Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
12
Public Policies, Economics,
Public Perceptions, and the
Future of Bioenergy Crops
Barry D. Solomon
Michigan Technological University
Nicholas H. Johnson
Pennsylvania State University
contents
12.1 Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 285
12.2 Government Policies ........................................................................................................... 287
12.2.1 United States ......................................................................................................... 287
12.2.2 European Union .................................................................................................... 288
12.2.3 Elsewhere .............................................................................................................. 289
12.3 Economics........................................................................................................................... 290
12.3.1 United States ......................................................................................................... 290
12.3.2 European Union .................................................................................................... 292
12.3.3 Brazil .................................................................................................................... 292
12.4 Public Perceptions: Results of an Opinion Survey in the Upper Midwestern United
States ................................................................................................................................... 293
12.4.1 Previous Research ................................................................................................ 293
12.4.2 Methodology ......................................................................................................... 294
12.4.3 Results .................................................................................................................. 294
12.5 The Future .......................................................................................................................... 296
References ...................................................................................................................................... 297
12.1 IntroductIon
Over the past decade, a renewed interest in biofuels has arisen as concerns about energy security,
fuel prices, and the adverse impacts of global climate change have grown. Government support has
been especially strong for biofuel programs in the US, European Union (EU), and Brazil, although
not without controversy. Environmental groups are concerned about possible deforestation from an
increase in cropland, and concerns have arisen over the use of food-crops for fuel instead of food.
Crops have been used to make synthetic fuels for many years. For instance, engines were devel-
oped in the 1800s by designers such as Henry Ford and Nicholas Otto that used grain ethanol as
fuel, and the 1908 Model T had an adjustable carburetor that could use alcohol, gasoline, or a blend
of the two (Solomon et al. 2009). Rudolph Diesel, the inventor of the diesel engine, used peanut oil
in an engine (Shay 1993). In 1919, the British government experimented with using Jerusalem arti-
chokes to produce fuel alcohol because of an oil shortage, and near the end of World War II Japan
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