Forget biofuels - burn oil and plant forests instead

[Pooeypants]

It sounds counterintuitive, but burning oil and planting forests to compensate is more environmentally friendly than burning biofuel. So say scientists who have calculated the difference in net emissions between using land to produce biofuel and the alternative: fuelling cars with gasoline and replanting forests on the land instead. They recommend governments steer away from biofuel and focus on reforestation and maximising the efficiency of fossil fuels instead. The reason is that producing biofuel is not a "green process". It requires tractors and fertilisers and land, all of which means burning fossil fuels to make "green" fuel. In the case of bioethanol produced from corn – an alternative to oil – "it's essentially a zero-sums game," says Ghislaine Kieffer, programme manager for Latin America at the International Energy Agency in Paris, France.

Source

Personally, I think we should just push for more nuclear power but this suggestion may become viable if we actually plant sustainable forests. But given our record on deforestation, I do wonder...

[Nono]

Quote by: New Scientist Producing biofuel is not a "green process". It requires tractors and fertilisers and land, all of which means burning fossil fuels to make "green" fuel. In the case of bioethanol produced from corn – an alternative to oil – "it's essentially a zero-sums game," says Ghislaine Kieffer, programme manager for Latin America at the International Energy Agency in Paris, France.

Right. It's being dressed up in green, but it ain't. It's no more renewable than petroleum.

By the way, nuclear power also requires gargantuan petroleum inputs.
The fact we'll eventually have to face is that, in Margaret Thatcher's immortal words, there's no such thing as a free lunch.

[Technosoul]

Where are you going to plant all those new trees or other green things? We do not have to create new farmlands for bio fuels only, the plants grown would produce oxigen until harvested and new corps would be rapidly planted to take their place. also produce that cannot sell fast enough at the market before they look spoiled can be recycled for such fuels. Hemp plants can be grown just about anyplace and harvested without damaging the existing environment. Planting more green stuff will not cancel the risks caused by fosil fuels.

Some locations such as Riverside county have banned planting green things in new housing tracks to conserve water ( sprinkling systems use up a lot of water needed for drinking and farming).

Nuclear plants are dangerous and nuclear waste is a major problem, and the cost of constructing enough nuclear plants is out of the question.

The coal industry is now trying to promote their product as the answer, but the ads are deceptive because coal is not clean burning nor environmentally friendly.

Anyway you cannot run your car with coal or nuclear energy. We doubt if wind, solar, or water (steam) power will work well for cars and trucks. So mentioning nuclear plants as an aternative for fosil auto fuels is silly and shows a lack of logic.

Tractors are used for some farming and they also can operate on bio-fuels, in other cases immagration manpower is used to harvest the crops.

That so-called scientific report from France did not factor in all aspects when making their pro-oil case.

[Milton Bradley]

Seems like the only downside in the long term ( excluding the obvious oil debate ) would be a more forested landscape.


Not a bad legacy to leave while the rest of the answers are found.


Dress it up in green, what the Hell.

[Praxius]

No no.. it'll never work.... plant more trees?

Sure it makes sense when you look at the small picture.... but it's not gonna work.

If you continue to burn a fuel that is not renewable, that produces a lot of pollution.... you would have to plant a massave amount of trees.... and guess what?

The human population isn't shrinking any.

There won't be enough space to plant that many trees until we get to another planet or get WWIII going.... which is soon enough, and when the fossil fuels do run out, you'll have to switch to more enviromentally friendly fuels anyways..... and those trees will be cut down, farms and such that produce these fuels and our food will take their place.

The goal now is to remove all the pollution we can, so when we do over populate, and have no space for trees.... and our planet looks just like a Death Star, then we won't need them anyways.

[Technosoul]

Quote by: Praxius No no.. it'll never work.... plant more trees? Sure it makes sense when you look at the small picture.... but it's not gonna work. If you continue to burn a fuel that is not renewable, that produces a lot of pollution.... you would have to plant a massave amount of trees.... and guess what? The human population isn't shrinking any. There won't be enough space to plant that many trees until we get to another planet or get WWIII going.... which is soon enough, and when the fossil fuels do run out, you'll have to switch to more enviromentally friendly fuels anyways..... and those trees will be cut down, farms and such that produce these fuels and our food will take their place. The goal now is to remove all the pollution we can, so when we do over populate, and have no space for trees.... and our planet looks just like a Death Star, then we won't need them anyways.

On Bush Star we will make plastic trees our of oil products, each plastic tree would have a filtering system and a machine that can convert bad air into good air while filtering out the particals. We will put them all along our plastic highways and even inside out apartments.

Invest now in Technosoul's "Plastic Tree Air purification system". If you do not care for green trees we will have an assortment of colors to match your decor. All plastic credit cards accepted.

I have designed on such plastic tree that will hug you back. eh?

Brave new world INC.

[Praxius]

*Raises hand* OOOooo OOOoooo.....

Can I get one that lights up and dances to music??!!!

[DEEJ85]

Would it really matter how many trees we plant?


If the burning of oil causes the destruction of the delicate ecology and environment, then all those trees will die anyway.

The Oil will eventually dry up anyways. We need a renewable source of energy.

[Technosoul]

Quote by: Praxius *Raises hand* OOOooo OOOoooo..... Can I get one that lights up and dances to music??!!!

We have a plastic pot plant that does that in our company. But how about a talking tree, do you like to talk to trees?

However, humans are not smart enough yet to create the technology to convert air, so at the moment we can only filter it for 'somewhat' purification purposes. The plastic dancing pot plant that lights up filters out the smell of pot smoking so the undercover cops cannot detect it.

Popular at rave parties also.

[Technosoul]

Quote by: DEEJ85 Would it really matter how many trees we plant? If the burning of oil causes the destruction of the delicate ecology and environment, then all those trees will die anyway. The Oil will eventually dry up anyways. We need a renewable source of energy.

Fosil fuels do not destroy trees. That is done by lumber companies and overall human progress in expanding our cities. And by raising cattle in the South American rain forests.

Fosils fuels create particles in the air that can heat up and damage the ozone, and are relative to global warming (aks - abnormal climate changes ).

The idea that everyone should plant a tree is an idea that Bush Sr. came up with when he was in the White House. His hope is that this would keep everyone busy so that they will feel the "did something" useful to save the planet from the effects of global warming, to shut us up so that the government would not have to regulate industry, and so that he could win favor with certain lobby groups.