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The Corn Ethanol Myth (9/26/2007)In the search of alternative fuels, to reduce our dependency on foreign oil, many new products have been gaining a great amount of media coverage. Corn ethanol is certainly one of these products that many of you have heard about. While we applaud the efforts and great strides that have been made in bio-fuels the ‘push’ for corn ethanol is misplaced.
Corn ethanol is made by refining corn into a fuel that can be blended with gasoline to help displace the amount of actual gasoline used in today’s automobiles. While the actual corn ethanol burns cleaner than fossil fuels the reality is that it will never be a viable alternative fuel source for the auto industry. The process of converting corn into a fuel still uses fossil fuels in the process and when it is fully converted the yield is only around a 25% gain over using the fossil fuel alone. The actual fuel mileage of the automobile that uses corn ethanol is actually reduced when compared its fossil fuel counter-part and without government subsidization in the various steps of process, the cost of the corn ethanol would be over $3 a gallon.
Other impacts not mentioned in any media campaign or in the 25% gain are the large quantities of water, fertilizer and pesticides that is required to grow the corn. The water of course depletes our most precious resource and the fertilizer and pesticides pollute that very resource we need. The production of corn ethanol also impacts our food system as well.
Corn is used as feed for livestock and used for grain exports to developing countries poor people who can not afford anything else. With a reduction in corn production for food we will see increased food prices not to mention the reduction of food aid to those countries.
At the current production rate, corn ethanol uses about 18% of all the U.S. corn for ethanol production and has reduced U.S. petroleum usage by almost 1%.
Even if all the corn produced was devoted to ethanol usage it would only impact our petroleum usage by less than 12% and dramatically increase food prices. It would take about 97% of the United States land area to produce enough corn ethanol to power all of the automobiles in the U.S. on 100% corn ethanol.
While it is a great start to reduce our dependence, other avenues and products should be more closely looked at and developed while making a stronger push for fuel use reduction. The over $1 billion used to subsidize the corn ethanol industry could be put to greater use in renewable energy rebates for homes, more fuel efficient vehicles, bio-diesels or increased renewable energy development such as wind, tidal and solar power.
Tags: corn ethanol, auto, alternative fuels, tidal, solar, wind, petroleum
Free Oil for February (9/7/2007)Well not exactly free oil but with some change we could save as much oil as the United States uses in all of the month of February, excluding leap year of course.
As many of you know plastic shopping bags have proliferated our society as a whole, worldwide. While these bags do offer convenience and low cost not only to the customer but the store as well, not to mention free advertisement the store gets, they take a high toll on our environment. Often times you will find these bags littering our streets, waterways, oceans and parks. While steps have been taken to try to recycle the bags, which are costly and difficult, it has made very little impact on the 4 to 5 trillion bags produced each year, worldwide, at a cost of 40 billion gallons of oil per year to produce. With the United States consuming around 20 million barrels of oil a day the oil savings alone would equate to about 24 days worth of oil for the US. That’s almost the whole month of February. Many arguments are made for the multiple uses of them, the low cost of use and how small a space these bags actually take in the landfill. It’s a good thing they take a small space because it takes an unbelievable average of 300 years to photo –degrade and during the breakdown process toxic chemicals are released that contaminates the soil and watershed. The bags also have the potential to break into small pieces which are easily consumed by not only wild life and live stock, easily entering the food chain, but by small children as well. They float around our oceans killing off thousands of whales, turtles and other sea life every year around the world.
We can all do our part and help reduce the environmental impact of these bags. By simply shopping with re-useable cotton bags you can make a difference. These fashionable cotton bags are biodegradable, washable, have multiple uses and are a great conversation starter.
“You must be the change you want to see in the world” Ghandi
Tags: free oil, february, energy, green, efficiency
Programmable Thermostat (7/18/2007)Using a programmable thermostat can help reduce energy usage. By programming the thermostat to automatically raise and lower temperatures at key times of the day will reduce the amount of time your air conditioner will operate. The thermostat can be set to raise the temperature when the home is empty for long periods of time (a typical workday) and then begin cooling the home back down to the desired temperature before returning home.
Most programmable thermostats have four temperature set points a day. Using the set points would allow a home owner to raise or lower the temperature four different times a day, seven days a week. A typical program consists of the temperature changing in the morning, afternoon, evening and then at night or bed time. Because programmable thermostats are digital they are more accurate than the mercury filled ones that millions of homes still use today. Many homeowners find that using a digital thermostat causes the air conditioner to run less while maintaining the desired comfort level in the home.
Tags: thermostat, programmable, efficiency, energy saving,
User - Friendly Clothes Washer Shutoff Valves (7/17/2007)One of the most common claims for insurance industry is washing machine failure. Often times the non-steel braided rubber hose used to connect the washer machine to the valves will fail causing flooding in the home and high water usage. Typical shutoff valves usually require multiple turns of a handle and are not always easily reached. Using a shutoff valve that only requires a 90° turn are much easier to use and when located in a inconvenient location can be accessed with a reaching tool. To help minimize the chances for a hose failure, steel braided hoses should be used, as they help reduce hose swelling. Valves should also be shut off before extended periods of non-use (vacations) and preferably after each use of the washer.
Tags: washing, efficiency, user friendly, convenient, green, environment
Radiant Barrier (7/2/2007)In our search of ways to reduce energy consumption we decided to start at the top, the roof. Using a radiant barrier roof sheathing helps decrease the amount of energy required to cool and heat a home and helps to contribute to a healthier home. Radiant barrier is a reflective material that is installed in the attic. It helps to minimize the heat gain during the summer and minimize the heat loss during the winter.
By minimizing the amount of heat gain in the attic we reduce the amount of work the air conditioner must do to maintain a comfortable indoor air temperature. Because we use radiant barrier roof sheathing instead of the traditional radiant barrier that is stapled up, we minimize the chances of a barrier failure such as tearing or falling down and we maximize the up to 20% average monthly energy cost savings.
Tags: radiant, barrier, energy, heat, green, cool home
Invasive Exotic Tree and Plant Species (6/26/2007)Natural species and plants are crucial to our local environment. They have the ability to with stand the long seasons of drought with little or no watering which helps preserve our precious drinking water supply. Often exotic invasive plants are found on home sites and must be eliminated. These plants usually require more watering than a native plant, crowd out native species and can even be dangerous to our safety and environment. They can contribute to beach erosion, decreased wildlife nesting, displacement of wildlife, respiratory irritation and large trees can lose braches or even topple over in high winds.
Tags: plants, green, invasive, home sites, problems
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