04/10/08 Rebutting Time

Rebutting Time. I'm Greg Martin with today's Line On Agriculture. Time magazine has the renewable industry up in arms over a recent cover article denouncing the ethanol industry and the backlash has been severe and swift. The April 7, 2008 issue featured the story "The Clean Energy Myth" by Michael Grunwald and there are dozens of people lined up on the other side of the corn field to take exception to the article. One of those people is Read Smith. A farmer from Eastern Washington and a member of the 25x'25 committee. SMITH: The same people aren't scribing anything about what would happen if we continue to burn fossil fuels for another 200 years. You don't see them saying anything about that or the fact that two-thirds of the oil reserves are in the Persian Gulf and look where we are there and they don't talk about that stuff. They just like  that's fine. That is what it is so let's talk about this other new stuff and run it down. This is not the first time that the renewable industry has come under fire, nor the last. Smith says the problem with most of these articles is the lack of complete information. SMITH: This guy may be well intentioned, Michael Grunwald but he did not research his article whatsoever. He used selective research. He chose to ignore anything that was counter to what appears to me a predetermined agenda. Smith says some of the statements made were just bizarre. SMITH: We've picked out 8 or 10 of the most bizarre claims that he made, one of his most damning quotes is when he is talking about corn ethanol and cellulosic ethanol and I'm quoting Michael right now; "Corn ethanol, always environmentally suspect, turn out to be environmentally disastrous. Even cellulosic ethanol made from switchgrass which has been promoted by eco-activists, eco-investors as well as President Bush as the fuel of the future looks less green than oil derived gasoline." Now I'm telling you, that is the most bizarre statement I have ever seen in my life. 25x"25 is putting together an institute of experts designed to look at claims from both sides. Unfortunately an article like this on the cover of a magazine like Time only puts the ethanol industry into damage control mode. SMITH: Really all we can do now is to take these statements that this guy made one-by-one and go to the leading experts in the country that can talk to the claim or the criticism that they made and render another opinion. To read more on this, visit their website at 25x25.org. That's today's Line On Agriculture. I'm Greg Martin on the Northwest Ag Information Network.