the ethanol scam

ethanol is hurting America and the world. government subsidies and mandates are propping up ethanol production. this production is extremely inefficient and takes food from the global marketplace driving up prices.

the idea of using domestically produced sources of readily renewable resources to fuel up our cars sounds great. except when you look at the reality of the situation. ethanol uses up a quarter of our corn production. that only has resulted in a drop of 1% of oil imports.

that one quarter also represents another competitor for food. with food riots in Haiti and Egypt, should we be diverting a food source into a fuel source? lower income families here at home are feeling the squeeze as food prices rise and the value of the dollar falls. domestically and internationally this food to fuel policy is hurting people.

ethanol production in its current state is highly inefficient. depending on which source you beleive, US ethanol has a rate of return of 1.1 to 1.8. (some sources) in Brazil, where ethanol production was govt mandated in the 70's they use sugar cane to produce ethanol at a rate of 8 to 1. that is, it takes 1 Btu to produce 8 Btus worth of ethanol. in comparison the corn exchange rate sucks. its financially inviable, which is why it is propped up by govt subsidies. that doesnt even take into account the byproducts of production that must be disposed of in way or another.

ethanol is a nice idea. it is worth researching. the current mode of production is inneficient and takes crops out of food production where there is ever growing demand. we need to look into new technology in all forms from cellulostic ethanol to using bacteria to make the process more efficient. we should not prop up the current wasteful process with subsidies, we should fund research to find new processes and sources.

of current technology, biodiesel is way better. you can go to just about any restaurant and get used cooking oil for FREE. some modified engines can use this oil without modification, but you can run it in any diesel through a simple process you can do at home. this removes a waste product, doesnt take food from the market, doesnt require imports from often hostile nations, is more efficient in already more efficient diesel engines, is at least twice as energy efficient as corn based ethanol, and reduces harmful emissions that traditional diesels produce, and your exhaust will smell like french fries! (or freedom fries, if you like.)

at any rate, we still have a long way to go. the current gamble on corn ethanol is not paying off, in fact its harmful. lets cut the funding from ethanol production and put it into further biofuels research. Brown and Lewis agree.