C4aQE ETHANOL ISSUES WEBSITE
"VeraSun Energy Corporation (NYSE: VSE),
one of the nation’s largest ethanol producers announced today
the Company and 24 of its subsidiaries have filed voluntary
petitions for relief under chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy
Code in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of
Delaware to enhance liquidity while they reorganize.
The filing was precipitated by a series of events that
led to a contraction in VeraSun’s liquidity, impairing its
ability to operate its business and invest in production
facilities. The Company suffered significant losses in the third
quarter of 2008 from a dramatic spike in its corn costs,
reflecting in part costs attributable to its corn procurement
and hedging arrangements, and historically unfavorable margins.
Beginning in the third quarter, worsening capital market
conditions and a tightening of trade credit resulted in severe
constraints on the Company’s liquidity position. Faced with
these constraints, VeraSun and 24 of its subsidiaries filed
their chapter 11 petitions to facilitate access to additional
liquidity while they reorganize to take better advantage of
VeraSun’s position as one of the nation's largest producers of
ethanol.
Ethanol Producer Files Chapter 11, from:
Inside Indiana with Gerry Dick, November 2, 2008
(Click to read entire article)
"...Gallon for gallon, pure ethanol
contains one-third less energy than gasoline, and the ethanol
industry acknowledges that E10 reduces mileage by about 2
percent.
Some drivers think the change is notably greater. Chuck Mai, a
vice president of AAA Oklahoma, reported that his organization
has been getting calls from members blaming E10 for mileage
drops of 8 to 20 percent.
Drivers in Tulsa, he said, are complaining to their local
service stations , saying, “ ‘I used to get 28 mpg; last time
around, I’m getting 25. What’s going on?’ ”
In chat rooms at Edmunds.com and elsewhere, plenty of people are
blaming ethanol for substantial mileage drops.
Auto drivers are not the only ones complaining.
Ashley Massey, a spokeswoman for the State Marine Board in
Oregon, where an E10 mandate is being enforced this year, said
that when E10 first arrived, her agency was flooded by calls.
“What we’re hearing is that the boats are starting, but then
they start to sputter” and quit, she said. They are also hard to
restart, Ms. Massey said, adding that her own weed trimmer
sputtered and died with E10, but revived with conventional gas.
Her agency has posted a list of gas stations that still
sell unblended fuel, as permitted by exemptions to Oregon’s
mandate, on its Web site. Warnings and tips about using E10 are
included as well.
Shaun O’Connor, who sells lawn mowers in Oklahoma City, says
fuel-related problems surfaced in engines at the same time that
ethanol appeared.
A gas station in Edmond, Okla., emphasizes that its gasoline is
free of ethanol, or ethyl alcohol. Mechanics for a range of
equipment and small vehicles, from boats and motorcycles to
lawnmowers, have blamed E10 for engine sputters and
shutdowns...."
In Gas-Powered World, Ethanol Stirs Complaints
by Kate Galbraith,
The New York Times, July 26, 2008
(Click to read entire article)
For our Friends in Oregon:
E-10 (Ethanol) in Gasoline and Where to Find Non-Blended Gas
(Click to this article and the Oregon State Marine Board website
on Oregon.gov)
"...We still believe the solution to
the unintended consequence of this federal RFS mandate is
simple: a one-year, 50 percent waiver," Perry's statement said.
"The RFS waiver is an essential step toward decreasing the
devastating statewide, national and international impact of
skyrocketing feed and food costs."
More than four dozen House Republicans and two dozen GOP
senators, including presidential candidate John McCain, have
written to EPA in support of the waiver. The state of
Connecticut also supported Texas' request.
Corn prices have risen markedly over the last year with the
increased demand for ethanol, and prices of foods containing or
dependent on corn have risen along with them. In some poor
countries, climbing commodity prices have touched off food
riots....
...Cattle are still going to feedlots but are staying out
on pasture longer, Wilson said. If the ethanol mandate remains,
livestock supplies will shrink as more corn is diverted for
biofuel, he said.
"And that's going to eventually translate to the meat case,"
Wilson said, alluding to higher prices for beef...."
excerpt from
EPA postpones decision on ethanol requirements
by Betsy Blaney, AP
Writer, Kansas City Star, July 22, 2008
(Click to read)
"Biofuels
have forced global food prices up by 75% - far more than
previously estimated...
..."Without the
increase in biofuels, global wheat and maize stocks would not
have declined appreciably and price increases due to other
factors would have been moderate," says the report. The basket
of food prices examined in the study rose by 140% between 2002
and this February. The report estimates that higher energy and
fertiliser prices accounted for an increase of only 15%, while
biofuels have been responsible for a 75% jump over that period.
It argues that production of biofuels has distorted food markets
in three main ways. First, it has diverted grain away from food
for fuel, with over a third of US corn now used to produce
ethanol and about half of vegetable oils in the EU going towards
the production of biodiesel. Second, farmers have been
encouraged to set land aside for biofuel production. Third, it
has sparked financial speculation in grains, driving prices up
higher....
excerpts from:
Secret report: biofuel caused food crisis
Internal World Bank study delivers blow to plant energy drive
by Aditya Chakrabortty,
The Guardian, Friday July 4, 2008
(Click
to read)
The Man Who Dared to Question Ethanol by
Andrew Martin, The New York Times, July 13,
2008
(Click to read)
"It's hard to miss: Americans are
paying more at the supermarket checkout these days.
Prices have increased 5% since last year, and it could
get worse. The U.S. Department of Agriculture projects that food
prices will bump up another 5.5% in 2008.
One of the reasons is that the price of corn - a staple
ingredient in a variety of foods from cereals to cola and the
main ingredient in animal feed - is selling above $7.50 a
bushel, about 119% above the price from a year ago....
...the rising price of corn is fueling a movement to
reduce the amount of corn ethanol that is added to American
gasoline....
...About 5% of the world's corn supply goes to producing bio
fuels - representing a whopping three years of growth in typical
crop production, according to Elam.
"Corn will have to go to at least $8 a bushel to squeeze
out enough food use to keep up with corn for ethanol," he said.
"Food prices will be significantly impacted by corn if RFS goes
to 10.5 billion gallons for 2009."
How significantly? Collins said food costs could rise 23%
to 35% above the normal annual inflation rate of 2.5% over the
next two to three years if the RFS mandates are not reduced.
Elam said food price inflation rate could go as high as 7%
without a mandate reduction.
The USDA also maintains ethanol has an impact on food
prices, even if it is an indirect link.
"Higher ethanol production definitely and directly raises
the price of corn," said USDA economist Ephraim Leibtag. "Higher
corn prices have an impact on food prices on the retail level."
By contrast, if the government were to reduce the RFS by
just half, both Elam and Collins agree that corn prices would
fall $2 a bushel, which could save more than $9 billion in feed
and food costs...."
from
Food price spike: Is ethanol to blame?
A devastated corn crop is likely to exacerbate costs at the
grocer. Some people are pointing a finger at the ethanol
production laws. by
David Goldman, CNNMoney.com, June 27, 2008,
(Click here to read)
"Americans waste more than 40 percent of
the food we produce for consumption. That comes at an annual
cost of more than $100 billion. At the same time, food prices
and the number of Americans without enough to eat continues to
rise...." from
WastedFood.com, Jonathan Bloom's website/Blogsite.
"...When you’re looking for it, you see food waste everywhere–at
restaurants, in large portions and even in your own
refrigerator. If more and more people recognize their own food
waste, we can take a bite out of this problem...."
(Click to wastedfood.com)
A must read:
The Clean Energy Scam
by Michael Grunwald,
Time Magazine, March 27, 2008
"...several new studies show the biofuel
boom is doing exactly the opposite of what its proponents
intended: it's dramatically accelerating global warming,
imperiling the planet in the name of saving it. Corn ethanol,
always environmentally suspect, turns out to be environmentally
disastrous. Even cellulosic ethanol made from switchgrass, which
has been promoted by eco-activists and eco-investors as well as
by President Bush as the fuel of the future, looks less green
than oil-derived gasoline....
...the basic problem with most biofuels is amazingly
simple, given that researchers have ignored it until now: using
land to grow fuel leads to the destruction of forests, wetlands
and grasslands that store enormous amounts of carbon....
...by diverting grain and oilseed crops from dinner plates to
fuel tanks, biofuels are jacking up world food prices and
endangering the hungry. The grain it takes to fill an SUV tank
with ethanol could feed a person for a year. Harvests are being
plucked to fuel our cars instead of ourselves. The U.N.'s World
Food Program says it needs $500 million in additional funding
and supplies, calling the rising costs for food nothing less
than a global emergency. Soaring corn prices have sparked
tortilla riots in Mexico City, and skyrocketing flour prices
have destabilized Pakistan, which wasn't exactly tranquil when
flour was affordable...."
(Click to read entire article)
NEW Cellulosic
ethanol─"a required breakthrough in
technology for converting cellulosic sources into ethanol is
more than five years away from commercial viability...."
"...The Iowa State University
study predicts that the mandate will enable farmers and
investors to produce at the most 4.5 billion gallons of
cellulosic ethanol by 2022 -- but only if the government further
subsidizes production by raising the ethanol tax credit from a
current 51 cents a gallon to $1.55....
...the environmental impacts of ethanol production are serious
and diverse. Severe erosion is occurring on valuable food
cropland. Heavy use of nitrogen fertilizers and pesticides in
corn production causes chemical runoff that pollutes rivers and
has led to a large dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico where no
marine life exists. Because of the large amounts of water needed
to produce ethanol -- four gallons of water for each gallon of
ethanol -- water tables in some parts of the Midwest and Great
Plains have dropped during the last decade. Some farm
communities now have to import potable water...."
from:
Ethanol hopes run on fumes by
Manfred Kroger, Ph.D., is professor of food
science emeritus at Penn State University.
The Patriot-News, March 30, 2008
(Click to read)
ALSO: "As spring planting
nears, farmers are making a choice that could affect what
Americans pay for everything from car fuel to chicken wings. If
they choose to plant as much corn as possible, prices that have
soared to record highs above $5 a bushel could stabilize. But if
many farmers rotate their plantings to other crops such as
soybeans, or the season is disrupted by bad weather or drought,
the price of this key ingredient could soar even further....
...Last month Pilgrim's Pride, America's largest poultry firm,
closed a North Carolina processing plant and distribution
centers in five other states, putting 1,100 people out of work.
It blamed high corn prices caused by the heavily subsidized
ethanol industry...." from:
Farmers' crop choices may affect consumers
If they do not plant as much corn as possible, the prices on
many items could soar, experts say.
by Henry C. Jackson,
Associated Press, Detroit
News, March 31, 2008
(Click to read)
AND: "...Corn acres
will fall more than expected, to 86.014 million, as growers make
room for soybeans, the USDA said....
...The acreage shift into soybeans and away from corn was larger
than people expected,'' said Greg Grow, director of agribusiness
for Archer Financial Services....
...Grow at Archer Financial said corn may rise 20 cents to 30
cents while soybeans may fall 40 cents to 50 cents....
...Corn is a crop that has much higher input costs, especially
with regard to nitrogen that is now over $900 per ton,'' said
Joel Karlin, a product manager at Western Milling in Goshen,
California. ``Soybeans are a good option for those that want to
replenish the nitrogen in their soil.''
Farmers who planted corn in the past two years also may rotate
crops to soybeans to prevent diseases and pest infestation...."
from:
Soybean Acres to Rise After Year of Soaring Prices, USDA Says
by Tony C. Dreibus
and Jeff Wilson,
(Update2), from Bloomberg.com, March
31, 2008
(Click to read)
"...Cellulosic ethanol also is
touted loudly as a replacement for corn ethanol. Unfortunately,
cellulose biomass production requires major energy inputs to
release minimal amounts of tightly bound starches and sugars
needed to make fuel. About 70 percent more energy -- coming,
again, from precious oil and gas -- is required to produce
ethanol from cellulosic biomass than the energy contained in the
ethanol produced. That makes cellulosic ethanol an even poorer
performer than corn ethanol....
...the production of corn ethanol is highly subsidized: State
and federal governments pay out more than $6 billion per year in
subsidies, according to a 2006 report from the International
Institute for Sustainable Development in Geneva, Switzerland.
Calculated on a per-gallon basis, these subsidies are more than
60 times those for gasoline...."
Corn Can't Save Us: Debunking the Biofuel Myth
by David Pimentel,
Blue Ridge Press, February 19, 2008
(Click to read)
Conoy Township,
Lancaster County, PA residents continues to oppose Lancaster Biofuel's plan to build a corn ethanol distillery/refinery on
65-acres between the Susquehanna River and Route 441. Read
about their efforts on their website:
FightEthanol.com + C-Power.Org by C-Power: Citizens Protecting
Our Water/Air from an Ethanol Refinery
"Dwindling
foreign oil, rising prices at the gas pump, and hype from
politically well-connected U.S. agribusiness have combined to
create a frenzied rush to convert food grains into ethanol fuel.
The move is badly conceived and ill advised....
...consider that 20 percent of the U.S. corn crop was converted
into 5 billion gallons of ethanol in 2006, but that amount
replaced only 1 percent of U.S. oil consumption. If the entire
national corn crop were used to make ethanol, it would replace a
mere 7% of U.S. oil consumption -- far from making the U.S.
independent of foreign oil....
...Cellulosic ethanol is also touted loudly as a replacement for
corn ethanol. Unfortunately, cellulose biomass production
requires major energy inputs to release minimal amounts of
tightly bound starches and sugars needed to make fuel. About 70
percent more energy (coming again from precious oil and gas) is
required to produce ethanol from cellulosic biomass than the
ethanol produced. That makes cellulosic ethanol an even poorer
performer than corn ethanol....
...The science is clear: The use of corn and other biofuels to
solve our energy problem is an ethically, economically, and
environmentally unworkable sham."
Corn Can't Save us: Debunking the Biofuel Myth
by David Pimentel,
Kennebec Journal, Portland, Maine, Monday, February 25, 2008
(Click to read)
"Two
companies yesterday proposed building a 1,700-mile pipeline to
carry ethanol from the Midwest through Central Pennsylvania to
New York. The project would cost more than $3 billion..."
...The proposed pipeline would be the first to funnel ethanol to
the East Coast, which now gets the fuel primarily by rail,
Milbourne said. The structure could carry up to 10 million
gallons of ethanol daily from Midwest production facilities to
distribution points in Pittsburgh, Central Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia and New York...."
New $3B ethanol pipeline could run through midstate
by David Dagan,
Central Penn Business Journal, 2/20/2008
(Click to read)
ALSO
"...Whether or not the pipeline is built depends on many
factors, including receiving Congressional support and
assistance, financing, construction requirements and costs and
regulatory issues, among others...." from:
Proposed ethanol pipeline to enter Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh Business Times, February 20, 2008
(Click to read)
"...the
green-fuel boom touted as a clean, eco-friendly alternative to
gasoline is proving to have its own dirty costs. Growing corn
demands lots of water, and, in eastern Colorado, this means
intensive irrigation from an already stressed water table, the
great Ogallala Aquifer. One sign of trouble: in just the past
two decades, farmers tapping into the local aquifers have helped
to shorten the North Fork of the Republican River, which starts
in Yuma County, by 10 miles. The ethanol boom will only hasten
the drop further, say scientist and engineers studying the
aquifers. The region's water shortage has pitted water-hungry
farmers against one another. And lurking in the cornrows:
lawsuits and interstate water squabbles could shut down eastern
Colorado's estimated $500 million annual ethanol bonanza with
the swing of a judge's gavel. Collectively, "[ethanol] is
clearly not sustainable," says Jerald Schnoor, a professor of
engineering at the University of Iowa and co-chairman of an
October 2007 National Research Council study for Congress that
was critical of ethanol...." from:
Liquid Gold: Ethanol is supposed to be good
for the environment. But producing green fuel can cost a lot of
water. by Jim
Moscou, Newsweek Web Exclusive, February 21,
2008
(Click to read)
"Two companies
yesterday proposed building a 1,700-mile pipeline to carry
ethanol from the Midwest through Central Pennsylvania to New
York. The project would cost more than $3 billion..."
...The proposed pipeline would be the first to funnel ethanol to
the East Coast, which now gets the fuel primarily by rail,
Milbourne said. The structure could carry up to 10 million
gallons of ethanol daily from Midwest production facilities to
distribution points in Pittsburgh, Central Pennsylvania,
Philadelphia and New York...."
New $3B ethanol pipeline could run through midstate
by David Dagan,
Central Penn Business Journal, 2/20/2008
(Click to read)
ALSO
"...Whether or not the pipeline is built depends on many
factors, including receiving Congressional support and
assistance, financing, construction requirements and costs and
regulatory issues, among others...." from:
Proposed ethanol pipeline to enter Pittsburgh,
Pittsburgh Business Times, February 20, 2008
(Click to read)
Remember it is water, water, water!!
New from Salisbury,
Maryland: "...Chesapeake
Renewable Energy Co. proposed building a large ethanol
production facility a half mile north of Pocomoke City, in
Somerset County. At the early stages of this project, I was
advised by plant representatives they would require
approximately 250,000 to 300,000 gallons of water per day in the
production process....
...First it was 250,000 gallons per day from the Somerset
aquifer; then it was 1 million gallons per day from the Pocomoke
aquifer.
The latest estimate is up to 1.5 million gallons per day from
the Patapsco aquifer; however, the company does not know if it
can access the Patapsco from the property.
As precious as potable water is on the Eastern Shore, would you
trade seven gallons of water for one gallon of ethanol? The
water is worth a whole lot more than the ethanol and it is a
limited resource. Corn-based ethanol is not the answer to our
country's energy needs. Recent studies show there is often a net
loss of oil, based upon the amount required to produce it, yet
the government is focusing subsidies in this direction, thus
driving demand.
Pocomoke City requires 650,000 gallons of water per day to
support its residents (just under 5,000), visitors and
industrial/ commercial base. Is it prudent for one industrial
user to consume two times the amount of water used by an entire
city?
Ethanol plant's water use is a concern by
Michael McDermott,
Mayor of Pocomoke City, from: The Daily Times, Salisbury,
Maryland, January 26, 2008
(Click to read)
"Conoy Township
Planning Commission said Tuesday it is unable to recommend
approval of plans to build the state's first corn-to-ethanol
production facility on the banks of the Susquehanna River. But
it won't recommend denial, either....
..."The applicant has not provided sufficient information,"
Rhoads said. "If we endorse the recommendation the way it is
written, we are condoning the applicant's failure to comply with
the ordinance. I for one cannot do that."...
...a recommendation requiring Lancaster Biofuels to mitigate
water contamination issues only if residents can prove the
problem originated at the ethanol site was revised to place the
burden of proof on Lancaster Biofuels. Also, a recommendation
for the testing of local wells every two years was amended to
every six months....
...Additional recommendations deal with noise and vibration
levels at the property line, an odor-response plan, a tower to
record meteorological conditions at the site, record keeping and
sanitary waste. Also, Lancaster Biofuels would be asked to form
a committee, composed of representatives from the community,
township officials and plant representatives, to address ongoing
concerns. Another recommendation would require a decommission
plan to be submitted to address the safe removal of chemicals,
waste and other materials in the event of plant closure. That
would include insurance to cover the cost of onsite cleanup
costs as well as any contamination of soil or groundwater...."
Ethanol plant plan called 'incomplete' Conoy planners list their
concerns by Tom Knapp,
Intelligencer Journal, Lancaster Online, February
06, 2008, Bainbridge, PA
(Click to read)
"We are
witnessing the beginning of one of the great tragedies of
history. The United States, in a misguided effort to reduce its
oil insecurity by converting grain into fuel for cars, is
generating global food insecurity on a scale never seen before.
The world is facing the most severe food price inflation in
history as grain and soybean prices climb to all-time highs.
Wheat trading on the Chicago Board of Trade on December 17th
breached the $10 per bushel level for the first time ever. In
mid-January, corn was trading over $5 per bushel, close to its
historic high. And on January 11th, soybeans traded at $13.42
per bushel, the highest price ever recorded. All these prices
are double those of a year or two ago.
As a result, prices of food products made directly from these
commodities such as bread, pasta, and tortillas, and those made
indirectly, such as pork, poultry, beef, milk, and eggs, are
everywhere on the rise. In Mexico, corn meal prices are up 60
percent. In Pakistan, flour prices have doubled. China is facing
rampant food price inflation, some of the worst in decades....
Rising food prices are translating into social unrest. It began
in early 2007 with tortilla demonstrations in Mexico. Then came
pasta protests in Italy. More recently, rising bread prices in
Pakistan have become a source of unrest. In Jakarta, 10,000
Indonesians gathered in front of the presidential palace on
January 14th this year to protest the doubling of soybean prices
that has raised the price of tempeh, the national soy-based
protein staple. When a supermarket in Chongqing, China, where
cooking oil prices have soared, offered this oil at a reduced
price, the resulting stampede when doors opened killed three
people and injured 31...." excerpt from:
Why Ethanol Production Will Drive World Food Prices Even Higher
in 2008 by Lester R. Brown,
January 24, 2008, Earth Policy Institute (Click to read)
"...Central
Illinois Energy has declared bankruptcy, the farmers who
invested are now questioning many aspects of the project,
including their own involvement.
The minimum lost by the farmers who spoke with the Journal Star
was $29,000 each for investing in just one share, not including
the value of the corn they delivered. Farmers who purchased more
than one share lost much more, and some farmers say they might
lose their farms.
"It makes us all look so stupid," said one. "I'm trying to
explain to my wife and son why I did this, and it doesn't make
any sense."... excerpts from:
'It makes us all look so stupid' Canton-area farmers share story
of how they lost at least $29,000 on ethanol plant
by Brenda Rothert,
Peoria Journal Star, Peoria, Illinois, Sunday, January 20, 2008
(Click to read)
Cellulosic ethanol for fuel: "It will be at least a
decade before technological breakthroughs allow ethanol fuel to
be produced commercially from farm and forest waste like wood
chips, switchgrass and corn stalks, the chairman of the House
Agriculture Committee said on Tuesday....
...I think we are 10 years away," said Peterson, speaking at the
Reuters Global Agriculture and Biofuel Summit.
"I really think the more I look at this whole cellulosic issue,
there is a lot bigger problem to overcome here than people
realize in terms of the feedstocks. We have a lot of work to do
in that regard," he said. "I'm not sure cellulosic ethanol will
ever get off the ground."...
Ethanol can't be shipped through the same pipelines that carry
other petroleum products...." excerpts
from:
Lawmaker says cellulosic ethanol a decade away
by Tom Doggett,
Reuters, Washington, Tuesday, January 15, 2008
(Click
to read)
..."The issue is ethanol -- or opposition
to it -- and it appears that the corn-based petroleum substitute
has gone from panacea to pariah in the U.S. in just one growing
season. Given all the opposition to it, suddenly struggling
ethanol is likely to face considerable difficulty recovering its
footing anytime soon....
...after sitting for decades at about $2 a bushel, the price of
corn has almost doubled thanks to the use of the crop in
ethanol. This has angered livestock and food companies, whose
own economics are closely tied to corn prices....
...But the bigger difficulty for the nation, it seems to me, is
that ethanol has been boosted -- by the president, the Congress,
and the Midwest farm lobby -- from what should have been one
among many solutions to our worsening energy situation to
essentially be-all-and-end-all status. Indeed, in looking
specifically at the president's leadership on the broad energy
subject, I'm forced to note that (as my Foolish friends well
know) he once governed Texas, which is still the home of more
energy companies than all the other states combined...."
Ethanol Is Running Out of Gas by
David Lee Smith, The Motley Fool, December 5,
2007
(Click to read)
"...In the span of one growing season, ethanol has gone from
panacea to pariah in the eyes of some. The critics, which
include industries hurt when the price of corn rises, blame
ethanol for pushing up food prices, question its environmental
bona fides and dispute how much it really helps reduce the need
for oil.
A recent study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development concluded that biofuels "offer a cure [for oil
dependence] that is worse than the disease." A National Academy
of Sciences study said corn-based ethanol could strain water
supplies. The American Lung Association expressed concern about
a form of air pollution from burning ethanol in gasoline.
Political cartoonists have taken to skewering the fuel for
raising the price of food to the world's poor....
...One by the National Research Council said additional ethanol
production could strain water supplies and impair water quality.
A spring 2007 report by the Environmental Protection Agency said
that "ozone levels generally increase with increased ethanol
use."
A study coauthored by Nobel-prize-winning chemist Paul Crutzen
said corn ethanol might exacerbate climate change as the added
fertilizer used to grow corn raised emissions of a very potent
greenhouse gas called nitrous oxide. The ethanol industry
replies to that one with an Energy Department study concluding
that use of ethanol reduces greenhouse-gas emissions by 18% to
28% on a per-gallon basis, provided that coal isn't used to run
ethanol plants.
Opponents of ethanol also have hammered on an Agriculture
Department projection that by 2010, less than 8% of the U.S.
gasoline supply will come from corn-based ethanol -- and 30% of
the corn crop will be used to make it. That suggests to some
that the tradeoff between food and fuel is unbalanced.
At the same time, some foreign countries have been increasingly
questioning ethanol. Mexico blamed it in part for contributing
to rising prices of corn-based tortillas. China barred new
biofuel plants from using corn, and Malaysia trimmed its
biofuels production mandates. Cuban President Fidel Castro has
called using food crops for fuel a "sinister idea." President
Hugo Chávez of Venezuela ordered troops to secure his
oil-producing nation's grain supplies, saying corn was to be
used for food, not fuel...." excerpts from:
Ethanol Craze Cools As Doubts Multiply
Claims for Environment, Energy Use Draw Fire; Fighting on the
Farm by Lauren Etter,
Page A1, Wall Street Journal, November
28, 2007
(Click to read entire article)
Also answer their "Question of the Day" and see the results.
(Click)
"...The City
Council voted 7-2 early today to reject a controversial proposal
to build one of the country's largest ethanol plants on the
Elizabeth River's Southern Branch, a half mile from a
residential neighborhood in Portsmouth.
The vote came about 3:30 a.m. today, following more than five
hours of public comment on the proposed plant.
Council members were won over by Portsmouth and Chesapeake
residents concerned about the plant's traffic, air emissions and
water usage.
"Nothing should be forced on a community,"
said Councilman C.E. "Cliff" Hayes Jr., who made the motion to
deny the proposal. "The people most closely affected are saying,
'No.' That's not a difficult decision for me." from
Chesapeake City Council says no to ethanol plant
by Mike
Saewitz, The Virginian-Pilot,
Chesapeake, VA, November 21, 2007
(Click to read)
Penn-Mar Ethanol LLC has withdrawn its application for
permits for the Cumberland Business Park site. From the
PADEP eFacts website:
Authorization ID: 586597
Site: PENN MAR ETHANOL CV BUS PARK
Client: PENN MAR ETHANOL LLC Authorization Type: Site Specific
Installation Permit Application Type: New Date Received:
3/30/2005 Status: Withdrawn on 11/14/2007 (Click)
"Foes of the
proposed ethanol plant swept the five open seats for Mayfield
Borough Council.
Three ethanol opponents today have won apparent victory in
write-in campaigns for four-year terms..."
from
Ethanol opponents sweep in Mayfield by
David Singleton, The Times-Tribune, Scranton,
PA, 11/09/2007
(Click here to read)
The Mayfield, PA for Concerned Mayfield Residents website
is:
http://www.noethanol.org
November 9, 2007
Update on schedule for PA 997 Bridge over I-81 near Chambersburg
Mall, Franklin County
(Click to go to the 997 Bridge Info Page)
"Greater
cultivation of crops to produce ethanol could harm water quality
and leave some regions of the country with water shortages, a
panel of experts is reporting. And corn, the most widely grown
fuel crop in the United States, might cause more damage per unit
of energy than other plants, especially switchgrass and native
grasses, the panel said...."
Panel Sees Problems in Ethanol Production
by Cornelia Dean, The New York
Times, October 11, 2007
(Click to read)
"...In terms of water
quantity, the committee found that agricultural shifts to
growing corn and expanding biofuel crops into regions with
little agriculture, especially dry areas, could change current
irrigation practices and greatly increase pressure on water
resources in many parts of the United States. The amount of
rainfall and other hydroclimate conditions from region to region
causes significant variations in the water requirement for the
same crop, the report says. For example, in the Northern and
Southern Plains, corn generally uses more water than soybeans
and cotton, while the reverse is true in the Pacific and
mountain regions of the country. Water demands for drinking,
industry, and such uses as hydropower, fish habitat, and
recreation could compete with, and in some cases, constrain the
use of water for biofuel crops in some regions. Consequently,
growing biofuel crops requiring additional irrigation in areas
with limited water supplies is a major concern, the report
says...."
Increase in Ethanol Production From Corn Could Significantly
Impact Water Quality and Availability if New Practices and
Techniques Are Not Employed October 10,
2007 News Release from The National Academy of Sciences
(Click to read)
...“The end of the
ethanol boom is possibly in sight and may already be here,” said
Neil E. Harl, an economics professor emeritus at Iowa State
University who lectures on ethanol and is a consultant for
producers. “This is a dangerous time for people who are making
investments....”
"...companies are already shelving plans for expansion and
canceling new plant construction. If prices fall more, as many
analysts predict, there is likely to be a sweeping consolidation
of the industry, and some smaller companies could go out of
business...."
Ethanol’s Boom Stalling as Glut Depresses Price
by
Clifford Krauss, The New York Times, September
30, 2007
(Click to read entire article)
"In the
politically motivated rush to replace gasoline with corn
ethanol, we may be doing ourselves real economic harm.
The government-supported push for ethanol will not only increase
taxes and damage the environment, but will add to Americans'
burden of high fuel and food costs and especially hurt people on
fixed incomes. And it will do almost nothing to reduce
dependence on foreign oil -- all of the ethanol production this
year will replace less than 5 percent of the gasoline sold.
Clearly, there is a limit to how much of the U.S. corn crop can
be gobbled up for ethanol without pushing food prices higher and
higher. Increased production of corn-based ethanol during just
the past 12 months has raised food prices by $47 per person,
according to a study by Iowa State University. Before the summer
is over, the price of milk is expected to jump 40 cents a
gallon, and up to 60 cents more for a pound of cheese...."
Ethanol addiction drives up taxes and food costs
by Mark J. Perry,
From the Allentown Morning Call Another View, September 18, 2007
(Click to read entire article)
"...While
some attempts have been made to promote alternative energies
(wind, biodiesel, and corn ethanol), these initiatives have not
always proven to be clean, affordable and reliable. Subsidizing
corn ethanol, for instance, could worsen smog while driving up
the cost of staples such as milk and cereal. We need to know
what works – and what doesn't work – before moving forward with
any energy initiative...." from
Energy Independence Starts with Common Sense
by
Senator Mike Folmer,
represents
Berks, Chester, Dauphin, Lancaster, and Lebanon Counties,
September 24, 2007 (Click
to read on Senator Folmer's website)
"...Earlier
this year, rising prices of corn imports from the United States
triggered mass protests in Mexico. The chief of the UN Food and
Agriculture Organization has warned that rising food prices
around the world have threatened social unrest in developing
countries.
A recent report by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development, an economic forum of rich nations, called on the
United States and other industrialized nations to eliminate
subsidies for the production of ethanol which, the report said,
is driving up food costs, threatening natural habitats and
imposing other environmental costs. "The overall environmental
impacts of ethanol and biodiesel can very easily exceed those of
petrol and mineral diesel," it said.
The economics of corn ethanol have never made much sense. Rather
than importing cheap Brazilian ethanol made from sugar cane, the
United States slaps a tariff of 54 cents a gallon on ethanol
from Brazil. Then the government provides a tax break of 51
cents a gallon to American ethanol producers - on top of the
generous subsidies that corn growers already receive under the
farm program...."
The misguided politics of corn ethanol
International Herald Tribune, September 19,
2007
(Click to read)
Friedman,
Billings, Ramsey sees little fuel for investors in ethanol
stocks.
Ethanol prices have fallen 30% over the past few months, and FBR
analyst Eitan Bernstein said in a report that pricing is
unlikely to firm up next year...."
Market Scan Balloon Punctured For Ethanol Carl
Gutierrez, Forbes Magazine, September 20, 2007
(Click to read)
"...Despite
recent media hype, farmers are not getting rich off record
prices in the dairy case. The cost of milk has gone up 50 to 60
cents in the past few months, with consumers paying close to $4
per gallon in Los Angeles, Chicago and New Orleans. But dairy
farmers are still getting less than half of that money — about
$1.60 per gallon.
Rising fuel costs and corn ethanol demands are partly to blame.
Americans getting milked by
Joel Greeno, Tracy Press, September 7, 2007
(Click to read)
"...Lancaster
Biofuels last week asked the township to approve the venture as
a conditional use, a requirement for the plant to be built on an
industrial parcel, such as the project site.
The 65-acre tract is between Route 441 and the Susquehanna River
in the northwest corner of the county, a tract where another
firm once had plans for an ethanol plant, but withdrew in
2005....
They question the geologic soundness of the tract, worry about
the plant's effects on the area's quality of life and are
skeptical about its impact on the overall energy market.
"There are residents of Conoy Township who were made aware of
the problems of an ethanol plant two years ago, and those
problems still exist with any ethanol plant," said Judith
Nissley.
Nissley is an owner of Nissley Vineyards, located a mile from
the plant site, and a leader in Conoy Concerned Citizens, a
group opposed to the project.
She added that a recent township survey of residents found most
favor having low-impact industries on tracts such as the plant
site, a term that would not describe an ethanol plant.
"There's no way you can consider an ethanol plant 'low-impact.'
It will have a huge impact," said Nissley...."
Zoning OK sought for $100M ethanol plant Conoy Township planning
series of public hearings, beginning in September.
by Tim Mekeel,
Lancaster New Era, Tuesday, August 14, 2007
(Click to read)
"...some
operators of plants on the low end of the production scale are
already getting jittery about what will happen to them if corn
continues to linger around $4 a bushel and the cost to transport
ethanol stays high.
"They have every reason to be nervous," said Peter Gray, head of
the energy and natural resources division at KPMG Corporate
Finance, the investment banking arm of KPMG. "Ethanol is part of
the solution in the U.S. and part of the problem. What we've had
here is massive overbuild...."
Big ethanol shakeout coming? by
Jeff Cox, Contributing
writer, CNNMoney.com, August 15
2007, CNNMoney.com
(Click to read)
Ethanol Scam: Ethanol Hurts the Environment And Is One of
America's Biggest Political Boondoggles
by Jeff Goodell,
Rolling Stone Magazine, July 20, 2007
(Click to read the entire article)
The cost of fuel ethanol from corn!! "Milk
seems to go up 20 cents every time I buy it, and fresh fruits
are just out of sight," said the Pinellas Park retiree. "Is it
my imagination or are prices for everything going up?"
...The culprits? The cyclical vagaries of weather on seasonal
crops, the rising cost of energy to produce, package and
transport food and - the new wrinkle - the tab for shifting more
of America's reliance on foreign oil to ethanol blends made from
corn. That's sent corn commodity prices soaring....
...Corn is in just about everything. Feed is half the cost of
raising a chicken, 40 percent for a steer. It's an ingredient in
adhesives, shampoos and packaging. Even soft drinks like Coke
and Pepsi are affected because high-fructose corn syrup is used
as a sweetener.
The percentage of the corn crop headed to ethanol plants is
forecast to jump to 31 percent from 14 within 10 years,
according to USDA.
Ethanol production increased fivefold to 5-billion gallons in
2006. It's supposed to triple within five years as a
plant-building binge continues, so it's not a matter of simply
planting more corn next spring. USDA experts expect ethanol
conversion backed by federal subsidies will keep corn prices
high for years...."
Ethanol use sends food prices up, up, up
The tab for the increasing use of ethanol blends is creating a
ripple effect felt in the grocery checkout line.
by Mark Albright,
Times Staff Writer, St. Petersburg Times, Florida, July 15, 2007
(Click to read)
"...An
unprecedented surge in global demand is behind the 23 percent
rise in food prices that the International Monetary Fund
recorded during the last 18 months. ``We haven't seen anything
on this scale before,'' says Martin von Lampe, an agricultural
economist in Paris at the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development.
The demand, triggered in part by the increasing use of
agricultural commodities to make ethanol and other substitutes
for crude oil, might keep prices high for years. The OECD sees
U.S. output of corn-based ethanol and European consumption of
oilseeds for biofuels doubling by 2016.
Chinese and Brazilian production of ethanol will expand
even faster, it said in a July 4 report with the United Nations'
Food and Agriculture Organization.
Rising prosperity in China and other emerging nations is
also spurring demand, particularly for value-added items such as
meat and dairy products, the report said.
``We are sitting on structural changes that will affect
agricultural prices for a long time to come,'' Paul Polman,
chief financial officer of Vevey, Switzerland-based Nestle SA,
the world's largest food company, said last month.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's estimate for global
inventories of grain are at the lowest level in 30 years in
terms of days of consumption, says Carl Weinberg, chief
economist for High Frequency Economics in Valhalla, N.Y...."
Economists alarmed by food costs 23%
jump in last 18 months could bring interest rate hikes, sparks
inflation concerns by
Rich Miller and Bob Willis, Bloomberg News
Service, published by the Akron Beacon Journal, July 17, 2007
(Click to read)
Economics of corn ethanol:
"...there's no
getting around the corn-ethanol price connection. Corn prices
are up despite projections of a record 12.5 billion-bushel corn
harvest in the United States this year -- because ethanol
producers will eat up 27% of the U.S. corn crop this year,
according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Corn
consumption by ethanol producers is projected to climb to 3.4
billion bushels in 2007, up from 2.2 billion bushels in 2006,
when ethanol producers consumed 20% of the corn crop....
...If you grilled steak on this past Memorial Day, it cost 5.5%
more than a year ago, according to the U.S. Labor Department.
Think you can escape by barbecuing chicken? Forget it. Whole
chickens cost 7.7% more than they did in May 2006. Milk and
cheese are up, too, since corn makes up the bulk of a dairy
cow's diet. Milk prices are up about 3% from a year ago, or
about 10 cents a gallon, according to the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. But higher costs could push up the price of a
gallon of milk by an additional 40 cents in the next few months
to a national average of $3.78 a gallon...."
from
How ethanol bites you in the wallet by
Jim Jubak, Jubak's
Journal, MSN.com, June 8, 2007
(Click to read)
Remember it is water, water, water!!
from Virginia:
"...A proposed ethanol plant could use up to 1.5 million gallons
of water each day - about the same amount used by 20,000 city
residents....
...Many ethanol plants use 3 or 4
gallons of water for each gallon of ethanol produced, experts
say.
Residents of Tampa, Fla.,
were concerned about one company's request for 375,000 gallons
of water a day, questioning whether an ethanol plant would
burden a city that already has asked residents to water their
lawns only once a week.
"This is like plugging in a small city, as far as the amount of
water they want to use," Steve Daignault, Tampa's administrator
of public works and utilities, said of ethanol plants.
Near Champaign, Ill., a cluster of
proposed ethanol plants has smaller surrounding cities worried
about the toll on an aquifer that supplies much of the area's
public water.
"If we're not there already, I'll bet we're not far off from
finding out that a gallon of water is more valuable than a
gallon of gasoline," said Bill Ingold, the mayor of Paxton,
Ill., a city of 4,500 people about 30 miles north of
Champaign...." from
Proposed ethanol plant would need water from city – lots of it
by Mike Saewitz,
The Virginian-Pilot, Chesapeake, VA, June 10, 2007,
(Click to read)
Polluted water!!
"...much
of the fertilizer that farmers use is made with imported natural
gas. But those successes have one certain cost: more
oxygen-stealing chemicals running off farms to choke rivers and
lakes with algae.
Like newborn babes, those tiny, willowy corn plants demand
plenty of feeding — an average of 156 pounds of nitrogen and 80
pounds of phosphorus per acre on Illinois' corn crop since 2000,
according to government figures. Unlike soybeans, alfalfa and
certain other crops, corn requires heavy applications of
fertilizer because it is unable to take nitrogen from the
atmosphere.
The new corn planted across the country translates to millions
of pounds of extra fertilizer, an additional pollution burden
that could further harm rivers and lakes already damaged by farm
chemicals....
...J. Wayland Eheart, the University of Illinois civil
engineering professor who supervised the modeling, said that
more study is needed on increased pollution from ethanol
production and ethanol plants' heavy use of water.
"Not only might the ethanol plants be causing more pollution to
be put into water, they might be using up the water that dilutes
the pollutants we already have," said Eheart, noting that it
takes more than 3 gallons of water to produce 1 gallon of
ethanol...." from:
More ethanol means more corn -- and more water pollution
by Bill Lambrecht,
Post-Dispatch, Washington Bureau Chief, 06/10/2007 Charleston,
Ill.
(Click to read)
..."To put E20 in the fleet that's out there is going to corrode
every non-ethanol fueling system," Lutz*
told the Free Press in an interview. "We absolutely guarantee
the destruction of the engine and the fuel injection system if
we go the E20 route. It will not work...."
"E20 could create problems for consumers, and the use of E20
could result in voided warranties," said Charles Territo,
spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, the
industry trade group that includes Detroit's automakers, Toyota
Motor Co. and others. "We're all for the use of ethanol, but we
need to make sure we aren't doing things that can have an
adverse impact on performance...."
Ethanol blends prove divisive Auto and fuel
industries are at odds over amount to use
by Justin Hyde,
Detroit Free Press, Washington Staff, April 7, 2007
(Click to read entire article)
*General Motors
Corp. Vice Chairman Bob Lutz
Caution for boat operators from article
titled
Ethanol fuel may leave boats dead in the water:
"...Ethanol
stirs up the junk in your tanks, and if it gets brought into the
injectors, it's going to be a real problem,...”
...Seaworthy magazine cautioned boaters last fall that ethanol
could break down the fiberglass, creating a black sludge that
gums up valves and intake manifolds, destroying the boat's
motor.
“That's not a cheap fix,” Madore said. “It involves cutting out
the tank and replacing it with an aluminum one. It's a lot of
money and several weeks without your boat....”
Ethanol fuel may leave boats dead in the water
by J. Staas Haught,
May 3,
2006,
pressof AtlanticCity.com
(Click to read entire article)
C4aQE asked Dr. Tad Patzek and Dr. David
Pimentel: Can ethanol blends be
used in conventional lawn and garden tractors, and lawnmowers
without damage to the seals and engine?
"No ethanol cannot be used in
lawn mowers, motor boats, chain saws, etc. E85 would
simply make these engines not start at all. E10 dissolves rubber
seals and hoses, and makes it more difficult to start the
engine, especially in cold weather. I go around as long as
it takes to get ethanol-free gasoline for my chain saw." Dr. Tad
Patzek
► Dr. Tad Patzek (Professor,
University of California, Berkeley) Information - Click here
"...you should
be careful about using ethanol blends in lawn mowers and garden
tractors. The ethanol can dissolve plastics and other items in
the engine and also cause corrosion in the engine." from
Dr. David Pimentel
► Dr. David Pimentel (Professor,
Cornell University) Information - Click Here)
(Click for more info about corrosive affects of
higher ethanol blends)
Ethanol's Growing List of Enemies by
Moira Herbst, BussinessWeek.com,
March 19, 2007
(Click to read)
"...A new ethanol surge could cause more
problems than it solves. Last year's astounding growth in
ethanol gobbled up 20 percent of the U.S. corn crop. That
surpasses all the corn Americans consumed last year-whether in
cereal, corn-syrup-sweetened soda, or on the cob. And the strain
has become severe on the nation's primary use of corn-as feed
for dairy and beef cattle, pigs, and chickens. Meat, dairy, and
egg producers are reeling from corn prices that have doubled in
one year-now trading above $4 a bushel for the first time in
more than a decade.
The impact may really be felt when meat prices take off at the
start of this summer's grilling season. "The American consumer
is making a choice here," says Dick Bond, chief executive of
Tyson Foods. "This is either corn for feed or corn for fuel." He
indicated his company intends to be active in the farm bill
debate on Capitol Hill, and some livestock groups recently wrote
a letter to warn the secretary of agriculture of their concerns.
Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute warns that ethanol is
on track to consume half of the U.S. corn crop as early as 2008.
He is calling for a moratorium on new refineries, similar to the
one the world's No. 3 ethanol producer, China, announced in
December. "We used to have a food economy and an energy
economy," says Brown. "The two are merging. We need to ... think
through carefully what we're doing."
Ethanol's boosters are confident farmers will plant more acres
and increase the yield of corn per acre, with the help of new
seed and genetic engineering technology-easing the price
pressure. But for now, the futures market shows corn prices
climbing further. That's despite the fact that farmers are on
track to plant 88 million acres of corn this year-up 10 million
over 2006 and more than has been planted in the United States at
any time since the 1940s, when crop yields were a fraction of
today's...."
Is Ethanol the Answer? Politically it's a winner. But experts
aren't sure ethanol can deliver on its promise
by
Marianne Lavelle and Bret Schulte
2/4/07print edition of U.S. News & World
Report
(Click to read)
"Forget about oil as the inflation bogeyman we
should fear the most. The surging price of corn is the latest
threat to American wallets, and where it hits them might go
beyond the supermarket.
The issue really starts with the government's push to increase
the use of alternative fuels like ethanol to reduce reliance on
foreign oil. Because most U.S. ethanol is made from corn, that
burgeoning boom is straining corn supplies, and boosting prices.
That makes everything from soda (sweetened with high-fructose
corn syrup) to the steak from corn-fed beef more expensive. It's
also crimping ethanol producers' profitability, which could lead
to calls for increased federal subsidies to keep them afloat...."
Ethanol may fuel inflation,
Surge in corn prices also squeezes profit margins
By Rachel Beck,
Associated Press, Beacon Journal, Ohio, February 10, 2007
(Click to read)
"...In Mexico, the price of corn
tortillas--the dietary staple of the country's poorest--has
risen by about 30% in recent months, leading to widespread
protests and price controls. In China, the government has put a
halt to ethanol-plant construction for the threat it poses to
the country's food security. Thus is a Beltway fad translated
into Third World woes..."
Very, Very Big Corn Ethanol and its consequences.
The Wall Street Journal Opinion Page,
Saturday, January 27, 2007
(Click to read entire article)
"...Nearly all
Mexican tortillas are made of home-grown white maize, rather
than the yellow variety that is more common in the United
States. The growing popularity of subsidised ethanol across the
border has prompted the price of yellow corn, quoted in Chicago,
to rise by over 50% since October. So industrial users of
imported yellow corn in Mexico (for animal feed and syrup)
started buying white maize instead.
The government was slow to react. The tariff on imported maize
is not due to disappear under the North American Free Trade
Agreement until next year. But the government could have blunted
the price rise by waiving the tariff or moving quickly to expand
the tariff-free quota, says Luis de la Calle, a former trade
official...."
Tortilla blues
from The Economist print edition,
Feb 1st 2007, MEXICO CITY
"The Earth Policy Institute says that 79
ethanol plants are under construction, which would more than
double ethanol production capacity to 11 billion gallons by
2008. Yet late last month, the Renewable Fuels Association said
there were 62 plants under construction.
The lower tally has led to an underestimate of the grain that
would be needed for ethanol, clouding the debate over the
priorities of allocating corn for food and fuel, said Lester R.
Brown, who has written more than a dozen books on environmental
issues and is the president of the Earth Policy Institute. “This
unprecedented diversion of corn to fuel production will affect
food prices everywhere,” Mr. Brown said....
...Mr. Brown is among those who believe the ethanol
industry is growing too quickly. He called for a federal
moratorium on the licensing of new distilleries. “We need a time
out, a chance to catch our breath and decide how much corn can
be used for ethanol without raising food prices,” he said
Thursday...."
Rise in Ethanol Raises Concerns About Corn as a Food
by Alexei Barrionuevo,
The New York Times, January 5, 2007
(Click to read)
Click for info on the use of coal to power ethanol plants
"...For years,
farmers’ hearts would leap when the word “ethanol” appeared in a
newspaper headline.
Now farmers almost dread it because they know the ensuing story
is likely to outline the inevitable bust that awaits them if the
current unplanned, willy-nilly ethanol boom continues.... from
No easy answers to ethanol dilemma by
Alan Guebert For the Lincoln Journal Star,
November 26, 2006
(Click to read)
Click for new info on the Economics of ethanol production
"NORTHBROOK,
Ill. — The laboratory that hands out the famous UL safety
listing, Underwriters Laboratories, has yanked its certification
for ethanol fuel pumps, saying there is a corrosion issue.
The decertification affects pumps selling blends of more than 15
percent ethanol. The most common blend is 85/15, or 85 percent
gasoline to 15 percent ethanol, and it is not clear whether the
UL's move will mean these pumps will eventually have to be taken
out of service...."
E85 Setback: UL Won't Endorse Ethanol Pumps
Edmunds.com, October 19, 2006
(Click to read)
Click for more ethanol info on this page
"...But just
what the Underwriter’s decision will mean to those projects and
the industry was not immediately clear. Without the
certification from Underwriters Laboratories, the company that
tests thousands of products for safety and manages the “UL”
symbol, state officials and ethanol industry executives say E85
pumps may run afoul of state and local fire codes that require
“listed” equipment for pumping fuel...."
Product safety lab yanks E85 approval
Palladium-Item.com, Richmond, IN, October 18,
2006
(Click to read)
"...Drengenberg
said as UL began to examine the system, it realized it needed
more information about how ethanol reacted over long periods of
time with parts made from certain metals.
"We looked at it very carefully and we found this issue
of the corrosiveness of ethanol," Drengenberg said. "We're going
to hold back until we get all the questions that came into our
minds answered."
Safety group stalling on E85 Most stations
likely violate fire codes by
Justin Hyde, Detroit Free Press, Washington
Bureau, October 20, 2006
(Click to read)
"...This year cars, not people, will claim
most of the increase in world grain consumption. The problem is
simple: It takes a whole lot of agricultural produce to create a
modest amount of automotive fuel.
The grain required to fill a 25-gallon SUV gas tank with
ethanol, for instance, could feed one person for a year. If
today's entire U.S. grain harvest were converted into fuel for
cars, it would still satisfy less than one-sixth of U.S.
demand...."
Ethanol could leave the world hungry
One tankful of the latest craze in alternative energy could feed
one person for a year.... by
Lester Brown, Fortune at CNNMoney.com,
August 16, 2006
(Click to read the entire article)
"Tests and an investigation by Consumer
Reports conclude that E85
ethanol will cost consumers more money than gasoline and
that there are concerns about whether the government’s support
of flexible fuel vehicles is really helping the U.S. achieve
energy independence....
...When Consumer Reports calculated the Tahoe’s driving
range, it found that it decreased to about 300 miles on a full
tank of E85 compared with about 440 on gasoline. So, motorists
using E85 would have to fill up more often....
...Despite the scarcity of E85, the Big Three domestic auto
manufacturers have built more than 5 million FFVs since the late
‘90s, and that number will increase by about 1 million this
year.
A strong motivation for that is that the government credits FFVs
that burn E85 with about two-thirds more fuel economy than they
actually get using gasoline, even though the vast majority may
never run on E85. This allows automakers to build more large,
gas-guzzling vehicles than they otherwise could under Corporate
Average Fuel Economy rules...."
Excerpts from
Consumer Reports Tests Show That E85 Ethanol Offers
Cleaner Emissions—But Poorer Fuel Economy
Consumer Reports, October
2006
(Click to read)
ALSO:
The ethanol myth Consumer Reports' E85 tests show that you’ll
get cleaner emissions but poorer fuel economy ... if you can
find it Consumer Reports,
October 2006
(Click to read)
"...Even if all of the 300 million acres
(500,000 square miles) of currently harvested U.S. cropland
produced ethanol, it wouldn't supply all of the gasoline and
diesel fuel we now burn for transport, and it would supply only
about half of the needs for the year 2025. And the effects on
land and agriculture would be devastating....
...Recently, there has been lots of excitement and media
coverage about how Brazil produces ethanol for its automobile
fuel and talk that America should follow its lead. But Brazil
consumes only 10 billion gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel
annually, compared with America's 170 billion. There are almost
4 million miles of paved roads in America -- Brazil has 60,000.
And Brazil is the leading producer of sugar cane -- more than
300 million tons annually -- so it has lots of agricultural
waste to make ethanol...."
The False Hope of Biofuels, For Energy and Environmental
Reasons, Ethanol Will Never Replace Gasoline
by James Jordan and James Powell,
Washington Post, Sunday, July 2, 2006; Page B07
(Click to read article)
"Skeptical about protests from chronic
complainers that the odor of an ethanol plant was intolerable,
Larry Hardison pulled out his kayak.
He paddled upriver of Tate & Lyle, then downriver. The odor
started out tolerable, got worse, then overwhelmed him. He ended
his excursion dry heaving over the side of his boat.
Hardison, it is worth noting, is not an environmental wacko. He
is chairman of an air quality task force created by Loudon
County, Tennessee's three elected governmental bodies…."
Is plant worth the stink? Economics of proposed ethanol facility
good for city, but odor a negative by
Eric Fleischauer, DAILY Business Writer, The
Decatur Daily News, August 13, 2006
(Click to read)
Federal, Multi-State Clean Air
Act Settlement with Cargill, Inc., Secures Major Pollution
Reductions - Eighty-one Percent of Uncontrolled Ethanol
Production Capacity Now Under Federal Consent Decrees
9/1/95
(Click to read on the on the Environmental Protection Agency EPA
website)
See the Tad Patzek video from his
presentation at Wilson College in March 2006 for information
about the quality of water needed to produce corn ethanol.
(Click for a link to the video)
"...Another factor beyond his control also
will affect Worthington's 1,100-acre crop farming operation this
year: high-priced diesel fuel, fertilizer, propane and other
energy products. By his estimate, those costs will add $22 per
acre to his production expenses on 750 acres of corn - $16,500
in all...."
...."When you put the LP costs and the fertilizer and the diesel
together, you're talking serious dollars," said Worthington, a
43-year-old, third-generation Iowa farmer. "Something has to
give."
In February, the USDA forecast that U.S. farmers would spend
12.5 percent more on fuels and oils this year compared with
last, with the highest prices this year occurring in the first
six months. Fertilizer costs in 2006 are expected to be 6.5
percent higher...." Cost
of raising corn grows Prices for fuel, fertilizer eat into
farmers' profit by Anne
Fitzgerald, DesMoines Register, May 21, 2006
(Click to read article)
►
Click to read more about the Economics of Ethanol
"In
a seemingly desperate attempt to convince Americans that using
ethanol is not just another massive farm subsidy, but a way to
lower the cost of automobile fuel, and lower dependence on
foreign oil, ethanol proponents are pointing to Brazil....
...it is obvious why ethanol works in Brazil: when you’re
paying $4.20 a gallon for gas, ethanol with a wholesale price of
around $1.40 and a retail price of less than $2.00 is a great
deal...."
Brazil’s Success with Ethanol Cannot be Duplicated in the United
States by Fred
Antoun, Jr.
(Click to read entire article)
Corn Ethanol: Laundering Fossil Fuels, Bilking Taxpayers,
Damaging the Environment by
Tad Patzek, Energy Tribune, March 16, 2006
(Click to read)
►
Professor Tad Patzek
(more info about
Dr. Patzek) discussed the
negative impacts of an ethanol distillery on a community at the
January 30, 2006 Ethanol Forum at Wilson College in
Chambersburg, PA
(Click for view this part of the Forum - very large file 14.3 MB
.wmv file for high-speed connections only)
►
View Patzek's discussion of
Dried Distiller's Grains & Solubles
(Click for 2.7 MB .wmv file)
►
The Real Biofuel Cycles
by
Tad W. Patzek, April 17, 2006
(Click to review this paper)
►
CHECK YOUR
VEHICLE TIRE PRESSURE TO SAVE ON FUEL CONSUMPTION!! Vehicle
tires are such an important component of fuel economy that The
Energy Policy Act of 2005 requires a program which includes:
"Policies and procedures to promote the purchase of
energy-efficient replacement tires, including purchase
incentives, website listings on the Internet, printed fuel
economy guide booklets, and mandatory requirements for tire
retailers to provide tire buyers with fuel-efficiency
information on tires."
(Click
to read more of this Section - large PDF for high-speed
connections)
►
Tad Patzek discussed both
vehicle tire pressure and ethanol mileage at the January 30,
2006 Ethanol Forum at Wilson College in Chambersburg, PA
(Click to view this part of his presentation - very large 5.3 MB
.wmv file for high-speed connections)
Click for more info about the Ethanol Forum
►
Should we know this BEFORE we put it in our vehicles
and supply lines??
Also part of changes to the
Clean Air Act SEC. 1506. ANALYSES OF
MOTOR VEHICLE FUEL CHANGES. Section 211 of the
Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545) is amended by inserting after
subsection (p) the following:
Section 211 of the Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. 7545) is amended by
inserting after subsection (p) the following:
``(q) Analyses of <<NOTE: Publication.>> Motor Vehicle Fuel
Changes and Emissions Model....
``(3) Permeation* effects study.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this paragraph, the Administrator shall conduct a
study, and report to Congress the results of the study, on
the effects of ethanol content in gasoline
on permeation, the process by which fuel molecules migrate
through the elastomeric materials (rubber and plastic parts)
that make up the fuel and fuel vapor systems of a motor vehicle.
``(B) Evaporative emissions.--The study shall include estimates
of the increase in total evaporative emissions likely to result
from the use of gasoline with ethanol content in a motor
vehicle, and the fleet of motor vehicles, due to permeation.''.
►Click
here to review the entire Energy Policy Act of 2005 on the U.S.
Senate
Committee on Energy and Natural Resources
►Click
here for the Clean Air Act on the EPA website
*Permeate
according to Dictionary.com: "To pass through the openings or
interstices of: liquid permeating a membrane."
WILSON
COLLEGE EDUCATIONAL ETHANOL FORUM
"This is
a very serious facility that may be too noxious for you to
handle," Patzek said.
Ethanol fuels debate by
Jim Hook, Public
Opinion, January 31, 2006
(Click)
"As far as a fuel, it's substandard," said
Patzek. It requires 35 percent more ethanol to drive the same
distance as a gallon of gasoline, he said...."
Opinions on ethanol shared at Pa. forum
by Don Aines,
The Herald Mail January 31, 2006
(Click)
MORE on Ethanol Forum and the Economics of
Ethanol Production
(Click)
►
Thermodynamics of the Corn-Ethanol Biofuel Cycle,
Tad W. Patzek, Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, February
2006.
"More fossil energy is used to produce ethanol from corn
than the ethanol’s energy value. Growing corn for fuel
depletes and can eventually destroy soil value.
Production of ethanol from plants is unsustainable. Only
large government subsidies, courtesy of the taxpayers, support
ethanol...."
(Click to read)
Click for more on the Economics of Fuel Ethanol
Production
Ethanol production using corn grain required 29% more
fossil energy than the ethanol fuel produced."
Ethanol production Using Corn, Switchgrass, and Wood; Biodiesel
Production Using Soybeans and Sunflower
by
David Pimentel and Tad W. Patzek
2005
(Click)
Ethanol from corn: Just how sustainable is it?
Click
for a pdf file of the PowerPoint Presentation by
Tadeusz W. Patzek, Civil and Environmental Engineering, U.C.,
Berkley
► Dr. Tad Patzek (Professor,
University of California, Berkeley) Information - Click here
► Dr. David Pimentel (Professor,
Cornell University) Information - Click Here)
More on the Economics of ethanol production
(Click)
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