Even France Thinks Ethanol is Dumb
France is dumping tax credits for ethanol production:
The French government said on Friday it will phase out tax breaks for biofuels by 2012, arguing that higher oil and grain prices have removed the need for fiscal support.
I’ve got no beef with ethanol when it’s funded by the private sector. Brazil is able to manufacture alcohol from sugar cane. Good for them. Algae-to-ethanol piques my interest (algae feeds on CO2) as does methane-filled biomass. And it’s great that a few car enthusiasts are able to fill their tanks with used french fry grease.
But corn-based ethanol is a loser. It’s a loser for the green movement. It’s a loser for taxpayers.
Producing ethanol from corn requires a large amount of fossil fuel. It’s not clean. It’s shown little economic potential outside of a heavily-subsidized business model. Worse yet, it is not a smart exit strategy from our dependence on foreign oil, creating more problems than it solves: higher food prices*, increased deforestation, and further malnourishment of topsoil.
* Yes, I’m aware of the recent UN report refuting the World Bank’s earlier claims about the ethanol/food price link, but mass production of corn-to-ethanol on a grand scale would certainly drive the price of food through the roof.
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