Comments on: Which is Worse: Exporting $1 Billion Per Week or Growing Fuel?

By: George Danz

George Danz — Mon, 21 Jul 2008 12:30:19 +0000

Alcohol is not good for engines and messes up rubber seals, not to mention what it does to the present day metals in engines. It has significantly less energy content that gasoline and it purportedly takes more energy to make than that which it saves. Finally, by taking corn out of food production, food prices will go up, which they already have done.

I believe that the most viable energy solution for the US (not that wind and solar should not be advanced) is Nuclear. France has perfected their reactors and have standardized on a single type of reactor which all of their technicians understand. Their safety record is unblemished. Three Mile Island would not have even made the news had their technicians just allowed the automatic safety mechanisms work as designed. We must use this green, non-poluting source of energy for much of our electricity rather than burning up oil and coal for electricity. Oil and coal ARE poluting.

By: Mike Erchenbrecher

Mike Erchenbrecher — Sat, 19 Jul 2008 11:30:37 +0000

Ethanol is still a questionable source of energy when all things (fertilizers, etc) are added into the equation. But, I agree with T. Boone Pickens in that I would rather recycle the dollars here in the US than export them.
If you look back about 15 years, you will see that Pickens was heavily involved in Natural Gas as a vehicle fuel. THe problem is distribution and the heavy tanks needed to hold the CNG in the cars.
I have asked my senators to for many years to come up with a better energy plan – one that includes alternative energy.
I feel that we can drill in ANWR and other places if we do so carefully and with new technologies, I think these places would be safe.
My plan is to open up ANWR and off shore areas for drilling AND for every barrel of oil we get from that, we must put in place an equal amount of energy from alternative sources. Simple plan that would appeal to both sides of the energy equation.

By: Ruth Spira

Ruth Spira — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 19:11:02 +0000

I’ve thought all along that ethanol would be a wasted
step. Isn’t it also highly corrosive? Would all pipelines, gas pumps and (older) vehicle gas tanks
tolerate the liquid?

By: Chris Pattavina

Chris Pattavina — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 16:10:32 +0000

Outside Jackson,NE, there exists a large regional landfill.

Some bright souls decided that instead of tapping the methane gas from that landfill and compressing it for direct use in cars the gas should be used to power an ethanol plant.

Why take this extra step? Why not use this methane directly into cars and/or the general natural gas infrastructure and cut out the ethanol middleman?

Garbage and sewage can yield gas and synthetic oil and are yet woefully underutilized. Where municipal landfill and feedlot wastes ARE used is in powering ethanol plants because this is the politcally correct usage for them in the Corn Belt; not because this is the most efficient use for them.

By: Kurt Loson

Kurt Loson — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 01:51:09 +0000

Ethanol is a good additive to gasoline but it is not a replacement. We need to drill and drill now…in ANWR which sits in the middle of one of our NATIONAL STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVES. We also need to drill all along our continental shelf. AND we need to invest in the next fuel to power America. Wind power is only a good or steady as the breeze that turns the turbine. When a city needs power, it cannot wait for the wind to blow. So…where does it get its’ power? From the fossil fuel fired generating stations that are idling, while the wind is blowing (and using up fossil fuels) just waiting for when not if the wind stops blowing hard enough to generate the electricity that is needed by YOUR NAME HERE CITY.

By: john a barnerd sr

john a barnerd sr — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 21:00:09 +0000

I THINK MR PICKENS IS ON THE RIGHT TRACK. IT MUST BE DONE QUICKLY HOWEVER. IF WE WAIT ON CONGRESS IT MAY NEVER GET DONE IN TIME. AT THE RATE WE ARE GOING THEY WILL OWN US IN A FEW YEARS. ALMOST DO RIGHT NOW!! WISH I COULD PARTICIPATE.

By: ehaus

ehaus — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 14:36:12 +0000

It is time we start thinking of corn as an ore instead of a single use commodity.
Why not extract two and a half gallons of ethanol from a bushel of corn before feeding the remaining distillers grain (one half of the feed value of a bushel of corn)? Distillers grain fed to an animal results in beef production and manure. Manure processed in a digestor produces methane. (20,000 animals produce enough methane to operate a 100 million gallon ethanol production facility)
co2 is also produced in processing ethanol which is used in producing dry ice and the carbonation for beverages.
The production of beef results in beef , leather and fat. The fat from 2 steers replaces a barrel of oil when processed into bio diesel.
All of this comes from (in part) CORN.

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