Ethanol Pros and Cons

Ethanol is produced from domestically grown foods for livestock such as corn and switchgrass. The use of ethanol allegedly reduces the greenhouse effect.  Ethanol made of corn will reduce greenhouse gasses by 13% and ethanol made of switchgrass will reduce greenhouse gasses by 88%.. There are pros and cons regarding the manufacture and use of ethanol. The advantage of ethanol comes from the plants used to produce it. The plant absorbs CO2 and when the ethanol is used it puts CO2 back into the environment. This is good for the environment. However, what is not taken into consideration are the environmental contaminants that are also put back by the machinery that is used to produce the plants.

A disadvantage for the use of ethanol is the use of diesel machinery in farm production and coal powered machinery to distill the ethanol. The fumes from this machinery enter the atmosphere and produce greenhouse gasses. In that respect we would be back to square one. Some people believe that it takes more energy to make ethanol from corn  than would be saved as a motor fuel. On the other hand, ethanol made of corn has its byproducts such as corn oil. But, are there enough farms and farmers in this country to grow the plants needed to produce ethanol or will we have to outsource the production?

Continuing with ethanol pros and cons, the price of ethanol is also an issue. Ethanol can at times be either more expensive or less expensive than gasoline. It all depends on where you live and buy your ethanol.  For instance, most of the ethanol used today is done so in the Midwest where the cost can be thirty cents less than a gallon of gasoline. On the west coast, where it is not used as much, it can be as much as forty cents more than a gallon of  gasoline. Another con for the use of ethanol is that it does not go as far per mile as gasoline You may save money at the gas pump but you are losing money by having to refuel more often.

Ethanol pros and cons are mainly based on energy conservation and availability. We now have 180,000 gasoline stations in the United States but ethanol in large quantity is mainly sold in Minnesota and Illinois. In the eastern and the western states such as California, Florida and Texas there are fewer than one hundred ethanol equipped stations totally. Perhaps, if there were a greater need for ethanol and more availability throughout the country, the statistics would be different.

Whether we should use biofuel, of which ethanol is one, also enters into the picture of ethanol pros and cons.  If the consumer limited the use of fossil fuel he would be conserving energy and reducing dependency on such fossil fuel. Ethanol is a good replacement for gasoline but conservation is better for the atmosphere.  Which is better for the environment, conservation or dependency? You decide.