Table of Contents

Foreword by Vaclav Smil

Foreword by Jerome Ravetz

1. Can We Solve the Agro-Biofuel Riddle?

2. Learning from the Past

3. Not Everything that Burns is a Fuel

4. Pattern of Societal Metabolism across Levels: A Crash Course in Bioeconomics

5. Assessment of the Quality of Alternative Energy Sources

6. Neglect of Available Wisdom

7. Reality Check on the Feasibility and Desirability of Agro-Biofuels

8. Agro-Biofuel Production is No Good for Rural Development

9. Living in Denial

10. Where Do We Go From Here?

Appendix 1 - Basic Theoretical Concepts behind the Analysis of Societal Metabolism

Appendix 2 - Examples of Grammars and Applications of Bioeconomics

About the Author

Mario Giampietro is an ICREAn Research Professor at the Universitat Autonoma Barcelona, Spain. Kozo Mayumi is a Professor at the University of Tokushima, Japan.

Reviews

'In our rush to 'do something' about energy and climate, we are tinkering with complex systems that we do not fully understand. This leads to consequences that are unintended and undesirable. Giampietro and Mayumi show that using biofuels effectively requires calculating how that usage integrates into a society's overall metabolism. Beyond biofuels, the book has a broad and enduring lesson: We will achieve better results if knowledge precedes policy.'
Joseph A. Tainter, author of The Collapse of Complex Societies 'Thanks to Mario Giampietro and Kozo Mayumi for a cogent analysis of why large scale biofuels are one more false panacea put forward by the growth addicts.'
Herman E. Daly, University of Maryland, USA 'Giampietro and Mayumi are world authorities on the use of energy in the economy. This book is the product of many years of scholarly work. It gives well-argued reasons against the misguided agrofuel policies of the European Union and the United States. Agrofuels have a low EROI, increase the HANPP (human appropriation of biomass) to the detriment of other species, and increase the water footprint of our economies.'
Joan Martinez-Alier, Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona and Past-President, International Society for Ecological Economics 'A powerful critique'
Renew Magazine 'Timely for professionals working in a variety of fields...foresters should also find the book insightful.'
The Forestry Chronicle 'They (the authors)...provide a global perspective....Recommended.'
CHOICE Magazine 'This book will be vital, sobering reading for anyone concerned with energy or agricultural policy, or bioenergy as a complex system.'
Management of Environmental Quality Journal.