Energy Secretary Chu: Progress Needed in Batteries, Solar and Biofuels
Energy Secretary Steven Chu discussed the ways the U.S. should fight climate change in an interview with the New York Times. Chu noted that while President Obama and much of Congress has endorsed a cap-and-trade system similar to that in-place in Europe, alternatives could still emerge like a simple tax on carbon emissions or a modified cap-and-trade.
Chu highlighted three fields in particular that would require significant scientific breakthrough to combat climate change: electric batteries, solar power, and biofuels. Of course, batteries and biofuels are keys to shifting our automobiles off of petroleum, and solar could eventually replace dirty coal.
However, (taking a page from Friedman’s playbook) Chu noted that countries like India and China, which have large coal reserves, will not abandon that cheap energy source, so the U.S. better lead the world in finding a way to burn it cleanly.
Chu noted that while the technology may not be there yet, these feats are far from impossible. He analogized the situation to the turn of the nineteenth century when European scientists Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch made scientific discoveries that allowed the development of cheap nitrogen fertilizers that saved Europe from starvation.
Cellulosic Ethanol Test Plant Opens; Future of Ethanol Lies With This Technology
The largest ethanol producer in the world, Poet, has announced the opening of an $8 million cellulosic ethanol plant in Scotland, South Dakota. This biorefinery is a pilot plant that is a precursor to a $200 million commercial-scale plant scheduled to open in 2011 in Iowa.
The Scotland Plant will generate ethanol from plant waste, like corn cobs, that would normally be discarded. Although it currently costs about a $1 more per gallon to make fuel from corn cobs than kernels, Poet aims to eventually make cellulosic ethanol competitive with food-based ethanol.
With heightened criticism being levied upon ethanol lately, it will be important for the industry to produce evidence in the near future that biofuels can actually reduce greenhouse gas emissions, decrease oil consumption, and not materially damage global food supplies. While it remains to be seen if this is possible, cellulosic technologies are likely that industry’s best bet.
In 2007, 75% of Renewable Tax Benefits Went To Corn-Based Ethanol Industry
Generally, the two biggest criticisms of corn-based ethanol have been that it is actually bad for the environment and increases pressure on the world’s food supplies. However, in spite of these facts, U.S. renewable energy policy has been skewed greatly in-favor of ethanol.
Highlighting this fact, Environmental Working Group (EWG) recently released an analysis of U.S. ethanol policy that finds the following incredible conclusions (among others):
- Corn-based ethanol has accounted for fully three-quarters of the tax benefits and two-thirds of all federal subsidies allotted for renewable energy sources in 2007.
NASA Uses Satellites To Track Health of Nation’s Cropland
NASA is directing its satellites to look downwards at the American Midwest, in order to analyze crop productivity and to measure the effects of shifting croplands to biofuel production.
Christopher Potter, a research scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center, described this program at the American Geophysical Union meeting last month. His team’s research uses satellite data and computer models to track changes in greenhouse gas emissions and carbon pools resulting from the widespread agricultural transformation towards biofuels.
The satellite data is used to map the shifting vegetation cover and carbon pools in croplands. There is concern that biofuel production utilizes more crop waste, such as corn stalks, which previously would have been left in the field as fertilizer. This could result in the soil becoming less fertile for growing. READ MORE
Plant-Based Bioplastics Provide Promising Alternative
Unless you’ve been to the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market or are in the plastics industry, you are probably not familiar with the idea of plant-based plastic bags, cups, and utensils.
Called “bioplastics,” these alternative materials are derived mostly from corn, but can also be based on other plants such as switch-grass, among others. Similar to biofuels, bioplastics are intended to reduce our consumption of oil and to be more environmentally friendly than its petrochemical based competitor. However, also like biofuels, there are some questions regarding their effectiveness in this regard. READ MORE
Promising work continues on second generation ethanol
A mixture of public and private researchers in Sweden have agreed to work together on the development and large scale implementation of a new process for producing cellulosic ethanol.
Unlike first generation ethanol production, which has been widely criticized for its negative effects on food supplies and questionable carbon footprint, cellulosic ethanol uses agriculture and forestry waste to produce biofuel. According to the researchers, “The [energy] yield [resulting from this process] could be improved up to 40 percent… thereby creating a cheaper and more environmentally friendly fuel.”
Iowa senators and ethanol industry want piece of auto bailout: Is Iowa the new Detroit?
With the automakers on the ropes, and the government getting ready to write a big check, and possibly attach some strings to it, the ethanol industry wants to make sure that they are at the end of those strings.
Of course, merely trying to attach efficiency requirements to any bailout of Detroit is not inherently wrong. In fact, if we do bailout the automakers, there should absolutely be a strict commitment that they must make their cars significantly more fuel efficient going forward.
However, with that said, what the ethanol industry and their local senators are trying to do is just more of the same behavior that got the auto industry into the situation they face today. That is, government policy being influenced by self-interested commercial industry groups that are supported by hometown politicians. READ MORE
Obama delivers powerful video message to Schwarzenegger’s Governors Global Climate Summit
Whoa. No seriously, whoa.
Obama’s video recorded message delivered to Schwarzenegger’s Governors Global Climate Summit on Tuesday was incredible. It was short, right on point, and incredibly well articulated.
In the three and a half minute video, Obama started out by simply declaring, “too often Washington has failed to show leadership. That will change when I take office.”
He then laid out a few of the key policies that will be a part of his climate change strategy. He wants a federal cap-and-trade system, he wants to return emissions to 1990 levels by 2020, and then another 80% reduction by 2050. He wants to develop solar, wind, next generation biofuels. And he wants to look at nuclear and clean coal.
Obama then underlined the importance of the upcoming summit in Poznan, Poland, where negotiations will begin over how to replace the Kyoto Protocol. Obama made it clear that, unlike with the current administration, the country under his leadership will be an integral part of the international approach to climate change.
“Delay is no longer an option, denial is no longer an acceptable response,” Obama noted, adding, “the stakes are too high.”
Obama’s video message to Schwarzenegger’s ‘Governors Global Climate Summit’
US ethanol policy must be based on science, not lobbying
The NY Times editorial board warns that, with respect to ethanol policy, “the issue here is the fate of the planet, not the fate of a particular industry.” This is a question that has come to the forefront in the past year due to concerns that ethanol may be causing more harm to the world than good.
The 2007 federal energy bill mandates that ethanol production should increase from around 7 billion gallons today to 36 billion gallons by 2022. Congress also directed that the ethanol must be cleaner than gasoline, and gave the job of making that calculation to the EPA. READ MORE
McCain seems to abandon position on ethanol
NYT’s The Caucus reported yesterday that McCain, while campaigning in Iowa, inserted an important and powerful word into his remarks, stating, “We’ll invest in all energy alternatives: nuclear, wind, tide, solar, ethanol, biofuels.” His running mate also called for: “harnessing alternative sources like the wind, and the solar and the biomass and the geothermal and the ethanol.” This is a significant policy shift for McCain and his campaign. READ MORE
Rational biofuel policies needed sooner than later
A paper published in the journal Science last week warns that care needs to be taken to ensure that policies surrounding cellulosic biofuel production do not result in environmental harm. The authors of the paper, twenty three leading ecologists, agronomists, conservation biologists and economists, warned that decisions taken now, during the early stages of our biofuel policies, will have dramatic effects on the future environment. READ MORE
EU looks to decrease biofuel targets in light of downsides
We have looked at the potentially vast downside resulting from the push towards biofuels here on ForceChange quite a bit. Given the widespread belief that increased biofuel production is having a strongly negative impact on both world foods supplies, as well as the environment, it should come as no surprise that the EU voted recently to relax its biofuel targets.
The EU’s Industry and Energy Committee called for a substantial cut in biofuel usage in transportation from the 10% target by 2020 to only 5% by 2015, as well as a call to avoid biofuels that compete with food sources. The full EU Parliament, as well as member countries, must still agree to any target before they become law. Unsurprisingly, large biofuel producers are strongly opposing this proposed action. Additionally, the U.S. still appears intent on creating its own addiction to corn.
Post Office seeks ways to save on fuel costs
The largest operator of a civilian vehicle fleet in the country, the US Postal Service is really feeling the effects of increased gasoline prices. According to the Deputy Postmaster General, the USPS spent $1.7 billion on gasoline and diesel last year, and predicts that number to increase by $600 million this year. As a result, the USPS, which uses 200,000 trucks has been forced to look for alternative means of reducing fuel consumption–some of which have been successful, some of which, not so much.
One strategy, which has not proven very effective, was the purchase of 30,000 alternative fuel vehicles, including flex-fuel (E85), CNG and biodiesel trucks. In particular, the flex-fuel trucks saw a decrease in fuel efficiency by 29% and ended up consuming 1.5 million more gallons of gasoline than before.
Some more effective solutions have included realigning routes so drivers don’t have to make left turns (which require more idling), adding GPS systems to plot more efficient delivery routes and, the most effective solution: having employees deliver more of their route by foot.
Addicted to corn, part II
Despite record high gas prices, it has previously been theorized that without the increase in biofuel use the past few years, gasoline might actually cost 15% more than before the adoption of these alternative fuels. This has led us to wonder whether we have become addicted to corn?
However, now, with the recent floods in the Midwest, another twist with respect to our increased reliance on ethanol has developed. The flooding that has inflicted widespread damage on the ethanol industry–ranging from the destruction of some corn crops, factory closures and transportation line disruptions, may now be responsible for a new spike in the cost of gasoline. This is because the decreased production of ethanol will increase the cost of the supplies that are available to be added to our fuel supplies. Currently, gasoline in the U.S. contains about 7% ethanol.
We may now face a situation where not only are the net environmental benefits of ethanol questioned, but our current reliance on it may also be increasing gasoline prices. If these two assumptions are correct, we may have created a situation that is a net negative. Of course, we are still in the early stages of biofuel adoption and all of its impacts are not fully understood. Nonetheless, this further illustrates the dangers of rapid policy shifts that can result in unintended consequences such as these.
