Ethanol is a Win-Win 1
Ethanol has it’s detractors. Some say that it drives up the price of food. Others say that it gums up engines. People on the ethanol side dispute these claims and say that it offers a huge opportunity to farmers and opens the door to energy independence. We had a long discussion with John Crockett, Senior Energy Specialist with the State of Idaho’s Office of Energy Resources.
(Crockett) Certainly ethanol has been demonized quite a bit. The National Grocer’s Association spent $17 million to bash ethanol and it’s been very effective. If you go out on the street, a lot of people think ethanol is a bad deal. There’s all sorts of things. They came out with the energy balance issue. They said it takes more energy. That’s not true and even if it was, it doesn’t matter. They came out with the food for fuel issue. We’ve been doing that for a long time. Up on the prairie we’ve been growing rapeseed and it’s a non-edible crop. And we’ve done that for a long time. We grow cotton, tobacco. We grow all sorts of crops that don’t go to food.
Crockett also says that bio-diesel and ethanol burn a lot cleaner which is good for our air, a big issue in the Treasure Valley, and that bio-fuels create jobs. He also notes that this technology releases us from dependence on foreign countries and their oil. That’s important in Idaho.
