U.S. corn-based ethanol worse for the climate than gasoline, study finds

[Tcoat]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

Too subtle? 'Twas the joke. I must be having an off night.

[bcj]

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by WolfpackS2k

But but but, it's "sustainable".

It is definitely sustainable. I don’t think it is attainable for ethanol to be our only fuel based on how much crop land we would need to run all cars, but it is a better solution for fuel than Porsche doing carbon capture because we already have corn surplus. Seems like using corn for ethanol would reduce the need for subsidies to farmers too.

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by DarkPira7e

Solar and wind can't hope to fuel even America's energy needs in an effort to replace fossil fuels being used in vehicles, is more what I meant

Unless they want to give everyone free solar panels with the purchase of an electric vehicle

Solar and wind will definitely fuel America’s vehicles just fine. No reason it can’t. Considering the price of both and the speed of installation, it is expanding faster than any other sector.

California just ran on 100% renewable energy, but fossil fuels aren't fading away yet
https://www.npr.org/2022/05/07/10973...newable-energy

We just need to charge in the middle of the day more and have grid storage. The Rondo brick batteries seem the most ecological.

[Spuds]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

It is definitely sustainable. I don’t think it is attainable for ethanol to be our only fuel based on how much crop land we would need to run all cars, but it is a better solution for fuel than Porsche doing carbon capture because we already have corn surplus. Seems like using corn for ethanol would reduce the need for subsidies to farmers too.

I thought we had a corn surplus because of subsidies...

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by Spuds

I thought we had a corn surplus because of subsidies...

Yep. That’s what I was saying. We have and need a corn surplus. We created it using subsidies. The extra corn sometimes gets dumped onto the international market, which isn’t good, or it gets destroyed, which is wasteful. If we can use the extra corn for fuel then that can offset the subsidies. It is a flexible commodity.

[Captain Snooze]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

and there are too many of us infecting the planet.

Get rid of people get rid of the problem (and I don't mean actively get rid of).
I have had a fantasy for decades that a rogue/escaped/mutated pathogen causes 99% infertility in the human population.

[86-75309]

Originally Posted by Irace86.2.0

Yep. That’s what I was saying. We have and need a corn surplus. We created it using subsidies. The extra corn sometimes gets dumped onto the international market, which isn’t good, or it gets destroyed, which is wasteful. If we can use the extra corn for fuel then that can offset the subsidies. It is a flexible commodity.

When corn is processed for ethanol it also produces other co-products that are used for animal feed and oils used for biodiesel. About 1/3 of the co-products are exported to other parts of the world.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by Captain Snooze

Get rid of people get rid of the problem (and I don't mean actively get rid of).
I have had a fantasy for decades that a rogue/escaped/mutated pathogen causes 99% infertility in the human population.

It's the biggest elephant in the room.

[Irace86.2.0]

Originally Posted by 86-75309

When corn is processed for ethanol it also produces other co-products that are used for animal feed and oils used for biodiesel. About 1/3 of the co-products are exported to other parts of the world.

Right, that is what I’m saying. The ethanol market is probably a good market because maybe it reduces dumping by taking a flexible commodity and using it for more profitable and needed products; maybe it reduces the need for subsidies because we can generate profitable products from flexible commodities when they are in surplus. If we take away ethanol then we have to pay out higher subsidies and dump more corn, at least in theory.

The rise of flex crops and commodities: implications for research
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full...0.2015.1036417

Who Wins and Who Loses from U.S. Dumping of Corn
https://www.iatp.org/documents/who-w...s-dumping-corn