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Friday, June 15, 2012

Dead Zones and Bio-fuel


Bio-fuel, a great alternative to petrol based fuels, is unfortunately contributing to the Gulf Deadzone. In an interesting article found on gulfhypoxia.net I learned that the incentives for ethanol (corn) based fuels and subsequent increase in farmland used for the corn is creating an influx of even more fertilizer to the Gulf.  Changes to the legislation must be considered if the fertilizer input is to decrease.

One proposed option is to forgo corn based fuel altogether instead opting for a cellulose ethonal.  This cellulose based ethanol has a more complex refining process however uses markedly less fertilizer and produces more net energy. 

Who knew that energy policies could have such an impact on Dead Zones?

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