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ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 030739Z DEC 08
FM AMEMBASSY PARIS
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4948
INFO RUEHZN/ENVIRONMENT SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY COLLECTIVE
RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE
RUCNMUC/EU CANDIDATE STATES COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS PARIS 002183 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
Pass USDA/FAS FOR OA/YOST/JACKSON/ROSADO; 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KGHG EAGR SENV ENRG TRGY EUN EU FR
SUBJECT: FRENCH WELCOME BIOFUELS "SUSTAINABILITY" DEMARCHE 
 
REF: State 123492 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Embassy delivered reftel points to French 
Ministries of Agriculture, Economy and Environment.  The Agriculture 
Ministry told us that the EU is still discussing the biofuels 
sustainability and criteria issue, and that they still hope to 
resolve the issue by the end of the French Presidency.  The Ministry 
of Economy hopes to discuss this issue further in the Transatlantic 
Economic Council (TEC) in December.  EMIN also raised the issue with 
Ministry of Economy Undersecretary Jean-Cristophe Donnellier, 
stressing trade and WTO aspects to France's 133 Committee rep. End 
summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) On Thursday, November 20 Jean-Yves Cortey, head of the 
Biomass Office, General Directorate for Agricultural Food and 
Regional Policies, Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAP) told 
the Agricultural Minister-Counselor that MAP welcomes the demarche 
and will consider its points.  On Friday, November 21 the FAS 
delivered the demarche to senior advisors to MAP Minister Barnier. 
 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Speaking of the EU Directive, Cortey explained MAP's main 
concern is the Indirect Land Use Change (ILUC) criteria.  An initial 
EU draft provided that, if the EC Commission failed to develop ILUC 
methodology by 2012, then the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) ration for 
biofuel from crops (including corn ethanol) would be reduced, i.e., 
penalized, vis-`-vis other renewable fuel sources.  France now 
supports wording that "the Commission must propose a methodology to 
calculate ILUC by 2012," without mentioning a penalty, in order to 
protect the EU biofuel infant industry. 
 
¶4. (SBU)  On November 26, Elie Beauroy of the Ministry of Economics, 
Finance and Industry's Treasury and Economic Policy Bureau told 
Econoff and ESTH Counselor that the French are focusing on the 
direct effects of biofuels, while the indirect effects will be 
noted, but not binding.  The Commission will provide reports on the 
impact of biofuel production on food prices, land use, and working 
conditions in exporting countries.  Science-based sustainability 
criteria will be applied mostly to first generation biofuels 
provided their production is not on land with high biodiversity 
value or high carbon stock.  The European directive includes a "life 
cycle" methodology for measuring the percentage of emissions 
reductions sought from biofuels. However, U.S. corn ethanol is still 
excluded at this stage. Beauroy suggested discussing this issue in 
the next TEC meeting scheduled for December.  He was non-committal 
on extending by a year the implementation of the Energy and Climate 
legislative package. At Beauroy's request, we emailed the text of 
the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA). 
 
 
Stapleton