Impact of biofuels cultivation on biodiversity in tropical environments

The increase in price of energy sources are giving strentghs to initiatives for producing more biofuels (fuels derived from biomasses). Much of the possible production would be in tropical zones of the world where a possible competition between biomass cultivation and biodiversity conversation is foreseen. A possible approach may be to avoid the cultivation of plants for biofuels in areas considered biodiversity hotspots. Also desert areas, considered of scarce interest for conservation, may host some biodiversity hot spots. The definition of desert itself may need some update to avoid loss of biodiversity.