The end of an EAR-a...(farewell, for now!)

With this post comes the end of an EAR-a (a little play on words...since I've been talking about corn a lot, I thought it appropriate). I really hope that I've created some intelligent discussion about ethanol and E85. I also hope that I have not seemed like I am against ethanol. I have said it once and I will say it again: I think ethanol is a great beginning. It shows that we, as a people are putting forth effort and are not just willing (well, at least not ALL of us) to sit around and deplete our petroleum reserves. If one thing should be clear, it is this: it may not be in our lifetime, or our children's lifetime, but someday alternative fuels are going to be the way of life. Traditional petroleum, as it is used now, is probably not going to last forever. You could start asking yourself "well, what is 'forever'" but that's missing the point. Alternative fuels are a promising technology, and one that could reap siginificant benefits in the future.

I have enjoyed blogging about this topic a lot. I hope that I will be able to find the time after I graduate in January to keep blogging about this topic.

As a parting gift of sorts, I will leave you with a wonderful resource concerning the automotive "green scene" (yes, even us "gearheads" are not against being green). AutoBlogGreen's category on ethanol contains the latest news concerning ethanol and the automotive world.

One last thing to think about (and remember!):

Alternative fuels are not going to save the world. They are not going to be the thing that weans the U.S. off of its foreign petroleum consumption. They are, however, the gateway to something that will help our planet, and the people that live on it.

Thank you very much for reading. This "EAR-a" has come to an end...

...for now.

E10...No, it's not a type-o

You may have noticed a change in the gas that you are putting into your car when you stop to fill it up; then again, maybe you haven't. Governments all over the world, from Austrailia to India and yes, even here in the U.S., are mandating the use of E10 instead of traditional gasoline. E10, like E85, is a blend of gasoline and ethanol. This time, however, the blend consists of 10% ethanol and 90% gasoline (in lieu of E85's 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline). While this switch has not been highly publicized, it is certainly not insignificant.

A recent study completed by the American Coalition for Ethanol found that the 4 vehicles they used in the study actually got better gas mileage when running on E10. It should be emphasized (in case they didn't do it enough, I am right now) that this study is preliminary, and it only used 4 vehicles. It is true that this evidence to prove the claim that E10 improves gas mileage is a lot more concrete than anything that has been presented in the past; even so, more research needs to be conducted before this claim can be taken as truth.

Something to think about:

Do you think that mild fuel blends, such as E10, are more of a viable alternative to gasoline than E85 is?

At the risk of beating a dead horse...

At the risk of beating a dead horse, I would like to point out an article in Tuesday's New York Times about how ethanol plants are starting to be met with some resistance. Again, I do not want to always present the negative aspects of ethanol; I merely want to present the side that I do not think is represented as often as the other. As time goes on, people are coming down off of the "ethanol is our savior stage" and are realizing that we, as a nation, better think about the different alternative fuels and the advantages and disadvantages of each.

Something to think about:

Do you think all of the talk about ethanol and other alternative fuels is just hype? Or is there real substance (and possibility) behind it?

My head is spinning

The Green Car Congress is a forum for alternative motive technology. Their self-stated goal is to "provide timely, high-quality editorial about the full spectrum of energy options, technologies, products, issues and policies related to sustainable mobility." Basically, it's a place to read and comment on a very broad spectrum of stories relating to "green" technology.

Generally, from the people I have talked to, and from the research that I have gathered, there are two main opinions on ethanol: 1) Ethanol is our savior and will be the thing to wean us, as a nation, off of fossil fuels OR 2) Ethanol is an absolutely horrible idea contrived without considering the detrimental environmental impacts that it is going to have. There is no middle ground. That all may seem a bit exaggerated, but you'd be surprised how true it is. Naturally, the people involved in promoting corn based ethanol are going to think it is wonderful; conversely, those who do not like it are not going to change their minds. It does begin to make one's head spin, after hearing this from so many different people.

The following are two posts from people with different viewpoints on ethanol. They are very representative, I think, of the trends in opinion that I have been seeing througout my research.

"I protest the inclusion of ethanol as a green product. It may not be pumped from below the ground, but it accelerates the spread of agricultural land at the cost of the natural world which is not experiences the extinction of species at a rapid pace. It raises the cost of corn which starves people already starving to death all over the world. And it perpetuates the illusion that we can continue to spread our footprint on the earth without consequence, without increasing global warming and backing us into a corner we cannot get out of. And lastly it is as polluting as gasoline or worse. Ethanol is greenwashing. It is a false hope. It is the antithesis of green. " --Paul Richards (posted 4/28/07)

"Whether u guys like it or not, Ethanol is the fastest spreading fuel and has the capability to challenge. It spreads in the form of E10, E25 and E85. Currently Corn & Cane is used, pretty soon the corn stalks and agro waste will be used and that will reduce the land usage. Give some time. Any fuel that comes from source other than Crude Oil is considered an alternative. High oil prices are big trouble for everyone." --Max Reid (posted 4/28/07)

I encourage you to read some more of the comments on the story, and to look over the rest of the site. It has A LOT of different stories regarding alternative motive technology and where things might be going in the next ten or 20 years.

Green Car Congress also has a blog. (The link here is to the ethanol section of the blog.) It contains all of the latest stories on ethanol from all over the country.

My head is still spinning a little bit. How about yours?

Ethanol IS a good thing

I hope that my blog hasn't seemed too alarmist so far. I do not want to suggest that ethanol is this horrible thing that will irreparably damage the Chesapeake Bay and will make beef and poultry $15 per pound. I just want to give air to certain things in regards to ethanol that I feel aren't emphasized enough. The main things that are being emphasized (more than others) are that ethanol reduces our dependency on foreign oil (it could) and that it reduces harmful emissions from the cars that everyone drive (it does).

Of course, if you are trying to sell a car to someone, for instance, you are not going to say "this car is worthless. It breaks down when I just look at it, much less drive it." If you say this, and still think that you are going to sell the car, well I wish you the best of luck. This idea applies to "selling" the idea of ethanol. The proponents of ethanol are not going to emphasize what is bad about it. My goal is not as much to emphasize the bad about ethanol, but rather to present a balanced picture of it.

I just wanted to make that clear. Now, on to how ethanol can be a good thing. Ethanol will undoubtedly contribute to the economy. More ethanol being produced means an increased demand for corn. An increased demand for corn means farmers will have bigger and better profits from their corn crops.

However, as I've mentioned, higher corn prices do drive up the price of poultry and beef. Ethanol will not be THE thing that will wean our dependence on foreign oil. But, as I've also said, it is a good place to start.

Runoff = Bad!

Okay, I suppose the title of this entry might give it away, but hear me out. Something that I hope that I've established so far is that the main problem with planting more corn for the production of ethanol is that it would increase the runoff from the fertilizers (containing phosphorous and nitrogen) that are applied to the corn.

Chesapeake Renewable Energy, LLC is planning the construction of an ethanol production plant in Somerset County, Md. (Click on "Somerset County" to see a more detailed map of the county.) Russell Brinsfield, executive director of the Harry R. Hughes Center for Agro-Ecology, Inc, based out of Queenstown, Md., is concerned with the runoff that would come from the corn being planted. More corn would equal more runoff entering the Chesapeake Bay. More runoff entering the Bay could endanger the wildlife and have more severe effects if left unmanaged over time.

Dr. Brinsfield is quick to emphasize that the management of the crops themselves, along with the promotion of conservation programs, is the best chance that we have to limit runoff entering the Bay. He also mentions that moving to alternate methods of producing ethanol would also help in terms of reducing runoff. "If managed right the impact could be minimal, if not the impact could be significant. In the long term, I believe we need to move towards cellulose ethanol from native grasses like switchgrass and gamma grass," he said.

Like Dr. Brinsfield said, management is key. It's easier to prevent the runoff than having to clean it up later. Remember, hindsight is always 20/20...let's hope that things don't come to that.

Developments...and concerns

Is the Chesapeake Bay in danger because of three ethanol plants that could (and in one case, is) be constructed in Maryland?

First of all: this blogger has some good points that I think you should read.

Second of all: Is the supply of corn for corn-sourced ethanol running low already?

Now, back to the bay. In May of 2007, the state of Maryland approved the construction of a $136 million ethanol plant in the Curtis Bay area of Baltimore. The plant, expected to have a production capacity of 52 million gallons a year, will be built off of Pennington Avenue in Baltimore. After hearing the news, residents immediately pointed out that the Curtis Bay area already has too much air pollution. The residents cited other concerns that the plant will produce a bad odor, and that it will attract rats from the corn used to produce the ethanol. Officials were quick to allay these fears, but they are valid fears nonetheless.

Other sites being considered for the construction of an ethanol plant is in Sparrows Point, MD as well as on the eastern shore of Maryland, in Somerset County. Officials for the three companies interested in all three sites (Atlantic Ethanol, LLC being one of those) are not addressing as well as they should the environmental concerns in regards to the construction of ethanol plants in Maryland.

Will the plants produce increased pollution in Baltimore (adding to the city's preexisting problems)? Will there be runoff from these plants? Will the prospective plant on the eastern shore be cost effective? (It will receive its supply of corn from the midwest.) All these are questions that need to be answered.

I get the feeling that there is a great deal of haste involved here. Government and business officials are so quick to leap onto the E85 bandwagon that they are (seemingly) not considering what could happen if they hurry and slap these three ethanol production plants in Maryland. The construction for the Curtis Bay plant could begin as soon as the year 2008. Is that enough time to allay the fears of people in this state?

I hope that I am not seeming like too much of an alarmist here. I am all for finding alternative sources of fuel. I just am trying to point out things that I do not think are getting mentioned enough, such as the environmental impact of these three plants.

Something to think about:

If you found out that an ethanol plant was going up close to where you live, what would your reaction be?

Cool interactive on biofuels

Something cool that was brought to my attention online was in regards to a well-done interactive on biofuels by National Geographic. The interactive allows you to compare corn sourced ethanol and E85 with other biofuels in terms of CO2 emissions, energy balance and retail price.

Something that proponents of E85 are quick to point out is the fact that it tends to cost at least 10 percent less than petroleum-based gasoline. That is a little disingenuous because, while on the face of things E85 is cheaper, it is not when you consider that more E85 is required to produce the same amount of energy as gasoline. (That's why your gas mileage on flex fuel vehicles is less when the vehicle is running on E85!)

Accompanying the interactive on biofuels is an article about corn sourced ethanol and the toll that the harvesting takes on the environment. Here's the rub: producing that E85 that is being touted by our government as a possible solution to dependence on foriegn oil takes a toll on the environment. Growing the corn that is used to produce ethanol requires large applications of herbicides and nitrogen fertilizer so that it doesn't die. Farmers are complaining that the runoff from these corn crops is killing their other crops. In protecting the corn (which is currently at record high prices, due in no small part to this sudden appetite for E85), other crops are being killed off, negating the small profit being made by producing more corn for ethanol.

Here's something else to consider. This increased demand for corn-based ethanol is allowing farmers to not just raise the prices of corn products. Corn, as I said before, is at a record high price now. Feed prices have gone up; in turn the prices for beef, poultry and dairy have gone up.

I do not want to bash E85. It is a cleaner fuel than gasoline. It produces less CO2 emissions. Most of all, it does present a gateway of sorts into future conservation. It may not be the solution to the United States' dependency on foreign oil, but it is a start.

Something to think about:

I'd like to hear what you all think about this article. It's very controversial for a lot of people, not least our generation.




(Project update: I am still working on developing my idea further. Something that I found--and not just in reference to this class--is that talking to sources for a big project like this sometimes gives you a different focus. After talking to some sources, I am trying to adapt to what I am finding out, while still maintaining my focus statement for the project.)

Something I've been thinking about

Because of the fact that I don't want to limit myself in terms of ideas for modules in this project, the theme statement of my project is as follows:

Energy conservation by way of the use of alternative fuels.

Something to think about:

Any suggestions/comments are welcome!

Biodiesel: An Introduction

A quick project update:

I will be focusing on alternative fuel sources in Carroll County, Maryland. I grew up in Hampstead, which is in the northern part of the county, so it is an area with which I am familiar. Carroll County is more rural than most areas of Maryland, so it would be a good area on which to focus. As you will see, in the future the rural areas of our country will be just as important (if not more so) than the urban areas in regards to the development of alternative fuels.

It would be a mistake to not introduce the two main alternative fuels that will be the focus of my project. Did anyone do a little research of their own and see what "biodiesel" and "E85" are? For those who did not, here is a brief introduction to the first of the two:

"Biodiesel"
First of all, biodiesel is not totally free of fossil fuels. It is rather a mix of biodegradable elements and petroleum diesel fuel. The reason why biodiesel is considered an alternative fuel is because it requires less petroleum diesel fuel (anywhere from 2% to 100% less) than traditional #2 diesel fuel. There are 7 primary different mixes of biodiesel and petroleum diesel: B99 and B100 (99 and 100% biodiesel, respectively); B20 and B11 (20% and 11% biodiesel); and B2, B5 and B10 (2%, 5% and 10% biodiesel). Click here to read a good article from the DesMoines Register on how biodiesel is made.

~MA

Something to think about:

1) What is "E85?" What do you know about it?

"What to do?" answered.

As you might surmise from the title of this post, I have a better idea now of what the topic of my project will be. There has scarcely been a day in the past few years that the topics of energy and sources of fuel have not been in the news. Beginning with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and the resulting gas shortages that followed, people were reminded that fossil fuels are not a renewable resource. Gas prices were well over $3.25 a gallon for regular unleaded in Maryland. More people began to consider a somewhat obvious concept: once it [fossil fuels] are gone, they are gone.

Now, I do not wish to be an alarmist here. The goal of this blog is not to put fear in the heart of every person who reads it. I would rather this blog be an introduction for people to the topic of local initiatives to promote alternative fuels

This article serves as a good introduction to the topic of alternative fuels in general in the sense that it paints a very accurate picture of the situation at hand. I feel that alternative fuels such as biodiesel and E85 (Ethanol) have been portrayed as some sort of savior that will permit our country to be totally non-dependent on foreign sources of fossil fuel. This is absolutely not the case. In fact, the contrary is true: it will take many, many years before alternative fuels are a viable and sustainable alternative to fossil fuel. The idea that these alternative fuels are some sort of savior causes them to possibly dismiss the very idea because they have not caught on. This, as you may guess, does not a conducive learning environment make. If people think that alternative fuels will never be viable, then they are not going to want to try to learn about them.

I realize that this may make the topic of this blog and my project irrelevant. As I mentioned before, the goal of this blog is to serve as an introduction to the topic and to merely get people talking about the topic. I believe that talking about alternative fuels is the first step to learning more about them. The percentage of people using alternative fuels may be small now, but this will not always be the case.

Each post will have a section at the end called "Something to think about." This section will contain a question, or questions that are meant to keep the readers thinking about the topic. A question may reiterate something mentioned, or may pose the next logical question in regards to the topic at hand. Any reader may post a response to any question and pose one of his or her own.

~MA (Matt Anderson)

Something to think about:

1) What is "biodiesel" and what is it made of?

What to do? (A test post)

(This is a test post: At least 2 posts meeting the assignment guidelines will follow before Wednesday, 9/12)

Welcome to my blog for MCOM 407: Writing for New Media. The goal of this class (or, rather, the students in it) is to create a multimedia project by the end of the semester. This project can include such things as slideshows of still pictures, podcasts, radio interviews, and anything else that we, the students, can think of. My goal, in this blog, is to pose several questions during the semester, with the hope of answering them in subsequent posts. I hope that the topics within my blog will not divert too wildly; however, I ask that you bear with me at the beginning while my project is in its beginning stages.

I hope that this blog will be interesting to the other people in my class. I would rather have it be more of a discussion board than me posting things that will not be read. If anyone has anything to comment, please do so. If anyone knows someone who would be able to further this topic or any current discussion, I ask that you forward them the URL to this blog. It would be appreciated.

Now, what to do?