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Once a critic of corn ethanol, and the heavy government subsidies that make it profitable, presidential hopeful John McCain showed a change of heart recently in Iowa, where he praised corn ethanol as a "vital energy source…because of our dependency on foreign oil" and applauded ethanol's "greenhouse gas reduction efforts." McCain isn't alone--the current corn ethanol boom finds support from presidential candidates of both parties, along with members of Congress and President Bush. They argue that boosting ethanol production in the U.S. can help us overcome our addiction to foreign oil, while also reducing the nearly one million tons of carbon dioxide pumped out by our cars every day. The Senate Energy Bill passed in 2007 included a mandate to increase ethanol production to 36 billion gallons of ethanol every year by 2022 and bills passed by both the House and Senate call for increased availability of E85 fuel. But make no mistake: while politicians talk up the promise of ethanol, researchers are calculating the costs, and ethanol is being proven to be a real loser among possible solutions that can help us gain energy independence while lessening our impact on the climate. Corn is the most pesticide-intensive food crop in the country, and most corn is fertilized with petroleum-derived nitrogen fertilizers, which pollute waterways and cause nitrogen-rich dead-zones in coastal areas. Furthermore, corn ethanol consumes a huge amount of energy in the production process, and reduces carbon emissions by a mere 10-15% over gasoline. When corn ethanol producers build new coal-fired power plants to meet their energy-intensive production needs, any emissions advantage corn ethanol has over gasoline disappears completely. Ultimately, corn ethanol can't help us solve the climate crisis. What's more, corn ethanol can do little to wean U.S. drivers off of foreign oil. While the 36 billion gallon mandate in the Energy Bill sounds like a lot of fuel, it's actually less than 20% of the fuel American drivers use each year. Even if all the corn planted this year were used for ethanol, it would satisfy only a small fraction of our annual fuel needs. And converting that amount of corn into fuel is unthinkable--U.S. corn accounts for 40% of the global corn market, and rising corn prices due to the huge demand for corn for ethanol are already affecting food prices at home and abroad. Corn ethanol isn't a national security solution, and could spark a food security crisis. While there is a lot of bad news about corn ethanol, there is good news on the horizon with the promise of plug-in electric hybrid vehicles (PHEVs). PHEVs are like hybrid cars on the market, but they have an increased battery capacity and can be recharged by plugging into a power source. This means the car could run on electricity alone for many miles--greatly reducing emissions, especially when plugged into a renewable electricity source like solar or wind. Even when charged on the current U.S. power grid, which includes electricity generated by carbon-emitting coal, PHEVs reduce emissions by about 40% over conventional cars. Better yet, we have the capacity right now to power over 70% of U.S. cars, trucks, vans, and SUVs today with electricity if we charge them at night, when the power grid is the least taxed. And renewable energy experts agree that the widespread use of plug-in cars would help kick-start the wind and solar industries, making them more cost-competitive with coal. Toyota and GM are both working on bringing plug-ins to the market, and the Energy Bills passed by the House and Senate last summer both call for tax and loan support for consumers who purchase them. While members of Congress are home for the summer, call your senators and representatives to tell them "No" on corn ethanol, and "Yes" on increased fuel economy and plug-in hybrids. And let carmakers know that you want your next car to plug-in, and that you'd prefer to see corn on your plate, not in your gas tank. For more info visit: The California Cars Initiative calcars.org Plug In America pluginamerica.org Who Killed the Electric Car? newyorkerfilms.com Plug In Partners - sign the petitition pluginpartners.com Reprinted with permission from www.coopamerica.org.  Natural Quit Smoking Program
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