Background © P. P. Bhojvaid
Biofuels
A social - political perspective
Outline
• National politics
– Congress – State laws – Public attitudes
• International politics
– Global implementations – Third world exportation – Global economy
Congressional Biofuels Initiatives
• 2002 Farm Bill, Title 9
– Funding for biofuel testing ($1 million)
– Grants for biorefineries – Funding for biofuel education ($1 million/year)
Congressional Biofuels Initiatives
• Energy Policy Act of 2005
– Mentioned in 2007 State of the Union address – R&D program for bioenergy (Section 932) – Production incentives for cellulosic biofuels (Section 942) – Tax credits for alternative fuel vehicles, alternative fueling stations, etc (Section 1341-8) – Renewable fuels standard in gasoline (Section 1501)
Congressional Biofuels Initiatives
• Advanced Energy Initiative of 2006
– Funds research, development, demonstration, and commercial application of advanced energy technologies.
Congressional Biofuels Initiatives
• Bills introduced in „07, as of October 19:
– 47 “alcohol as fuel” bills (23 in January)
• 4 passed house • 1 passed house and senate
– 55 “biomass energy” bills
• 6 passed either house or senate
– 24 “cellulosic biofuel” bills
• 3 passed house
– 3 “algae” bills
• 1 passed house
State Biofuels Initiatives
• California (180 incentives and laws)
– Lower emission school bus grants – Alternative fuel vehicle parking incentives – Biodiesel blend use requirement (20% by end of 2007)
• Washington (95 incentives and laws)
• New York (94 incentives and laws)
State Biofuels Initiatives
• Only Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands have no alternative fuel laws or incentives • Average of 42 laws and incentives per state, standard deviation of 29
Public Attitudes
• Familiarity
– 91% familiarity with alternative fuel sources
– 2% have driven a vehicle that runs on alternative fuel – 46% of pollers on an alternative energy website were aware of algae biofuel
Public Attitudes
• Support
– 82% favor government support for R&D
– 69% think government doesn‟t do enough to support biofuel production – 29% would use American-made biofuel even if it cost slightly more than conventional gasoline
Public Attitudes
• Reasons to use biofuel
– 81% to make America less dependent on foreign oil – 73% to reduce gasoline prices
– 68% to create jobs in rural areas
Public Attitudes
• Reasons to not use biofuel
– High vehicle cost – Perception that vehicles have a limited driving range
• Alternatives
– Conservation – Stricter emissions standards
International Policy
• We can model our biofuels policy on what other countries have done • Developing countries are beginning to see biofuel as an attractive export commodity
Brazil‟s biofuel implementation
• More than half of all vehicles in Brazil are flexfuel • 8 in 10 new cars are flex-fuel • All gasoline contains 20% - 25% ethanol
• 2900 ethanol (blend) filling stations nationwide (compare to 600 in US) • Directly provided 700,000 new jobs in 2004 (plus 3,500,000 indirect jobs)
Brazil‟s biofuel implementation
• What can we learn?
– Use highly efficient crops like sugar cane (or Miscanthus giganteus) to avoid overfarming – Brazil has become less dependent on strategic, political, and economic decisions of oil-rich countries by cutting imports
Third world exportation
• Countries that will soon begin exporting biofuels to the United States
– Malaysia
– Thailand
– Uruguay – Ghana
Third world exportation
Projected annual production potential by country
Third world exportation
Projected annual production cost by country
Global Economy
• American subsidies are bad for growing global economy
– International farmers cannot compete with American farmers backed by American taxpayers – Increased world poverty
• Oil and gasoline are also devastating for global economy
– Unhealthy reliance on importation for a growing third world country
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