Are biofuels a Good Option for My Home or the Planet?
In short: no. Despite the green branding, these fuels have deep sustainability issues and cannot get us to a zero-carbon future.
Why?
It’s just physics!
1. They still produce carbon emissions when burned. They are lower carbon, not zero carbon. Combustion always releases CO₂ and air pollutants.
2. They rely on limited feedstocks. The amount of genuine organic waste available in a country is tiny compared to heating demand. These fuels cannot scale.
3. Methane leakage is a major problem. Even small leaks during production and transport can erase the entire climate benefit, because methane is a highly potent greenhouse gas.
4. Growing crops for fuel causes environmental harm. When waste supplies run out, producers switch to energy crops, which can: • displace food production, • damage soil health, • drive monocultures, • accelerate biodiversity loss.
5. They lock us into old combustion infrastructure. These fuels extend the lifespan of boilers and fossil-era systems, delaying the shift to heat pumps, solar, and electrification.
6. They are often used as greenwashing tools. Some suppliers market them as “clean” or “carbon neutral”, when in reality the benefits are marginal and overstated.
So what is the right path to zero carbon?
For homes and businesses, the technologies that actually deliver zero-carbon energy are: solar, batteries, heat pumps, electrification, and smart energy systems. These are scalable, proven, and genuinely clean.
In terms of energy costs, heat pumps still deliver the most efficient way to heat your home, giving you very low running costs forever.
Renew focuses entirely on solutions that help you transition away from combustion, not reinforce it.
