摘要
Biofuels could contribute, on a worldwide basis, to the attainment of international energy-policy objectives in three ways： by reducing dependence on imported oil; by increasing the availability of renewable energy sources; and by dealing with environmental issues. One such environmental issue is the unsustainable use of agricultural land. There is a need in South Africa there to convert to sustainable and renewable energy resources, such as biofuels, but the production of biofuels will ultimately place pressure on the limited and fragile agricultural resources of the country. This paper sets out firstly to investigate national agricultural policies which could impact on the production of biofuels. It points out that national agricultural policies are hampering the domestic production of biofuels in that the focus is on land reform and increasing the volume of agricultural exports, whereas the provision of food and energy to meet domestic needs features only as a secondary aim. The second objective of this paper is to investigate the possibility of utilising energy crops for biofuel production in South Africa. Annual agricultural production, surplus import and export figures, provide an indication of the capacity of South African farmers to produce crops for biofuel production.
