Sunday, May 3, 2009

Biofuels

This week's weather site poll asks how often (if at all) you use biofuels for your vehicles. This poll was suggested by Jerry, a local orchardist who has been using biofuels for quite a while. To quote:

"We've been using B-99, 99% American made biodiesel for 6-years. A 67% reduction in exhaust pipe emissions, bio-degradable, non-toxic, and just much easier to work around in the orchard. Also, for $200/each, we've converted all three of our gas engine vehicles to run on E-85, 85% American made ethanol. Again, a 50% reduction of exhaust pipe emission, American made, helping us reduce our dependency on foreign oil."

"Many of the newer vehicles are flex fuel cars and most people don't even know they can run E-85. It's renewable, sustainable and made in America. Bio-diesel can be used in any 1990 or newer diesel powered vehicle with no conversion."

"E-85 is available at Pacific Pride in Bingen for $1.60/gal. this week (they also have B-20). Carson Oil Company in Hood River owns Pacific Biofuels and delivers any blend of biodiesel or ethanol. Let's see how many people in Hood River are helping the environment by using biofuels....not the perfect answer, but it's available, and everyone, with a little effort, can take advantage of the benefits today."

Thanks for the suggestion and info, Jerry. I'm all for alternatives to fossil fuels, and some biofuels are pretty much carbon neutral. Obviously, as we've seen in the past few years, ethanol from food crops presents some real problems, and in some cases takes more energy to make than it produces. Cellulosic ethanol makes a lot more sense, if the technology can be made to work in an environmentally and economic fashion.

Even more promising are biofuels made from non-food crops such as jatropha and algae, that require far fewer inputs of energy and fertilizer.

An unfortunate result of the recent supply/demand slide in oil prices has been less of an economic incentive for biofuels. I think government support into research/development of non-food sources would be an appropriate use of, well, money that we don't have. But, likely a much better long term investment than spending that same non-existent money on inappropriate corporate bailouts.

1 comment:

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