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Biofuels, is it a solution or fantasy?

The crops that are developed today to produce alternatives to petroleum-based fuels emit more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than can be absorbed by plants.
The scientists found that in the case of some crops would require several centuries to pay for "carbon debt" generated. These environmental costs do not take into account the additional destruction of the environment, such as loss of biodiversity caused when removing areas of forest.

 

Share What is a barrel of oil?

 
A barrel of oil is a unit of volume equal to 42 U.S. gallons, which, in turn, equivalent to approximately 158.9873 liters. Depending on the density of oil, the mass of a barrel of oil is between 119 kg and 151 kg.
The crude measure is particular to the oil industry. Although created in the United States of America, has become a global standard, but in other continents is also common to hear references to the volume of oil in cubic meters or tonnes, the latter regularly used by shipping companies that transport oil. Still, most companies and countries make all its production figures, exports, consumption, etc., In barrels to make their reports, since virtually all global oil analysis are done using this measure.

 

Maria Juliana Piedrahita 11c

We know that biofuels will largely involve the production of ethanol from plants such as diesel fuel substitute derived from fossil fuels. Many of the current sources for these "new" fuels are agricultural products now serve as a very important world power such as corn, sugar cane, oil palm, cassava up soy and rapeseed. It is easy to see that the crisis can be large, since according to estimates more than a third of all agricultural land should be converted to biofuel production to its participation in the transport fuel consumption to increase to ten percent.
This is much space and we know the strength of the fuels in terms of economic impact is concerned, then it is more profitable to produce fuel crops for food, sale of production is ensured. And what happens with the rotation and the weakening of the land for the production of monocultures. Be exhausted and their subsequent rehabilitation is almost impossible. But some will say if it is a source of clean energy and safer because it has to end, the crops are renewable. But what consequences? The expansion of large-scale monoculture leads to destruction of forests, savannas and wildlife, high prices of land and food and directly impacts on rural communities. On the other hand, the rising food prices will be inevitable, and we're seeing, and is just beginning, but said Peru's President Alan Garcia is putting the food outside the limits of the poor. "
What is unclear is whether biofuels are profitable. If we have to sacrifice arable land or virgin forest to obtain in large quantities economic and environmental damage may be much higher than the benefit. According to researchers and environmental advocates this is intuitive and based on studies on carbon dioxide emissions into the atmosphere over a period of time concluding that the reforestation of an equivalent area of land can absorb two to nine times dioxide of carbon emissions would be avoided if the area is devoted to producing biofuels during the same period of time so that reforestation and forest conservation are also advantages, such as creating more jobs, growth and conservation biodiversity, desertification and mitigating regional climate regulation.
So where is the fantasy. To explain this we will transcribe conclusions of the biologist Jeffrey Dukes, who said: "The fossil fuels we burn in one year were produced from organic matter containing 44 x 1081 grams of carbon, which is to say containing about 400 times the primary energy corresponding to the net productivity of the planet's biomass. Or to put it colloquially, every year we burn the equivalent of primary energy production of four centuries of plant and animal productivity of our planet. The idea that simply we can replace fossil fuels and lead extraordinary energy density through the use of renewable energy belongs to the genre of science fiction. "
Then we have that the expansion of crops to produce biofuels leads to the transmission of vast amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere and contributes nothing to stop climate change or global warming, many scientists have produced damning evidence, which suggests that biofuels  could be one of the largest environmental fraud, because actually worsen global warming by contributing to emissions of carbon dioxide produced by humans who are supposed to be reduced.