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Ethanol doesn't deserve the bad rap!
Contributed by: Charles Spratt on 4/23/2008

Oil prices reached $118.00 on earth day and I read two articles about how the production of ethanolis a bad idea. Such condemnation ofan alternative to oil and gas production is unwarranted.The writers seek to make three points; ethanol production is bad for the environment, ethanol production has causedfood shortages, and ethanol is not commercially viable.

The first being that the production of ethanol is bad for the environment because beyond thecosts of converting plant material into ethanol; there are other costs and a huge "carbon footprint" such as the quantity of water used in growing the crops, the machinery, equipment, and labor expended in the planting, growing, harvesting, and transporting the crop to the conversion plants. But visit the site of a drilling rig and suddenly the "carbon footprint" relating to ethanol production seems insignificant. Before the drill bit bites into the ground, millions of dollars has been spent in exploration as seismograph trucks and bulldozers trample and scrape the delicate top soil to install equipment for the search of possible geologic formations that might entrap a pool of crude or a reservoir of natural gas. When a promising structure has been discovered, permits received, convoys of trucks haul massive and very expensive rigs to location, as bulldozers carve out a drilling pad, massive sump pits and roads. The drilling takes time so a steady string of laborers, support crews, water trucks and production supplies raise plumes of dust as they continually move to the site. Contrast this expenditure of money, labor, and material with that of the farmer who is preparing his land for planting, irrigating the crop, harvesting the crop and transporting it to the conversion site. Oil wells can cost millions just in drilling costs and the impact on the environment, upon the aquifers that the drilling bit violates as it grinds through rock, are not capable of being calculated. To equate the "footprint" of a farmer raising a crop to that of a drilling rig makes the argument against farming absurd. The capital cost incurred in the production of an ethanol grain crop is insignificant compared to the number of "dry holes", punctured geological formations, and surface damage incurred for every successful well brought on line for fossil fuel distribution.

Secondly, the opponents of ethanol production point to the removal of land from the production of grain because it is being designated for ethanol production. They rant about the increasing cost of bread in a world of starving people. They tell of the doubling and tripling of the cost of grain; but do they consider what has happened at the gas pump over the same period of time? I notice that the writers don't rant that the farmers are getting rich and banking obscene profits, but oil companies are doing much better than even the largest farming corporation. Apparently there is no solution to the high cost at the gas pumps or it would have been in place before now. But there are solutions available to reduce the cost of food stores; the first would be to end the government's misguided farm policies that artificially inflate the price of farm produced commodities before it even gets to the grocery shelves. Create a program that pays farmers for production of grains but does not pass the cost on to the ultimate consumers, it doesn't pass the cost on to the poor and is not a novel idea.

Third point of the ranters against ethanol is that ethanol costs too much to produce and it is less expensive to produce the last drop of oil on this planet and then move into the conversion processes for coal and oil shale. The issue is the support of farmers or assuming a continued submissive posture to the huge oil companies who seem oblivious to how shortsighted their policy of continued increase in productionto meet an ever increasing demand when there is a limit to the amount of oil available on the planet, no matter what the consumers areforced to pay.

Ethanol is not the entire answer, but it is better for farmers than punching holes in our delicatewildlife preserves andscenic area. Farming has historically been one of the least economically profitable enterprises to make your calling and yet is the backbone of the world.

Alternative sources of energy have to be made available, conservation must occur, and the preservation of our planet have to be priorities. Choosing between the farmer pulling a plow and a multi-billion dollar oil company punching holes in our delicate planet should be easy. However American automobile manufacturers still cling to the idea that "big is better" and contend they cannot manufacture vehicles that meet the standards that have been imposed and met in other countries.



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Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
Submitted By: Far Northeast Gays
posted on 6/5/2008 @ 4:26:07 PM
Rated Story
Even morons know that ethanol is driving everyone's grocery bill up.
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Submitted By: J D
posted on 5/19/2008 @ 9:00:59 PM
Rated Story
FINALLY an article from this author I can somewhat agree with. At least we agree on one thing, get off the FORIGEN OIL and get renewable energy!
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Showing 1-2 of 2 comments
CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Charles Spratt

Denver , CO

Charles Spratt has posted 13 stories and 4 comments since joining on 2/25/2008. Charles Spratt 's average story rating is 2.06.
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