Fundamental Study on Biofuel Self-sufficiency in Tokachi Region

—Estimation of Economic Effects and CO₂ Emission—

Abstract

This is a study to evaluate the economic effects and environmental impacts of biofuel self-sufficiency in Tokachi region of Hokkaido in Japan. The study was based on an assumption that the biofuel is produced and consumed within the region of Tokachi. With this assumption, an economic effect and environmental impact were evaluated by an input-output analysis. Accordingly, two scenarios were compared. The first was producing biodiesel fuel (BDF) from rape seeds grown for this purpose, while the second was producing bioethanol fuel (BEF) from nonstandard wheat which were separated from the standard wheat at the post processing. Although results showed that the production of both the BEF and BDF have an improved economic impact on Tokachi region, the overall summation showed that, the production of the BDF have further improved the economic activities in this region. Regarding the CO₂ emissions, it can be said that using the BEF or BDF leads to less emission than using the fossil fuels.