Brown Peter: Biofuel Bill — Second Reading 
Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume 
Brown Peter: Biofuel Bill — Second Reading 
[Sitting date: 02 September 2008. Volume:649;Page:18264. Text is incorporated into the Bound Volume.] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 When this Biofuel Bill emerged and was introduced in the House some time ago we had significant concerns. I could perhaps go even further and say that we had major concerns. Those concerns were strengthened when we read the submission from the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment. She summarised at the end of her submission to the Local Government and Environment Committee and recommended that the bill did not proceed. 
Our concerns revolved around a number of issues. First and foremost we did not see why New Zealand should be a world leader in the adoption of biofuels but apparently we are not. Biofuels have already been adopted in the USA Brazil Canada most European countries Australia China India and Thailand. All those countries apparently use biofuels. 
The second concern we had was the possibly adverse effect on car engines and the cost for motorists. We thought that motorists might well have to have their car engines modified at some expense but we were informed that modifications would not be necessary for petrol or diesel vehicles using low-level biofuel blends. Petrol engines tuned correctly for use with ordinary petrol would not normally exhibit any problems when using bio-ethanol petrol blends of up to 3 percent. So that knocked that concern on the head. We were concerned that bio-diesel in a diesel-powered vehicle would clog and not flow properly but we were told that that concern was needless. One organisation involved in producing bio-diesel told us that tests had been done on it and it had not been found to alter what the organisation called the cold-flow properties of the original mineral. In other words that was a concern we did not need to have. 
We were concerned that productive land in New Zealand would be used to grow crops to make ethanol. I am told that the select committee modified the bill to ensure that that would not happen. So that was another concern knocked on the head. 
We were told that the new infrastructure costs would add significantly to the cost of a litre of petrol or diesel. But we were told that the select committee had looked at this issue at quite some length—that is as I understand it; we were not represented on the select committee—and the figures bandied around to us were anywhere between 4c to 7c a litre. But as the member who resumed his seat some time ago said—and I think that this is in the select committee’s report—it is estimated that the cost will be somewhere between 0.2c to 0.4c a litre and it might be even less than that. Biofuels might even reduce the cost of fuel. That was another concern knocked on its head. 
Finally we had the concern that John Carter raised—that somewhere overseas in Africa or wherever people are growing crops to produce ethanol for the world market. That matter is of concern but it is happening anyway. It will happen whether or not New Zealand buys into this. 
We have looked at these issues as comprehensively as we have been able to and we believe that this bill should proceed. We note that the select committee recommended that the percentage of ethanol in petrol should be 0.5 percent. It will reduce from 0.53 percent this year to 0.5 percent and then go up in increasing increments of 0.5 percent for the next 4 years to reach a figure of 2.5 percent in 2012. That is a reduction on what the original bill said; I think the percentage had been 3.4 percent in 2012. So we think all in all that this bill has taken the concerns into consideration and has addressed them. New Zealand First will support the bill.