Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Energy Security
According to the U.S. Department of Energy,
ethanol produced from cellulose can reduce
greenhouse gas emission by ninety percent, when
compared with gasoline. That is in comparison to
corn-based ethanol that decreases emissions by
only ten to twenty percent (ODA Measurement
Standards Division, n.d.). Cellulosic ethanol
contributes little to the greenhouse effect and
has five times better net energy balance than
corn-based ethanol. When cellulosic ethanol is
used as a fuel, it releases less sulfur and carbon
monoxide particulates. Cellulosic ethanol has the
potential to considerably reduce our consumption
of fossil fuel and the production of greenhouse
gases. Even though global warming is already a
problem, it may not be too late to curb the impact
(ODA Measurement Standards Division, n.d.).
Another report from the U.S. Environmental
Agency states that the increased use of alterna-
tive fuels can result in significant reductions in
the use of petroleum-based fuels. Their research
emphasizes the impacts of increased use of al-
ternative fuels on greenhouse gas emission by
accounting for the entire life cycle, which includes
fossil fuel extraction, production, and combustion
(Office of Transportation and Air Quality, 2007).
Their conclusion is that greenhouse gas emissions
can alter depending on each of the factors that
produced the gas. For example, when gasoline
is replaced by corn ethanol, the total life cycle
greenhouse gas emissions that are generated
from gasoline decrease by 21.8 percent. (These
include not only carbon dioxide but also methane
and nitrous oxides). Cellulosic ethanol, ethanol
made from cellulose feedstocks such as corn
stover and switchgrass, is the best alternative fuel
for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (Office of
Transportation and Air Quality, 2007).
Another advantage of generating ethanol from
cellulose is that it saves agricultural land. Com-
pared with corn ethanol, which requires crop lands
to grow corn, cellulose can be grown in all areas
of the world on many different types of marginal
land (Wikipedia, 2008a).
The U.S. government plans to strengthen Amer-
ica's energy security by using many different
strategies including:
•
Stepping up domestic oil production in en-
vironmentally sensitive ways.
•
Doubling the current capacity of the
Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
•
Diversifying America's energy supply
(White House Office of the Press Secretary,
2007b).
Stepping up Domestic Oil Production
in Environmentally Sensitive Ways
The U.S. government will continue support for
congressional action to allow environmentally
responsible oil and gas exploration in a small area
of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge located
in northern Alaska. They believe that it may be
possible to discover more than 1 million barrels
of oil per day which would also be a good natural
gas resource for the future (White House Office
of the Press Secretary, 2007b).
Doubling Current Capacity of the
Strategic Petroleum Reserve
According to information from the Department of
Energy, at present the strategic petroleum reserve
(SPR) is currently at around 691 million barrels
and, due to increasing consumption, it is predicted
that it represents only 55 days of net oil imports.
The U.S. government plans to double the current
capacity of the SPR to 1.5 billion barrels by 2027.
The SPR's purpose is to provide reserve oil for
emergency situations such as a natural disaster,
terrorist attack, or war (White House Office of the
Press Secretary, 2007a). Doubling the SPR alone
will provide approximately 97 days of net oil
import protection and enhance America's ability
to respond to potential oil disruptions.
