Right now there is a wave of "greeness" sweeping the world. Everyone wants to be green... We want to out-green the Jones so to speak. 
But, is there a downside to this greening?
Unfortunately, there is. Actually, there are several. I may have to write several posts to debunk a variety of green myths... but I'll start with bio-fuel... specifically corn ethanol.
Before we get started, there is one thing I want to make VERY clear. I am not against environmental responsibility. In fact, unlike many "greens", I spend my time out in the wilds. I love being able to show my son the beauty of the world, and I want to see it preserved.
So, on to the show...
Food as fuel is usually a bad idea, but in the case of corn it is a very bad idea. The reasons range from practical to economic. On the practical side, there just isn't enough arable land to grow enough corn to replace a significant portion of gasoline. In 2006, ethanol provided enough fuel to allow 1.5% oil independence. Since then, the price of corn has doubled. Not only does this make corn less attractive as a fuel substitute, but it has raised feed costs for chicken and cattle, as well as raising the cost of corn based food for human consumption... all while only making barely a dent in oil use.
In fact, researchers at UC Berkely think that it takes six units of energy to make one unit of corn energy. Remember, that the energy from corn isn't without cost. It takes energy to plant, harvest and convert, in addition to the cost of transportation. And, it doesn't produce as much energy for its mass as oil. Basically, what it comes down to is that the researchers from UCB think it takes six times as much energy to make power from corn as the corn provides.
Imagine that you needed to drink a glass of water every hour. But, you didn't want to directly drink it, so you devised a contraption to deliver it... but you had to put six glasses of water into it in order to get the one glass out that you need. That is what corn ethanol does.
On a slightly different note, in 1996, when I drove my Jeep up to MN to visit my Dad, I carefully tracked my mileage. (ok, I always carefully tracked my mileage). Around Atlanta, I averaged about 15 mpg. On the long highway trip, I averaged about 17 mpg. I had to fill up while in MN. Mileage dropped to 12. Even on the drive south to MO, I could only bring it up to 13. I later found out that MN increased the ethanol content of the gasoline in order to reduce greenhouse gases. Many locales around the country do this at different times of the year. As I read the article, I saw that they expected to reduce the GG emissions by 15% per gallon of fuel burned. But, I had a 30% increase in fuel burned. Do politicians not have calculators? They actually increased the emissions per mile driven.
But, there is a HUGE corn lobby in DC. The Federal Government paid out $2.6B to blenders, and another $900M to farmers as subsidies... while the price was rising. Companies like GM, instead of spending money building more hybrids and furthering the hydrogen power agenda, they spent money refining more of their products to run E85... which isn't economically viable. GM isn't alone. Ford is right there with them.
But, the Green Lobby is demanding it. And the Corn Lobby is thrilled. Consumers think they are protecting the environment by getting a flex fuel Suburban... or Focus.
Ok, Lane... have you've trashed enough people now... solutions?
Right now, I can tell you one solution that could be implemented as close to immediately as car design allows. Diesel-Hybrid. Look at some of the non-hybrid diesels out there, like the Jetta. They are getting almost the same fuel mileage as hybrids. And, they are NOT producing more pollution. They are extremely popular in Europe, but in the US, diesels can't seem to get a break from consumers.
Add hybrid technology to the mix and we will see numbers that are exciting. In the city, the Escape Hybrid gets 50% better mileage than the non-hybrid. Can you imagine a car the size of a Jetta getting 75 mpg? What about something the size of a Taurus getting 50 mpg?
I know that this isn't directly related to real estate, but there is one thing that is. Much of the "green technology" that is being touted doesn't produce the promised result. And, as with most things, there are unintended consequences.
Lane Bailey - REALTOR & Car Guy
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Lane - I agree on the ethanol issue - it just was not thought out very well - .There are certainly a number of improvements that can be made to the efficiency of vehicles. My daughter's new car gets 35 miles per gallon and is a decent size and has exceeded many safety standards.
I like the windpower and solar (although not great for MN) energy sources. All the water in the warmer states could be heated by the sun and used heated or draw off that heat for other purposes. There is much to yet be explored but we know Ethanol isn't one.