The problems with ethanol

Various studies show that the CO2 abatement claimed for grain ethanol has been shown to be low or negative. Even compressed natural gas has greater CO2 abatement than grain ethanol.

While biodiesel burns cleaner than diesel, it has not been clearly demonstrated that ethanol has any advantage over petrol with regards to air quality. It is suggested by the Victorian Parliamentary Report that with the use of ethanol, carbon monoxide emissions are decreased but emissions of nitrous oxide and particulate matter are increased.

With increasing knowledge over the last five years the merits of grain ethanol have been diminished. Politicians from all parties are taking the head-in-sand approach in the face of these new facts and world debate, perhaps simply because it entails admitting they were wrong.

Public acceptance of ethanol appears weak. E10 would be easier to “sell” politically if we imported the more environmentally friendly sugar cane ethanol and avoided the baggage of a disastrous adventure attempting to convert up to one third of a poor NSW harvest into ethanol. The NSW mandate will add ethanol to all standard unleaded petrol. This will leave some people not happy with “taking food from a starving family to fuel a car”. Their only alternative will be to buy the more expensive premium grade which will not contain ethanol.

An established grain ethanol industry will be a hindrance to the development of the preferred cellulose ethanol. This industry will have no incentive to change to cellulose and in fact, if sited in the wrong location and faced with possible cheaper ethanol production they would actively campaign against it. Politicians, faced with compensation for encouraging the grain ethanol industry, will likewise have little incentive to get behind a cellulose ethanol industry.

Put another way, cellulose ethanol feedstock will probably be sourced between the tropics where there is greater photosynthetic activity. The grain ethanol industry now developing in temperate areas will not be advocates of this competition. This will be a very unfortunate as cellulose ethanol could be the real replacement for transport fossil fuel we are all hoping for. Australia is fortunate in having millions of acres undeveloped in our tropics which would be ideal for large scale cellulose ethanol production to supply both domestic and export markets.

I ask you, why are we supporting a mandated grain ethanol industry in NSW?