropical climates with introduced, nonbiofuel species, and demonstrated that biofuel species are almost three-times more likely to naturalize and over twice as likely to be invasive as nonbiofuel crops in both climatic conditions. Similar potential may exist for algae biofuels. The risks could be mitigated, and unintended environmental costs avoided, by implementing precautions including assessing and removing the worst invaders from consideration, selecting lower risk species for widespread cultivation, and actively controlling the spread of crops from cultivated areas.

Disclaimer

Viewpoints expressed in this review represent those of the authors alone, and are not intended to represent those of any affiliated agency or organization.

Acknowledgements

We wish to thank our employers, the Hawaii Invasive Species Council (HISC) and SWCA Environmental Consultants, for providing salaries and other support to evaluate the subject matter relevant to biofuel crops and invasive species. We thank members of the Maui Invasive Species Committee (MISC) and the Bishop Museum for providing critical and technical feedback and logistical support during preparation of this manuscript. We thank Lloyd Loope, Curt Daehler, Michael Poteet, Richard Ogoshi and William Steiner for fostering discussion on biofuel crop development in the Hawaiian Islands.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.