Are biofuels (ethanol, vegetable oils, etc.) an answer to fossil fuel dependence?
Unfortunately there has been a great deal of media and industry hype about biofuels. They have a role to play. But it has been noted by more objective sources that more energy goes into raising the grains than can be obtained from the biofuels are distilled from those grains. It is also reported that farms in the Midwest typically lose three bushels of topsoil for every one bushel of corn they produce! In other words, energy based on biofuels can’t be sustainable if the agriculture it’s based on isn’t sustainable. Furthermore, we must acknowledge the immense scale of current fossil-fuel use that would need to be replaced in a “business-as-usual” scenario. The energy equivalent in biofuels would take over most of the country’s cropland, at a time when much of the world is haunted by food shortages. A recent report on indirect effects of biofuel production on biodiversity is quite disturbing: Increased demand for ethanol for American cars has driven up market prices for corn. This has pr
Related Questions
- How can something be "sustainable" if it requires fossil fuel for shipping and energy, and uses corn as animal feed and ethanol production?
- How effective are ethanol blend fuel and low emission lube oils at reducing emissions?
- Are biofuels (ethanol, vegetable oils, etc.) an answer to fossil fuel dependence?
