Scorched Earth (3/9/2008)

This episode of Scorched Earth talked about the realities of “Green” technology. They talked about the “true costs of Ethanol technology (also known as E-85 fuel)”. The main place in the US that this technology is produced is in “The Kuwait of the US”, also known as Iowa and its corn fields. The nation has 139 stations and produces about 6 billion gallons per year. The weird part is that 17.4 billion tax dollars is also spent on this technology per year. Also, each of the four remaining presidential nomanies have stated that E-85 technology is the first step towards an independent energy source. The speaker of the house is quoted as saying, “Give the Midwest the money, not the Middle East.” Although the technology sounds good, the production of ethanol is not. Most companies use coal in their production, and the pollution into the Mississippi River has created a “dead zone” where the river meets the Gulf of Mexico. A fact, if all the corn were used to produce ethonal it would only be enough for 7% of all E-85 cars. This means that an E-85 vehicle needs to keep stopping by a pumping station because the car needs more ethanol then the tank can handle. A farmer in Iowa whose crops are used to produce ethonal is quoted as saying, “We should rethink the production of ethanol to make it more cost efficient for the consumers.”

Here is a great video that describes the same issues that were brought up in Scorched Earth. The key phrase you should pay attention to is the quote by the Senator from Indiana, “As we produce ethanol in more efficient ways, it will reduce the greenhouse gases.”

~ by nsinha on March 23, 2008.