Biodiesel Awareness

 The future is in danger for the earth and all of those living on it. The temperatures around the world are rising at an alarming rate. The environment is being destroyed. At this time gasoline prices are also a concern for many Americans as it seems that they are continually rising. To help the cut gas prices and emissions switching to Biodiesel fuel is necessary. Biodiesel fuel is a better fuel choice over fossil fuels and it will help to better the earth’s deteriorating environment and economy, therefore the government should provide incentives to people and private companies to invest in the production of biodiesel fuels.

Fossil fuels costs to the environment and people’s wallets are tremendous. Fossil fuels cause great damage to the environment because of the harmful toxins emitted when burned. “Burning gasoline produces carbon dioxide, a major green house gas. Scientists know with virtual certainty that increasing greenhouse gas concentrations tend to warm the planet” (EIA Energy Kids). Global warming is a major concern as it is ruining different ecosystems over the earth. The polar ice caps are melting away leaving the homes of many polar animals floating in the ocean. The ocean is also rising as a result of the melting ice due to the increased temperatures. Most of the current coast line will soon be flooded with water. Most of this occurs because of the green house gasses released when fossil fuels are burned. “Burning diesel produces air pollutants such as carbon monoxide, hydrocarbons, and particulates” (EIA Energy Kids).  The transportation of fossil fuels also uses fuel to power the trucks and ships which gives off the harmful toxins. The harmful emissions of fossil fuels are a major concern for not only Americans or people, but all life inhabiting earth. One way to solve this problem is to switch to biofuels because it burns cleaner; therefore it has less of a negative effect on our environment. There are other burdens of fossil fuels as well

The economic burden of fossil fuels is taxing on the American citizens. Our country relies on foreign oil for the majority of our fuel source because there is a lack of fossil fuel deposits in North America. Transportation of fuel is added in to the cost of fossil fuels. Eventually the fossil fuels will become scarcer. And with less fuel the price of gasoline will sky-rocket. Even over the last ten years American citizens have seen a large increase in the amount charged for gasoline. Biodiesel fuels can be produced in America: in a few years we can effectively eliminate our reliance on overseas fuels. This will also cut the cost of fuel.

The issue of energy conservation has become more prevalent among issues being acted upon by the government. “The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act included more than $80 billion in clean energy investments that will jumpstart our economy and build the clean energy jobs of tomorrow: $11 billion for bigger, better, and smarter grid that will move renewable energy from rural places it is produced to the cities where it is mostly used”(Energy and Environment). “$6.3 billion for state and local renewable energy and efficiency efforts” was included in the act (Energy and Environment). The government has invested “$600 million in green job training programs” to teach farmers and other people how to make and produce biofuels as well (Energy and Environment). As shown here money is being invested by the government because they realize the importance of switching to Biofuels. More money could be invested in the form of incentives to increase the production and distribution of biodiesel fuels.

Energy conservation has become much more important in the congressional agenda as of late. Reasons for this include, “a cure for national ills ranging from global warming to the trade deficit” (Hines, Virginia). “Several bills have been introduced promoting conservation both as a way to reduce air pollution and as a method for cutting oil imports, which are an important component in the U.S balance of trade.” (Hines, Virginia). “Schneider released state-by state information claiming that investment in energy efficient technology could save a potential $190.28 billion annually nationwide.” (Hines, Virginia).  Many other bills were proposed that include a national energy policy, restrictions on natural gas utility bypass, and an imposition of an oil import fee.

People all over the United States realize the environmental crisis we are currently in with a rising temperatures and waters. People are using alternative fuel sources such as biodiesel instead of fossil fuels which is helping to eliminate harmful toxins in our environment. Farmers are starting to harvest some of their crops for the production of environmentally safe biofuels.

Private companies are realizing the issues with harmful fossil fuels and are investing into research and the production of safer renewable energy sources such as biodiesel. Exxon Mobil, a gasoline company, is researching ways to use algae as a biofuel for the future. Algae are something that most people try to get rid of, and they are using this renewable source to create biodiesel. The University of Idaho has done research comparing biodiesel to other petroleum based fuels as a response to the growing need for a new fuel source, and found that biodiesel is a much better choice to fossil fuels (Power Search). The efforts of private companies are great to see. Even Exxon Mobil, a leading importer of fossil fuels, realizes that a change must be made to Biodiesel fuels because it is much better for this environment. If the government provided incentives to produce biofuels the push from private companies to switch to biodiesel could be even greater.

The environmental benefits of biodiesel are tremendous. “Biodiesel is renewable, nontoxic, and biodegradable” (EIA Energy Kids).Biodiesel fuels are renewable meaning the can be grown and replaced unlike fossil fuels which we have a limited supply of. Biodiesel is also biodegradable meaning that if there ever was a spill of biofuels the earth would be able to breakdown the fuel with limited damage done to the environment. “Biodiesel reduces net CO2 emissions by 78% compared to petroleum diesel” so it contributes much less to green house gas emissions (Power search). “For every unit of energy needed to produce a gallon of biodiesel, at least 4.5 units of energy are gained” (Biodiesel.org). There is a gain of energy when Biodiesel is made. “Tests conclusively demonstrated biodiesel’s significant reduction of virtually all regulated emissions, and showed biodiesel does not pose a threat to human health” (Biodiesel.org). Biodiesel is safer to use, and causes much less negative effects on our environment.

To go along with all the environmental benefits there are economic benefits of biodiesel as well. “The 51,893 jobs that are currently supported by the US biodiesel industry reflect the beginning of the industry’s potential to create jobs and economic growth in the US economy.” (Biodiesel.org). “Biodiesel has the Potential to support 78,000 jobs by 2012.”“Biodiesel has added 4.287 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP)” (Biodiesel.org). Biodiesel fuels are the future for the US gas industry. Biodiesel has added economic benefits to go along with all the environmental benefits. For this reason it is very important that our government promotes the use of biodiesel.

For people to switch to biodiesel fuels the government needs to provide incentives to farmers and companies that produce biofuel so they can expand research and production. As of now biofuel is not being distributed nationally because not enough of it is being produced. With incentives production companies are more apt to expand their research and efforts into creating more biodiesel fuels. Farmers are also more likely to grow crops for the production of biofuels if there is some type of incentive. Finally the government should provide the consumer incentives when they purchase a car with an engine that is able to process biofuel. Luckily most new diesel engines are able to run on biodiesel.

Biodiesel fuels are the solution to some of the environmental and economic issues that people are faced with today. The future of the environment is in our control, and by switching to biofuel we can ensure a better life for all those to come after us. If we do not make a change soon there will be permanent damage done to the environment. The switch to biodiesel from petroleum gases will not be easy, but it will be a smoother and faster transition if the government provides incentives to those who use and produce biodiesel. The switch to biodiesel from fossil fuels is a necessary change for the people of the Earth.