Ethanol provides many benefits that regular gasoline doesn’t
The Tennessean
Drivers, boat owners and even home owners with lawn mowers are lining up to buy "100 percent gasoline, no ethanol" at several service stations ("Mechanics, drivers say pure gas beats blended fuels on performance, wear," Feb. 12). Or so we're told.
The news story that ballyhooed this trend didn't report how many customers at how many service stations are buying unblended gasoline. Or whether they demanded the product or simply filled up their tanks with what the service station offered. Or, more importantly, whether there's any more basis for preferring unblended gasoline than favoring unfluoridated water, unpasteurized milk or orange juice without additional vitamins.
At a time when the nation suffers from economic, environmental and energy security problems, the facts about biofuels such as ethanol are too urgent to ignore.
But, first, let's clear this up, once and for all: Ethanol is safe for cars, trucks, motorcycles, boats, lawnmowers and every other vehicle that runs on gasoline or diesel. Automakers approve the use of gasoline blends containing 10 percent or less of ethanol, and many motorists have been using the fuel without even realizing it.
In fact, ethanol passes the toughest test for any motor fuel. For the past three years, ethanol has been the official fuel of the most prestigious auto race in the United States: the Indianapolis 500. Ethanol's high-octane content allows cars to attain and sustain great speeds. Because of ethanol's higher compression ratio, the engines resist deterioration. If ethanol is good enough for the Indy 500, it sure is good enough for regular driving.
Having gotten these bugaboos out of the way, let's look at the advantages of biofuels such as ethanol. As economist John Urban-chuk concludes in his annual analysis, "The Economic Contribution of the Ethanol Industry to the Economy of the United States," the U.S. ethanol industry supports nearly 400,000 jobs in all sectors of the economy and generates about $15.9 billion in federal, state and local tax revenues. By buying corn and other farm products and locating its production facilities in small towns, the ethanol industry is an engine of economic growth in rural America at a time when the recession is costing many communities jobs, wages and tax revenues for local schools and other public services.
Meanwhile, American-made ethanol contributes to protecting the nation's energy security and our natural environment. Wouldn't you rather have our motor fuels come from the American Midwest and the South than from unfriendly or unstable governments in the Middle East and South America, such as Iran or Venezuela?
We should be expanding this fast-growing sector of our state's economy. Biofuels are a bright spot in a recession-racked economy. Here in Tennessee, shouldn't we be building, not badmouthing, an industry that promises to generate jobs, promote energy security, and protect our environment for years to come?
Jaime Dachelet is director of public relations for Eco-Energy, a Franklin company that markets, transports and distributes biofuels across North America.
