New study casts doubt on ethanol's climate benefits
The Hill [DC],
by
Rachel Frazin
Original Article
Posted By: Hazymac,
2/17/2022 2:50:11 PM
A new study is casting doubt on the climate benefits of using ethanol as a fuel, finding that it may actually contribute more to global warming than gasoline.
Researchers found that emissions from changes in land use to account for the growing demand for corn make corn-based ethanol no cleaner than gasoline.
In fact, they determined that these changes likely make ethanol’s emissions at least 24 percent higher than those for gasoline, according to their study, which was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
A 2005 law established what’s known as the “Renewable Fuel Standard” requiring a certain quantity of biofuels, a category that includes ethanol,
Not to mention that burning food for fuel is stupid…
22 people like this.
Reply 2 - Posted by:
Ribicon 2/17/2022 3:02:12 PM (No. 1074795)
Many previous studies showed the same thing, adding that ethanol production wastes a tremendous amount of water, results in unnecessary fertilizer runoff into our waterways (causing algae blooms and other problems), increases particulate matter in the air (leading to increasing cases of asthma they're seeing, but pretending not to know why), harms automobile fuel systems, makes engines run hotter, reduces fuel economy, is terrible for small engines; no benefit at all to anyone but the ethanol producers. But thanks to George W. Bush, the compassionate conservative, Archer Daniels Midland and others make a fortune producing a product we're forced to buy, but is bad for us. (See also rona vaccines.)
19 people like this.
Reply 3 - Posted by:
NamVet70 2/17/2022 3:05:32 PM (No. 1074799)
Also it is well established that diluting our gasoline with ethanol increases the fuel consumption of gasoline engines.
15 people like this.
Reply 4 - Posted by:
WhamDBambam 2/17/2022 3:08:28 PM (No. 1074802)
You just knew this was how it would end up.
10 people like this.
Reply 5 - Posted by:
clayusmcret 2/17/2022 3:12:14 PM (No. 1074806)
The ethanol lobby will overcome this report.
14 people like this.
Reply 6 - Posted by:
Catherine 2/17/2022 3:22:05 PM (No. 1074819)
Plus a lot of mechanic shops refuse to work on cars that use ethanol. They say it melts engine parts. No idea if this is true but it does destroy cars.
3 people like this.
Reply 7 - Posted by:
DVC 2/17/2022 3:24:08 PM (No. 1074824)
The ONLY benefit to ethanol is to the upper midwest farmer's wallets. It is bad for cars, horrible for small engines, reduces fuel economy and range, and causes corrosion in fuel tanks.
Nasty stuff, and should be STOPPED. But, the midwest farmers love the extra money, and pay handsomely to politicians who mandate them making more money on their corn, and the huge ethanol plants also make a bunch of money.....and also pay their bribes to the politicians, too.
It is now entirely a self sustaining political money making operation, bleeding the tax payers and fuel purchasers for the benefit of farmers, ethanol plant operators and politicians.
8 people like this.
Reply 8 - Posted by:
Roscoelewis 2/17/2022 3:26:41 PM (No. 1074828)
We didn't need a new study to tell us what we already know.
13 people like this.
I use non-ethanol premium (90 octane) and my engine has 147,500 miles on it without a problem.. Gas mileage is better, too.
6 people like this.
Reply 10 - Posted by:
Safari Man 2/17/2022 3:50:17 PM (No. 1074844)
If all the grain alcohol they produced were MANDATED to be consumed as MaiTais, then everyone would be passed out drunk all the time and very few miles would be driven, thus saving a lot of fuel. Problem solved. just MANDATE the MaiTais. Thank me very much.
10 people like this.
Reply 11 - Posted by:
Hazymac 2/17/2022 4:10:58 PM (No. 1074851)
Jay Leno, who knows a lot about cars, had something to say about ethanol.
https://www.autoweek.com/car-life/a1863976/jay-leno-hates-ethanol/
https://www.autoweek.com/car-life/a1867336/jay-leno-wants-choice/
0 people like this.
Reply 12 - Posted by:
Schnapps 2/17/2022 4:24:12 PM (No. 1074867)
Not to mention wasting a perfectly good ingredient for fine liquor and tortillas.
2 people like this.
Reply 13 - Posted by:
TLCary 2/17/2022 4:41:35 PM (No. 1074881)
Obviously: you burn one gallon of petroleum (producing CO2 and pollutants) to make one gallon of ethanol. Then you burn the gallon of ethanol (producing CO2 and pollutants) to save the environment; by creating twice as much pollution. Makes as much sense as everything else liberals try to sell us.
5 people like this.
Reply 14 - Posted by:
Ida Lou Pino 2/17/2022 4:44:15 PM (No. 1074882)
One of the rare times that President Trump acted like a sleazy politician - - and gave me the creeps - - was when he enthusiastically backed rotten ethanol.
I hope he doesn't continue doing that - - in his second term.
9 people like this.
Reply 15 - Posted by:
Strike3 2/17/2022 4:50:02 PM (No. 1074887)
Ethanol only harms engines that are not designed to use it. In 60s and 70s muscle cars it eats fuel filters and other engine system parts. It looks like the electric car people are now going after flex-fuel vehicles in order to put an even worse technology at more of an advantage. What will be the next victim, steam engines?
Electric cars will not be in our future as the major mode of propulsion, get over it Greenies.
2 people like this.
Reply 16 - Posted by:
Strike3 2/17/2022 4:52:20 PM (No. 1074889)
That's great out-of-the-box thinking, #10. Or out of the jug as it were.
1 person likes this.
Reply 17 - Posted by:
Hazymac 2/17/2022 4:53:05 PM (No. 1074890)
Yep, #14. That was the main one PDJT's unforced errors. He didn't do much wrong overall, but his support of ethanol was, at best, stupid policy.
8 people like this.
Reply 18 - Posted by:
Heil Liberals 2/17/2022 7:37:54 PM (No. 1075059)
But, but... corn is green. I mean, really its color is green. I wonder how much beef would come down if all that corn went toward feed?
0 people like this.
Reply 19 - Posted by:
Lawsy0 2/17/2022 8:58:48 PM (No. 1075124)
We were much better served buying corn fritters at the State Fair. Gracias, de nada, Spotted Owl Gorp.
1 person likes this.
Reply 20 - Posted by:
24tea@Mag 2/17/2022 10:42:32 PM (No. 1075221)
We have all these greenies running around with no true education - but ethanol is wonderful - it is more expensive than gas; cause more corrosion than gas, pollutes more; and harms our climate. Sounds like the same elites who pushed the jab and we may find out too late that it did more harm than good.
1 person likes this.
Reply 21 - Posted by:
lakerman1 2/18/2022 11:08:44 AM (No. 1075644)
History is important here.
Two things happened in the 1970s, leading to ethanol mandates.
First was the Arab oil embargo. We worried about having enough gasoline.
Coincidental to that was moving the Iowa caucuses ahead of the NH primary. That made Iowa an important player in selecting party nominees for president, and those politicians knuckled under to Iowa farmers.
Then Jimmy Carter was elected president, and the ethanol requirement was locked in.
The only presidential candidate who came out against ethanol, that I can remember, was John McCain in 2008. But when he went to Iowa to campaign, he folded like a cheap suitcase on the issue.
1 person likes this.
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