Are biofuels just as harmful as fossil fuels?

Right now, there is a bit of a conundrum in biofuel investing. Popular biofuels like ethanol that comes from corn are causing a great deal of trouble in terms of environmentally friendly investing. Why? Because recent studies are showing that producing biofuels can actually cause more harm to the environment than good. There are two main problems plaguing biofuel production right now on the level of environmental friendliness: land use, refining and production.

In terms of land use: If US farmers and Big Ag concerns like Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM) concentrate only on corn for ethanol, then the soybeans they usually rotate in have to be grown somewhere else. This means that land has to be cleared somewhere (right now Brazil is the place -- deforesting the Amazon) to grow the soybeans no longer grown here. Crops planted to provide biofuels absorb less carbon than rainforests and natural scrubland. This is a problem becoming rather apparent in Indonesia as land is cleared for palm oil plantations.


These concerns are becoming more acute with the rapid rise of both food and fuel prices, she said. The issue is especially touchy for farmers who might for the first time be realizing significant profits on their crops, but it also is a serious concern for motorists.

"I've heard about people getting their gas tanks siphoned, and I hadn't heard of that since the '70s," she said.

A difficulty, Groom said, is that while escalating prices add pressure to find less costly fuel sources, acting too hastily could create a host of other problems. For example, farmers who plant only corn because it is suddenly profitable, and don't rotate with crops such as soybeans, are likely to greatly deplete their soil, which could limit crop growth and promote soil erosion.

Also, some plants are better than others for absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, while others perhaps need more cultivation, which requires more fossil fuel for farm equipment. In addition, fertilization, watering and harvesting all require energy.

The study took about a year to conduct and is a synthesis of peer-reviewed research published in a various journals. The scientists examined the literature looking for indicators of biofuels that are more sustainable and carry a smaller ecological footprint, then used that information to derive the policy recommendations.