The Path Not Yet Taken

The paper argues that the EU's current reliance on voluntary certification schemes for biofuels sustainability is insufficient, especially for small-scale producers in developing countries. It proposes the use of bilateral agreements, as permitted by Article 18(4) of the EU-RED, to provide a more flexible, customized, and holistic approach to sustainability verification. Drawing on lessons from the Forest Law Enforcement Governance and Trade (FLEGT) initiative and Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), the authors suggest that bilateral deals can address institutional weaknesses, reduce non-tariff trade barriers, and mitigate indirect land-use change (ILUC) more effectively than a one-size-fits-all 'meta-standard'.

• The EU's primary reliance on voluntary certification schemes for biofuels sustainability creates barriers for small-scale producers in developing countries due to high costs and a lack of influence over standard development.
• Article 18(4) of the EU-RED provides a legal mechanism for the EU to conclude bilateral or multilateral agreements with third countries to verify sustainability criteria, offering more flexibility than voluntary schemes.
• The EU's failure to implement bilateral agreements for biofuels is attributed to a 'wait and see' approach by the European Commission and a conflict between EU external policy goals and the protectionist interests of domestic producers in Member States like France and Germany.
• Lessons from the FLEGT initiative demonstrate that bilateral Voluntary Partnership Agreements (VPAs) are effective because they focus on improving national governance and institutional capacity rather than just creating 'islands' of sustainable practice.
• Bilateral agreements could be a superior tool for addressing indirect land-use change (ILUC) by allowing the EU to engage with a country's overall land-use policies rather than focusing solely on individual operators.
• Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) illustrate the risks of overly ambitious regional approaches; the authors suggest that targeted, one-on-one bilateral agreements are more manageable and less likely to be bogged down by regional complexities.
• The use of a 'meta-standard' for sustainability is administratively efficient for the EU but can be perceived as an imposition of external standards; bilateral agreements can balance this rigidity through customization.

APA

Westberg, C. J., & Johnson, F. X. (2013). The Path Not Yet Taken. Stockholm Environment Institute. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-WP-2013-02-Biofuels-EU-RED.pdf

Chicago

Westberg, C. Johan, and Francis X. Johnson. The Path Not Yet Taken. Stockholm Environment Institute, 2013. https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-WP-2013-02-Biofuels-EU-RED.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Westberg |first1=C. Johan |last2=Johnson |first2=Francis X. |title=The Path Not Yet Taken |publisher=Stockholm Environment Institute |date=April 2013 |url=https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-WP-2013-02-Biofuels-EU-RED.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{westberg2013path, author = {Westberg, C. Johan and Johnson, Francis X.}, title = {{The Path Not Yet Taken}}, institution = {Stockholm Environment Institute}, year = {2013}, month = apr, url = {https://www.sei.org/mediamanager/documents/Publications/Climate/SEI-WP-2013-02-Biofuels-EU-RED.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }