Earth Policy Institute suggests moratorium on launching new ethanol plants
Lester Brown of the Earth Policy Institute says there is little reliable data available to correctly gauge how much grain is needed to feed ethanol distilleries. The federal government says 60 million tons of corn from the 2008 harvest will go to ethanol plants. EPI predicts nearly 140 million tons. So why worry about a few million tons of corn? Food prices around the world.Apparently the U.S. Department of Agriculture uses only once source -- the Renewable Fuels Association -- for info when determining the number and size of ethanol plants under construction. EPI drew on four sources. But no one seems to have an accurate and up-to-date list. By cross referencing and applying the numbers, EPI estimates that the 139 million tons of corn needed to serve all the plants going online will take up half of the country's projected 2008 harvest. And what would the country get from this massive share of the total corn harvest? 15 billion gallons of ethanol; about six percent of the U.S. fuel needs.
Food prices everywhere would be affected by grabbing such a large of the country's food supply. Either other grains would make up for the corn loss, affecting those prices, or exports would decrease, again affecting prices around the world.
According to Brown, Iowa could actually have to import corn because demand from ethanol plants in the state would outstrip the state's corn harvest.
In one final point, Brown says the grain needed to fill up a 25-gallon fuel tank with ethanol could feed one person for a full year. Brown says creating a crop-based automotive fuel economy could lead to many other problems. He suggests a moratorium on licensing new distilleries until more accurate data can be accumulated to know the effect of ethanol production on corn harvests.
[Source: Lester Brown / RenewableEnergyAccess.com]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim 9:37AM (1/16/2007)
It would be horrible if grain prices went up! What in the world would the farmers do with all that extra cash? How would the congressional prostitutes be able to buy farmer's votes because they no longer needed the Billions in Gov’t subsidies? It would be terrible... Families would buy back their farms. Small towns would flourish again. Faith and believe in family and friends would once again be in vogue. NO... We can't let this happen. We must all pull together and protect the happy little oil companies. They need our help! Now is the time to STOP BIOFUELS, before they kill the world's economy. Just think of all that free water that is being released from the polar caps and a beautiful balmy Canada. No, we can't give up on that dream!!!! Lock arms now! Let’s all sing… This message is sponsored by you local friendly oil company and idiot leftist organizations like the Earth Policy Institute. Can you say bipolar?
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Scatter 10:26AM (1/16/2007)
US farmers aren't the only people on this planet and given that EPI is dedicated to global sustainability and biofuels are far from being that, I think they have a very good point.
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Howard Lee Harkness 1:55PM (1/16/2007)
I personally don't give a flip over the price of corn one way or the other. My health improved tremendously when I completely eliminated grain from my diet in 1999.
Aside from that, though, ethanol is a poor fuel, and grain is a lousy ethanol feedstock. And Political Correctness makes lousy economics, lousy science, and bad public policy.
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mulad 3:26PM (1/16/2007)
I'm generally more worried about how much water many ethanol plants use.
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Greg 1:44AM (1/17/2007)
There is something MUCH more important about that corn being gone, and that is the fact that MOST of our corn isn't eaten by humans, it is sent to feedlots to feed cows (which were never meant to eat corn in the first place). The remaining amount usually goes to make the dozens of corn-based things in our diet (high-fructose corn syrup, dextrose, etc.). So with all the corn going to ethanol, the whole dynamic of the industry will change. I think we need to look closely at the effects it will have before rushing into things.
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