The information about bio-fuels that is being presented to the population is
somewhat misleading. People need to understand that they need to change
their driving habits that they cannot continue to consume the amount of
energy, which is being used, by the automobiles. Although there are
promising developments, of small-scale, local, sustainable biofuel companies
, who use by products that are actually recycled from other uses. These
efforts are diminished by the profit hungry corporations who are jumping
into the market, in large-scaled biofuels construction and expansion
plans., only ti increase profits. The agribusiness and oil companies are
racing to exploit the biofuels market, and are counting on the consumers'
continued belief in the simple myth of the biofuels solution.
Biofuels are said to be green because they release fewer GHGs than fossil
fuels when burned. The little amount of emissions saved is lost when you
consider the whole process. The cheaper types of bio-fuel crops need massive
spaces to grow, causing deforestation, burning, and peat drainage in large
areas, to make way for the fields to grow these cheaper products, as well as
using huge amounts of chemicals in the growing process. It also takes huge
amounts of energy in the refining process. So adding up all the minus
points, the marketing of green bio-fuel literally goes up in smoke, and
reaches to the very bottom of your pocket book.
The Amazon rainforest, the Cerrado (a forest-savanna biodiversity in
Brazil) and the rainforests of Southeast Asia are being targeted for bio
fuel plantations, because of the suitable growing seasons. These expanding
fuel crops are materializing at an alarming rate, destroying biodiverse ecosystems.
Plantation workers face abuse, harsh working conditions, and exposure to
toxic pesticides these people are nothing more than modern-day slaves, and
at the mercy of the corporations who are willing to do anything to make a
huge profit off the bio- fuel craze. Even taking away Indigenous peoples'
land rights and displacing these simple people to make way for more
plantations.
Oil and agribusiness companies are rapidly consolidating control over the
entire biofuel sector. The market power of these corporations is staggering:
Cargill and ADM control 65 percent of the global grain trade, we are again
at the mercy of world wide corporate power. While people want cheap gas, and
corn is a major product for bio-fuel, have you considered the price increase
of food, is this new idea going to bring gas prices down a few cents per
gallon while raising the price of groceries to a record high, affecting the
poor people around the world, to the point of starvation.
We as a society do not have to allow the corporate greed to over take the
green energy cause, we can implore our car manufactures to build cars
immediately, that get superb gas mileage. Require all new homes that are
built to use modern technology in being green, require all light bulb
companies only to sell energy efficient bulbs, recycle all glass, do away
with all plastic milk jugs, pop bottles, and cut the amount of packaging
used on all products to name a few.
We all need to do our part in reducing the amount of energy used through out
the world, if each one of us changes a few minor things in our normal
everyday activities we all a group can and will make a huge difference in the
amount of energy that is consumed through out the United States and the
world.
All corporations should be made by our government to update all machinery to
the most efficient way possible, we don't need to give the corporations
20-30 years to start or complete this process DEMAND that they start right
away, revamping their business, and it must be done with in the next 7-10
years or even less.
If we do not make a honest attempt to change the way we are depleting our
natural resources and do it fast, there may not be a planet to care about.