Movember wrote: >Following some pretty serious scaremongering over the past few >months, the oil companies have launched an intense campaign at the >service station level to denigrate the use of ethanol in the Greater >Sydney/Wollongong Basin. > >The tactics being employed are similar to those used by the oil >majors in the U.S.over twenty years ago. Currently BP, Shell, Caltex >and Woolworth's are running "no ethanol in our petrol" type ads at >badged service stations.
Hi Mike Seems to be quite a campaign, and I'm not at all surprised to see David Pimentel's oft-debunked BS on ethanol roped into it. Pimentel and Federal Agriculture Minister Warren Truss were interviewed on radio recently, see below. I found Truss's website and tried to send him a message pointing him to the Pimentel debunkings at our site: http://journeytoforever.org/ethanol_energy.html Is ethanol energy-efficient? See also: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel_food.html Biofuels - Food or Fuel? But it didn't work. :-( If you know how to contact him, maybe you could do it? Regards Keith http://www.abc.net.au/am/s687229.htm AM - 27/9/2002: Claim ethanol production uneconomic AM - Friday, September 27, 2002 8:08 LINDA MOTTRAM: An example of the competing tensions for a treasurer is soon to come before Federal Cabinet in the form of ethanol, and the push to force petrol producers here to include ethanol in their product. The National Party is pushing particularly hard for the measure, having convinced the government to promote ethanol as a viable domestic industry and an extra market for the nation's struggling cane farmers. But an international expert says it's just politics, advising against it with a warning that ethanol production will never be economic. From Canberra, Alexandra Kirk reports. ALEXANDRA KIRK: The Government's pushing full steam ahead to promote a local ethanol industry, still under consideration and heavily backed by the Nationals, a compulsory level of ethanol in our fuel. But Professor of Ecology at Cornell University in New York State, David Pimentel, says ever since he chaired a study for the US Department of Energy in 1980 he's found it to be uneconomic. He says all ethanol industries are subsidised and the worst part is most of the money goes to big business, not farmers. He thinks taxpayers money would be better spent on cleaner, alternative fuels. DAVID PIMENTEL: There is no indication anywhere in the world where ethanol production is economic and/ or energy positive at all. In fact, all ethanol production has been subsidised. ALEXANDRA KIRK: But unlike the US and Brazil, the Australian Government isn't planning to subsidise the ethanol industry here. They've imposed the same excises as on petrol and they're giving it back to domestic producers in the form of a subsidy. You don't think it could be profitable under those circumstances? DAVID PIMENTEL: If they are subsidised, then the producers can make a go of it, but if it's not subsidised, ethanol production cannot compete with gasoline or diesel fuel. ALEXANDRA KIRK: Under any circumstances you think? DAVID PIMENTEL: Under any circumstances in any data that I have seen. ALEXANDRA KIRK: So why do you think it is though that countries are willing to support a locally based ethanol industry? DAVID PIMENTEL: To be frank, it's politics and big money. ALEXANDRA KIRK: So when the Australian Government says that it is considering what level of ethanol it should make compulsory in fuel, what would your advice be? DAVID PIMENTEL: My advice would be no, do not make ethanol additions to gasoline mandatory at all. ALEXANDRA KIRK: But Agriculture Minister and National Party MP, Warren Truss, thinks the Professor is far too pessimistic. WARREN TRUSS: The reality is it is used in increasing quantities in many countries around the world. The United States has just legislated to increase the amount of ethanol used in their fuel mix and I think that there is enormous potential for the ethanol industry also in Australia. ALEXANDRA KIRK: Do you think that the only way you can continue to have an ethanol industry here is to subsidise it? WARREN TRUSS: Well it depends obviously on what oil prices are around the world. As oil prices go higher, the attractiveness of ethanol increases and clearly, in the United States, they have cheaper oil prices than we do, they are more self-sufficient than we will be in oil, particularly in the next decade, and so the case for ethanol in Australia is much stronger than it is in the United States. LINDA MOTTRAM: Federal Agriculture Minister Warren Truss speaking to Alexandra Kirk in Canberra. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Sell a Home with Ease! http://us.click.yahoo.com/SrPZMC/kTmEAA/jd3IAA/FGYolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuel at Journey to Forever: http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuels list archives: http://archive.nnytech.net/ Please do NOT send Unsubscribe messages to the list address. To unsubscribe, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
