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As far as i know, ethanol and all biofuels are/were a dead end. They were used purely for farmer subsidies and the energy independence was an excuse.
by ecshafer 2y ago
As far as i know, ethanol and all biofuels are/were a dead end. They were used purely for farmer subsidies and the energy independence was an excuse.
- starspangled 2y agoTrust the government and their experts though.
- robterrell 2y agoLiterally a report from government experts: "It is important to note that biofuel production and consumption, in and of itself, will not reduce GHG or conventional pollutant emissions, lessen petroleum imports, or alleviate pressure on exhaustible resources."
- starspangled 2y agoWhich makes it even more ridiculous that governments subsidize ethanol for fuel.
- _heimdall 2y agoIts only ridiculous if you view it as a subsidy for ethanol fuel rather than a subsidy for the corn industry. All the government is doing there is creating a market where one wouldn't otherwise exist.
- starspangled 2y ago> Its only ridiculous if you view it as a subsidy for ethanol fuel I.e., what the government claims it to be. Hence my sarcastic comment about trusting the government and its "experts".
- animal_spirits 2y agowhat is the source?
- jstummbillig 2y agoGoogling the exact quote: https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/economics-biofuels https://www.epa.gov/environmental-economics/economics-biofue...
- hedora 2y agoThat doesn’t necessarily mean you can trust government reports though. Take this Bush-era propaganda piece, for example: https://www.energy.gov/articles/biofuels-greenhouse-gas-emissions-myths-versus-facts-0 https://www.energy.gov/articles/biofuels-greenhouse-gas-emis...
- jnurmine 2y agoThat doesn't sound right. If that were the case, why would people still be building biofuel factories, e.g. in Sweden?
- hedora 2y agoIn Sweden, I’m guessing it’s government backed greenwashing. This article (state sponsored site) strongly suggests biofuels have significantly reduced their carbon output: https://smartcitysweden.com/focus-areas/mobility/biofuels/ https://smartcitysweden.com/focus-areas/mobility/biofuels/ But the numbers don’t add up. Instead, it looks like they’re simply burning less gas (biofuels or not): https://ourworldindata.org/co2/country/sweden https://ourworldindata.org/co2/country/sweden