An economic modeling research study from Purdue University investigated the impacts of US biofuel production on deforestation in Malaysia and Indonesia, reports USSoy.org.
“Our analysis shows that less than 1% of the land cleared in Indonesia and Malaysia can be tied to US biofuel production,” said Farzad Taheripour, a research associate professor in Purdue agricultural economics. “The amount is not significant.”
Though US biofuels production and palm oil production in Southeast Asia have both been increasing, the study found that other factors account for that deforestation.
US crop productivity has increased over time, producing more yield on the same amount of land. And so, conversion of land has not been needed to account for most of the US biofuel production.
