Ethanol not the Best Alternative According to Vice President Gore

It is a good idea to use any and all renewable energy sources available to counter the U.S.'s increasing reliance on fossil fuels from wind energy to biofuels.  However, it is not a good idea to use corn based ethanol, for example, given that it hurts the food supply and involves fossil fuel consumption in terms of being energy intensive. Former Vice President Al Gore who was once a champion of corn based ethanol has now come out and publicly stated "that his position on corn-based ethanol was 'a mistake.' One of the reasons why I made that mistake is that I paid particular attention to the farmers in my home state of Tennessee, and I had a certain fondness for the farmers in the state of Iowa because I was about to run for president."

As such, it is quite clear from Gore's statements that corn ethanol is quite popular because of a huge lobby in this country--big agriculture, which now can turn its attention to the growing demand in this country for alternatives to fossil fuel based energy. Politicians of all stripes, therefore, desire to find solutions to the U.S. dependence on oil, coal, and natural gas for energy needs and given the abundance of farmland in the mid-west and other parts of the U.S., it makes sense upon first glance to see if food can be used as an energy source. In the case of corn, however, Gore is absolutely right that his earlier position of advocating for huge subsidies for corn ethanol was a mistake. Hopefully, he won't be the only politician who says that advocating for subsidies for corn ethanol is a mistake.

The problems with corn-based ethanol are many and Gore should be commended for retracting his earlier support since this energy source "is among many crop based biofuels that encourage land-use changes—turning forests into farmland, for example—that are, on the whole, detrimental to both environment and climate." Thus, it is evident that corn-based ethanol is harmful or a variety of reasons such as environmental as well as the food versus fuel argument, whereby using corn for fuel increases food prices. Yet what keeps the corn ethanol industry thriving is of course subsidies from the Federal government and the huge associated lobby that is clearly taking advantage of the ever-growing demand in the U.S. for alternatives to fossil fuels. However, as Gore has come to learn and understand, corn based ethanol should not be something the government subsidizes. The government should subsidize renewable energy, but not sources like corn-based ethanol that hurt environmental quality and potentially the economic welfare of citizens who have to pay higher prices for food.

Photo Credit: wikipedia.org