BIOFUELS -- A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE

Ben Doon: Biofuels developer

THIS BLOG POST WAS WRITTEN BY AN OLD GRAD SCHOOL BUDDY OF MINE, BEN DOON. BEN HAS BEEN WORKING ON BIOFUEL DEVELOPMENT FOR YEARS AND, SINCE ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION IS A MAJOR THEME OF "HOUSE ON FIRE," AND A MAJOR THREAT TO THE PLANET, WHY NOT BRING IN A GRASSROOTS EXPERT TO TELL US ABOUT A WAY WE CAN LITERALLY MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER, SAFER PLACE? THANKS, BEN, FOR WRITING THIS GREAT PIECE!


Introduction

Today, nearly all the fuel that powers our cars, trucks and aircraft comes from dirty, toxic petroleum oil. This oil, more than two-thirds of which is imported, also accounts for over one-third of our total carbon emissions.

Yet, in small towns and on family farms all across the country, a locally-based, decentralized renewable fuels movement has gained momentum and is reducing our dependence on foreign oil, creating new jobs and industries, and cutting the pollution that contributes to climate change.

One of these small towns is San Luis, Colorado, one of the most cash-poor places in the state, but with a long tradition of family farming. In the face of increasing oil prices, market volatility and a failing economy, local leaders have turned to community-scale renewable fuel production to create jobs, revive agriculture markets and mitigate their acute vulnerability to petroleum supply chains.

I work at the biodiesel facility in San Luis.

The biodiesel facility at San Luis, Colorado

What are "biofuels"?

Renewable fuels, or biofuels, are gasoline or diesel fuel substitutes made from organic matter such as crops, or other plant and animal material. There are two main types of biofuels: ethanol and biodiesel.

Ethanol, which is an alcohol, is made from sugars, or starches such as corn or sugar cane, and can be used only in gasoline engines and typically in small blends such as 10-15% ethanol. Gasoline engines need to be modified to use higher blends of ethanol. These are known as Flex-fuel vehicles.

Biodiesel is a diesel fuel substitute made from vegetable oil or animal fat and can only be used in diesel engines. Biodiesel can be used in any ratio from 1-100% without any engine modifications. The most common biodiesel crop is soybeans, but other oil seeds such as canola, sunflower and palm, or used restaurant grease, and animal fat, are also used.

Ethanol and biodiesel production processes are very different. Ethanol production is generally more energy intensive as it uses water to produce a grain mash that is then distilled for the alcohol.

Biodiesel production uses no water and is very conducive to small-scale production. Converting vegetable oil to biodiesel requires only three ingredients mixed together with heat and agitation.

Both production processes create not only fuel, but also an animal feed co-product. Ethanol production produces a feed called distillers grain which is a wet product that is only good for five days unless dried. Drying the product uses a large amount of natural gas for heat.

Vegetable oil for biodiesel is made when oil seeds are crushed. This process creates oil and a cake meal, which is all the remaining material of the seed once the oil is extracted. This cake meal is a high protein livestock feed which does not require drying and has a long shelf life.

The biodiesel facility in San Luis uses locally grown canola crops as its main feedstock for production. Canola is very high in oil -- 40-45% -- and grows well in cool, sunny climates. The yields from canola farmers in the San Luis area have produced 100-125 gallons of fuel per acre. This is more than double the yield from soybean crops as soybeans are typically only 18-22% oil. The facility also uses solar thermal to heat the canola oil for biodiesel production.

Solar panels being installed at the facility for a solar thermal project for biodiesel production.

Time for Change -- "a new energy economy"

It is obvious that it is time to move beyond oil to a world with sustainable alternatives to crude oil, such as biofuels and other renewable forms of energy, but ill-informed skeptics, haters and profiteers have misused information to further their own agendas and stall the advancement of a new energy economy.

Gross generalizations like "renewables can’t compete in the free market," "food versus fuel," and "biofuels do not reduce greenhouse gas emissions," have been debunked time and again, but these statements still impact opinion and policy.

The idea that conventional energy sources operate within the free market is pure myth. As we strive to develop alternatives to oil we must recognize that we are not competing on a level playing field. Massive multi-billion dollar oil subsidies are a serious obstacle to the development of cleaner, greener alternatives. Oil has a huge advantage as it's being financed by global taxpayers. U.S. producer subsidies reached $52 billion in 2009, while global subsidies amounted to $312 billion in 2009.


"Not all biofuels are created equal

It is also important to recognize that not all biofuels are created equal. Biofuel farming and production practices vary tremendously across the U.S. and around the world. Cutting down rainforests in tropical areas for palm oil plantations is problematic, yet a small farmer rotating a canola crop into an alfalfa field diversifies the farmer’s market options and produces fuel and feed, rather than just hay.

Corn-based ethanol is the number one biofuel produced in the U.S. and is a ready replacement for foreign oil, but the efficiency of turning corn to ethanol is less than ideal and the potential is limited. Currently, “second generation” ethanol technologies are being developed to extend the amount of biofuel that can be produced by using biomass consisting of the residual non-food parts of current crops, such as stems, leaves and husks that are left behind once the food crop has been extracted.

A locally grown canola crop

Energy and the Price of Food

Nevertheless, food price spikes will continue unless we make concerted efforts to develop alternatives to crude oil. Stopping biofuels crop production will not ease food prices. Oil prices have a disproportionate effect on the price of food. The USDA estimates that 33% of every dollar spent on food goes to energy related factors. Only cents on the dollar of every grocery bill goes back to the farmer. Because of oil’s influence over the cost of packaging, marketing and transportation, the greatest driver of grocery prices is oil. When oil prices go up, so do grocery bills.

Small, cottage industries using local raw materials for local use bring about balanced economic growth. Economic principles, which state that only big industry can be viable, are misleading. In fact, when sustainability, environmental and social costs are considered, cottage industries are much more viable. Agricultural processing and fuel production at the local level remove price inflation due to distribution, generate income locally and establish a sustainable employment source.


Conclusion

Over the years we have been lead to believe that only through economy of scale can cheaper goods be obtained. This has created our present highly concentrated structure where a small number of players determine the economics of our lives and a limited number of nations control our fuel supplies. Local biodiesel production offers an option to this scenario. The required inputs and know-how are there; it is now simply a matter of putting them to good use.


Ben Doon has been Project Manager for Costilla County Biodiesel since 2003. He has been living in San Luis, Colorado, a remote, rural town near the border of New Mexico since 1998. Ben received a Master of Arts from the English Department at Colorado University in 1998 and a Bachelor of Arts from Geneseo College in New York in 1993. He was born and raised on Long Island. When he’s not at work, Ben can usually be found skiing, hiking in the mountains with his three dogs, or listening to a Yankees game.


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