Friday, December 07, 2007

Is a sevenfold increase in ethanol a sane idea?

Excerpt from this link:
Renewable motor fuels: Requires a sevenfold increase in the use of ethanol as a motor fuel to 36 billion gallons a year by 2022, with two-thirds to be cellulosic ethanol from such feedstock as prairie grass and wood chips. Has tax incentives for renewable fuels plants.
Note an excerpt from a study linked here:
In terms of energy output compared with energy input for ethanol production, the study found that:

* corn requires 29 percent more fossil energy than the fuel produced;
* switch grass requires 45 percent more fossil energy than the fuel produced; and
* wood biomass requires 57 percent more fossil energy than the fuel produced.

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