Substituting ethanol for petroleum may benefit corn farmers, but the effects on the atmosphere and humanity are mixed, according to a new study from Stanford University.
While burning E85 instead of gasoline reduces atmospheric levels of two carcinogens, benzene and butadiene, it increases the production of ozone that could lead to more injuries and fatalities for people with asthma or other breathing problems. The study modeled what the atmosphere would look like in 2020 if 85 percent ethanol were mixed with petroleum, and cities such as Los Angeles that already have problems with smog and air quality would get worse.
The study indicates a need for further evaluation of ozone emissions as it "can decrease lung capacity, inflame lung tissue, worsen asthma and impair the body's immune system," according to Stanford, citing the EPA. If ethanol can be burned more efficiently to reduce ozone emissions, then the biofuel might still have environmental advantages.
The study "The Effects of Ethanol (E85) Versus Gasoline Vehicles on Cancer and Mortality in the United States,'' by Mark Z. Jacobson was published in the Journal Environmental Science & Technology.
Jacobson said that plug-in hybrids are a better choice from the standpoint of human and planet health.
'There are alternatives, such as battery-electric, plug-in-hybrid and hydrogen-fuel cell vehicles.... (that) produce virtually no toxic emissions or greenhouse gases and cause very little disruption to the land-unlike ethanol made from corn or switchgrass, which will require millions of acres of farmland to mass-produce. It would seem prudent, therefore, to address climate, health and energy with technologies that have known benefits. ''
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
