Could water woes ruin corn ethanol’s run?
Posted by: Adam Aston on October 24 After a raft of studies showing how corn ethanol is driving up food prices even though it’s making only a small dent as a substitute for oil, a new study from the National Academy of Sciences points to what could be the real deal breaker amidst growing nationwide waters shortages. Each gallon of corn ethanol requires 1,700 (not a typo) gallons of water to make it. Though much of this can be recycled, the stress on regional aquifers created by a single ethanol plant can be tremendous. The report says forecasted growth in corn ethanol output will significantly harm water quality while also depleting water supplies in a variety of agricultural regions. More reason to keep pursuing cellulosic ethanol and higher yielding bio-oil pathways, such as algae, which promise to produce orders-of-magnitudes more energy for each unit of input energy. Here’s a summary release of the report, and the full report can be downloaded as a PDF here. Also check out Elizabet
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- Could water woes ruin corn ethanol’s run?
