Corn Better Used as Food Not Biofuel
The question of whether corn is better used as food or as biofuel has persisted since ethanol came into use. Now, for the first time, researchers have quantified and compared these issues in terms of the economics of the entire production system to determine if the benefits of biofuel corn outweigh the costs.
Credit: Praveen Kumar
Scientists Praveen Kumar and Meredith Richardson of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign published their findings this week in the American Geophysical Union journal Earth’s Future.
The results show that using biofuel corn doesn’t completely offset the environmental effects of producing that corn.
As part of a National Science Foundation (NSF) project to study the environmental effects of agriculture in the U.S., the Illinois researchers obtained a comprehensive view of agricultural ecosystems to analyze crops’ effects on the environment in monetary terms.
The research was conducted as part of NSF’s Intensively Managed Landscapes Critical Zone Observatory (CZO), one of a network of nine NSF CZOs across the country.
“The critical zone, where we focused our work, is the permeable layer of the landscape near the surface that stretches from the top of the tree canopy down to groundwater,” Kumar said. “The human energy and resource input involved in agriculture production alters the composition of this critical zone, which we were able to convert into a social cost.”
Added Richard Yuretich, NSF CZO program director, “using corn as a fuel source seems to be an easy path to renewable energy. However, this research shows that the environmental costs are much greater, and the benefits fewer, than using corn for food.”
Credit: NSF
The researchers took several steps to compare the energy efficiency and environmental effects of corn production and processing for food and for biofuel. They inventoried the required resources, then determined the economic and environmental effects of using those resources — defined in terms of energy available and expended, and normalized to cost in U.S. dollars.
“There are a lot of abstract concepts to contend with when discussing human-induced effects in the critical zone in agricultural areas,” Richardson said. “We want to present them in a way that shows the equivalent dollar value of the human energy used in agricultural production, and how much we gain when corn is used as food versus biofuel.”
Kumar and Richardson accounted for numerous factors in their analysis, including the energy required to prepare and maintain the landscape for agricultural production for corn and its conversion to biofuel.
The scientists quantified the environmental effects in terms of critical zone services, including impacts on the atmosphere and on water quality, and looked at corn’s societal value both as food and fuel.
“One of the key factors lies in the soil,” Richardson said. The assessment considered both short-term and long-term soil effects, such as on nutrients and carbon storage.
“We found that most of the environmental effects came from soil nutrients,” said Richardson. “Soil’s role is often overlooked in this type of assessment, and viewing the landscape as a critical zone forces us to include that.”
Cheryl Dybas, NSF
Lois Yoksoulian, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Source: http://www.ineffableisland.com/2017/06/corn-better-used-as-food-not-biofuel.html
Anyone can join.
Anyone can contribute.
Anyone can become informed about their world.
"United We Stand" Click Here To Create Your Personal Citizen Journalist Account Today, Be Sure To Invite Your Friends.
Humic & Fulvic Liquid Trace Mineral Complex
HerbAnomic’s Humic and Fulvic Liquid Trace Mineral Complex is a revolutionary New Humic and Fulvic Acid Complex designed to support your body at the cellular level. Our product has been thoroughly tested by an ISO/IEC Certified Lab for toxins and Heavy metals as well as for trace mineral content. We KNOW we have NO lead, arsenic, mercury, aluminum etc. in our Formula. This Humic & Fulvic Liquid Trace Mineral complex has high trace levels of naturally occurring Humic and Fulvic Acids as well as high trace levels of Zinc, Iron, Magnesium, Molybdenum, Potassium and more. There is a wide range of up to 70 trace minerals which occur naturally in our Complex at varying levels. We Choose to list the 8 substances which occur in higher trace levels on our supplement panel. We don’t claim a high number of minerals as other Humic and Fulvic Supplements do and leave you to guess which elements you’ll be getting. Order Your Humic Fulvic for Your Family by Clicking on this Link , or the Banner Below.
Our Formula is an exceptional value compared to other Humic Fulvic Minerals because...
It’s OXYGENATED
It Always Tests at 9.5+ pH
Preservative and Chemical Free
Allergen Free
Comes From a Pure, Unpolluted, Organic Source
Is an Excellent Source for Trace Minerals
Is From Whole, Prehisoric Plant Based Origin Material With Ionic Minerals and Constituents
Highly Conductive/Full of Extra Electrons
Is a Full Spectrum Complex
Our Humic and Fulvic Liquid Trace Mineral Complex has Minerals, Amino Acids, Poly Electrolytes, Phytochemicals, Polyphenols, Bioflavonoids and Trace Vitamins included with the Humic and Fulvic Acid. Our Source material is high in these constituents, where other manufacturers use inferior materials.
Try Our Humic and Fulvic Liquid Trace Mineral Complex today. Order Yours Today by Following This Link.
I will not eat Franken corn or, corn grown on soil poisoned by Monsanto. Guilty farmers might as well keep their crop in the energy market.