Hi Keith Totally agree, community bio-culture, for food/energy requirements keeps transport down reduces fuel used,and minimises waste,
evolution not revolution Regards, dD biofuel@yahoogroups.com wrote: < < Abandon this top-down, decentralized, think-big view and instead do < everything to encourage small-scale, local production, from backyards < up, including coops and on-farm operations, and I think the picture < would be rather a different one. < < Keith < < < http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/19036/story.htm < < Canada ethanol plants need federal help-industry < < CANADA: December 13, 2002 < < WINNIPEG, Manitoba - Lack of startup capital and marginal returns < could put the brakes on plans to expand Canada's ethanol industry, < despite an optimistic outlook announced in one Prairie province. < < The Manitoba government said it will consider fostering the industry < by mandating the use of cleaner ethanol-blended gasoline in the < province. < < But unless the federal government creates more appealing tax < incentives, similar to those available for U.S. ethanol producers, < plans in Manitoba and other parts of Canada will stall, said Bliss < Baker, president of the Canadian Renewable Fuels Association. < < "Without these additional incentives, I suspect we will not have much < of an ethanol industry - period - in the future," Baker told Reuters. < < The lobby group met with federal finance officials this week to plead < for Ottawa to double tax incentives to 20 Canadian cents (13 U.S. < cents) a litre in the next federal budget, due in February. < < U.S. incentives equal to 23 Canadian cents a litre have helped boost < that market enough to spur the opening of one new ethanol plant each < month this year, Baker said. < < Five Canadian plants currently produce about 235 million litres (62 < million U.S. gallons) a year of the high-octane, water-free alcohol < made from grain, and import another 100 million litres annually from < the United States. < < Ethanol-blended gasoline emits lower levels of greenhouse gases. By < 2010, Ottawa wants a third of Canadian gasoline to contain ethanol as < part of its plan to implement the Kyoto protocol. < < That would create an annual market for 1.33 billion litres of < ethanol, Baker said. < < But current returns on ethanol production are "marginal, at best," < Baker said, meaning investors and banks are reluctant to sink money < into plants that cost C$100 million ($64 million) on average. < < "Our view is we can't get there without some type of initial < incentives to help finance plants," Baker said. < < MANITOBA SAYS WANTS TO BECOME LEADER < < Manitoba, the province that was home to the country's first ethanol < plant 20 years ago, could produce up to 140 million litres a year, < according to a government-commission study released this week. < < "We've intentionally focused on an approach that would maximize local < investment and economic benefits for rural Manitoba," said Garth < Manness, head of Credit Union Central, who led the study. < < But it will cost more to produce ethanol in Manitoba than in the < neighboring province of Saskatchewan, or nearby states like Minnesota < and South Dakota, a prominent agricultural economist told Reuters. < < That's because Manitoba farmers don't grow enough wheat and would < have to import feed to supply both hog farms and ethanol plants, said < Daryl Kraft of the University of Manitoba. < < "The only caution I have is to the investors who are going to put < their money into these processing facilities: they better proceed < with due diligence," Kraft said. < < Manness said farmers would grow more feed wheat if they could access < higher-yielding varieties, currently unavailable in Canada. < < Story by Roberta Rampton < < REUTERS NEWS SERVICE < < < 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/ < < < 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/
