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Originally Posted by Baraka_Guru
Fair enough, but I would rather use sources such as switchgrass and waste vegetable oil. They exist in abundance and could even be increased greatly. All that is left to do is find an efficient means of producing a usable fuel and distributing it. I would like to see solar power make its way into the equation as well.
Extra funding for research and development will eventually bring the prices down. It would create jobs too.
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This quote from an article in today's issue of USA TODAY titled Moviegoers eyes could pop at the price of popcorn:
http://www.usatoday.com/money/indust...n-prices_N.htm
"Increased popcorn costs. Higher oil prices have increased popcorn farmers' costs, such as for fertilizer and fuel.
And then there's the ethanol factor. Demand for field corn, used for animal feed, products such as high-fructose corn syrup and, increasingly, ethanol, has caused its price to explode. That's caused some farmers to shift from popcorn to easier-to-grow field corn, cutting supply and pushing its price higher, too."
I agree that using those other sources for biofuel would be a better idea but no one is going to have an incentive to invest while reaping the benefits from corn. Also, anything we grow still requires lots of carbon to produce. I suspect you'll see a lot of trees cut to make way for other fuel crops, like was done with palm oil, which also hurts the carbon issue since we'll be cutting down even more of nature's carbon filtration system.
I also heartily agree with solar power along with wind and nuke plants. We are so far behind the Europeans!!! I have a nephew just graduating with a degree in nuclear engineering who is having to go to France to complete an internship!!