Argument: Ethanol energy involves a net loss of energy

Support

• “Ethanol fuel from corn faulted as ‘unsustainable subsidized food burning’ in analysis by Cornell scientist”. Cornell News. August 6, 2001 — “Neither increases in government subsidies to corn-based ethanol fuel nor hikes in the price of petroleum can overcome what one Cornell University agricultural scientist calls a fundamental input-yield problem: It takes more energy to make ethanol from grain than the combustion of ethanol produces.”
• “Energy and Dollar Costs of Ethanol Production with Corn”. David Pimentel. April 1998 – “Ethanol does not provide energy security for the future. It is not a renewable energy source, is costly in terms of production and subsidies, and its production causes serious environmental degradation.”
• David Pimentel1. “Ethanol Fuels: Energy Balance, Economics, and Environmental Impacts are Negative”. Natural Resources Research. 2003 – …”In the U.S. ethanol system, considerably more energy, including high-grade fossil fuel, is required to produce ethanol than is available in the energyethanol output. Specifically about 29% more energy is used to produce a gallon of ethanol than the energy in a gallon of ethanol.”