Why is making biodiesel and ethanol so important now to the United States?
A major portion of the fuel we use in the United States comes from unstable foreign countries. Our energy needs continue to grow and sources like oil and coal are limited and will soon be gone forever once all sources are depleted. Biodiesel and ethanol are considered renewable energies because they regenerate over and over again. They can be produced in the United States from the resources available here and can help alleviate our dependency on foreign fuels. By making these products here, we can address our homeland security issues and boost our nation’s economy by creating more jobs. President Bush passed the Energy Policy Act of 2005 on August 8, 2005. This legislation created a renewable fuels standard (RSF) that will double the use of biodiesel and ethanol by 2012. After years of negotiations between the Federal government, oil industry, agriculture and environmentalist, the RSF will encourage the renewable fuel industry to contribute to our nation’s increasing energy needs.
