by Michael Smith
I must say the whole issue of biofuel, biodiesel, and such like is beginning to get on my nerves for we are not making things one iota better if we keep burning this or that other fuel in the infernal combustion engines of our cars and trucks, not one little one. It is still releasing pollution, including CO2 and other such gases, into the air and the atmosphere in the end.
In addition to that those fuels are, predominately, made from this or that food crop or, of they are not than they use land that could be and should be used for the production of food.
We must find other ways of transportation and we must get away from the infernal combustion engine, unless we get back to the fuel the car was supposed to be run on, namely methane gas. That's right, sewer gas.
On the other hand we must find a cleaner way of getting about, aside from, I mean, walking and cycling and using horses and buggy. Not that there is anything wrong with those methods of transportation, none whatsoever in fact.
When it comes to so-called biofuels I do not care whether this is ethanol or biodiesel; both still pollute and, according to some studies, they in fact are worse than the oil-based fuels that they are meant to replace. They are not as green as the credentials that are often given them. We don't even want to talk about as to whether they are ethically pure.
If it is just the fact that we are running out of oil, the so-called black gold, and wish to replace it with something that can be grown rather then that is one thing. But this is not the way that we should approach this. We must use the opportunity of peak oil to find new ways of powering cars and trucks and the methods, it would appear, are there already and have, in fact, been thus for decades if not longer even. The only problem was and still is that the oil lobby is stopping the proper development of those.
According to what I have read and therefore understand good old Henry Ford designed the Model T not for oil-based fuels but for methane, originally, in the same was as the first electricity generating plants were designed to be run on the same gas.
However, oil became plentiful and therefor cheap cheap and thus the switch was made too run cars and trucks and oil-based fuels such as diesel and gasoline. The lobby is still strong and is now going over to other oils for the manufacture of fuels with which to power the motor vehicles. They have the refineries and all they look at doing is to change the setup, so at least it appears to me. They just switch to the new kind of oil and other substances which to turn into fuel for the ICE. The same lobby will control the biofuels, of that we can be sure, and this may just mean that other kinds of propulsion is being suppressed yet again.
As far as biofuels, whether ethanol from sugarcane or other crops, or biodiesel from palm oil (oh dear) or other plants, are concerned all I am seeing is trouble ahead and this because not only is the world running out of the Black Gold, the oil, but we are also running short of food and of land on which to grow the same. But the biofuel industry is advocating the growing of crops, including food crops, for the making of biofuels, as in the case of maize (corn, for our Transatlantic cousins). This just does NOT compute. Food must be the priority and water; both of which are being sacrificed in the rush to keep the ICEs going.
A thorough rethink is required as to how we wish to transport things about and ourselves and while cars and trucks will still be needed we must find another means of propulsion. Electric cars is one answer and electric motorbikes, scooters and such and delivery vans. When is comes to the 18-wheelers then we may have to look at the use of methane in internal combustion engines, as I do not think that there are – at least not as yet – electrical motors powerful enough to shift the likes of tonnages that they carry.
Nautical transportation – to a great degree – maybe – could go back under sail and with today's modern technology it should be quite easy to do just that. We may have to look at another way of packing the cargo though as containers on deck might not work.
We have the technology to get away from the ICE – at least to the greatest extent – and get about with clean vehicles. Biofuels are not the answer, at least as far as what I can see, as the production of same could cause many hundreds of thousands if not millions to suffer serious hunger around the world and even in our own countries of the developed world. Food must be the priority not fuel for cars.
I rest my case.
© M Smith (Veshengro), February 2009
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Biofuels, biofuels and biofuels again
