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| Yes | 54% | 28 votes | Total: 52 votes | |
| No | 46% | 24 votes |
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Add to FavoritesAt first glance, ethanol seems like a great idea. Keep the money here in the good 'ole USA instead of shipping it overseas for expensive oil. Create less pollution for the environment. Help out struggling farmers. It's a win-win deal, right?
Not so fast.
There is not enough corn grown in all of North America to meet the energy needs of New York State, much less the nation. So at best ethanol is a help to farmers, but there are so many better options that do not require the great investment in infrastructure ethanol does.
Electric cars are slated to hit the roads in significant numbers in the next one to two years; this is a far better solution. Keeping the energy production (electricity) centralized means the pollution can be dealt with in fewer locations. It means less ozone production in cities.
There are plenty of hungry people in the world that America can sell its corn to, and keep our farmers in business. Nigeria might be a good example. We simply tell them if they want us to buy their oil then they will purchase food from us at a fair market price. If they pass, which would be their privilege, then we'd refuse to buy their oil.
The problem with world hunger is twofold: hypocrisy and distribution. Lots of good hearted people claim to help world hunger but only when the cameras are rolling. They're either nave, giving most of their money to corrupt organizations, or they use the disadvantaged to further their public image which is shameful.
The larger problem than a few two-faced celebrities is one of A to B. We have more food than we can eat in America, but how to distribute it, and who will pay for it? How can we get it to the people that need it?
Wicked governments such as the one in Myanmar have brazenly and cruelly refused aid in the past. So it's a tough row to hoe with some of these outlaw nations. A consistent policy is needed with no exceptions.
Then there is the food and feed issue. Converting more corn into fuel means less with which to feed cows and pigs (or people for that matter), which drives up prices in the US for consumers.
There has to be a better way, and there is. Research on use of non -foodstuff ethanol from switch grass, wood cellulose, etc .must be pressed forward. We need to re-examine all alternative energy sources such as nuclear and solar as well, but let's keep the corn for food and not for a tiger in your tank.
Learn more about this author, Cameron Foster.
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No
It it interesting that most naysayers of ethanol use commonly state that using ethanol uses food stock. That's not true and hasn't been for several years.
First is that food corn is not the same as corn used for ethanol. If you are like most people (myself included) a few years ago if you mentioned corn people think of popcorn and corn on the cob and not much else, but here have always been several types. Even popcorn and good ole corn on the cob are not quite the same corn. It is used everywhere and in everything. If you ever get really bored read some labels at the grocery store and you will be amazed at what it is in. So it is a major crop and North America supplies about 80% of the worlds corn.
Corn or maize are grown world wide but since it is a species originating here it is not as wide spread outside of North America.. That would change if there was demand for fuel grade corn. As an example ginger is a Chinese root and 30 years ago everything came from China or Asia. About 15 years ago people started growing it in Canada and the US. Now they export back to China. Don't you think that if the demand is there the farmers wherever they can will grow a suitable crop? As a commodity item in demand you might even see a lot of non productive farms growing corn as cash crop. It is a crop that doesn't require irrigation, just the right conditions to grow. And those can be found world wide.
Second problem with the anti corn is that again the naysayers are outdated on information. Within the last 5 years there have been drastic and eyeopening improvements on what and how they use to make ethanol. Traditionally ethanol is a combination of sugar, water yeast and time. Ask anyone who has ever tried to make beer or wine and they will tell you how it is basically the same process as used since the beginning. In other words the process is a few thousand years old. It's been tweaked, its close to being perfected but it isn't the the only way anymore.
When a crop of corn is harvested most of the corn plant is left in the field in the form of leaves stalks roots. Depending on the farmer this is either cleaned off or plowed under and used to be burnt much like sugar cane fields. This wastes a lot of material that can now be used to make ethanol. About 4 years ago a pair of scientists on the east coast discovered a naturally occurring bacteria that digested cellulose. As well other found different variants of this that also digested cellulose. They found that by treating the field waste of corn (and a great many other wastes by the way) the waste could now be cheaply converted to ethanol. And the second major discovery of this was the use of molecular sieves instead of distilling.
So instead of having to spend energy to heat and distill the ethanol into a purer form (usually 2-3 times before you get a high proof number) this creates anhydrous ethanol. That is pure ethanol which will absorb a bit of water unless you keep it sealed away from any moisture. As well there have been discoveries within the last two years of algae aka pond scum that produces many more times the amount of fuel that an acre of corn can. Something like 10,000 gallons per year per acre compared to 200 for corn. That is interesting as it is grown hydroponically usually in the desert somewhere. It was estimated that if 10% of New Mexico was growing pond scum, the US would turn into a fuel exporter even at current usage rates.
So do I have a problem with food corn ethanol ? No. It's not used to make ethanol and the recent discoveries ensure that we would use the waste byproducts normally discarded to make a cheaper safer fuel. Food distribution is a problem but not for lack or quantity. It has always been due to corruption and greed. Solve those two and the food problems start to go away. Make ethanol fuel and our oil dependence goes away.
Learn more about this author, Dave King.
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