Biofuel - Are US EPA Goals Realistic?

Source: http://www.industrial-nanotech.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/CB_biofuel.jpg

Many of you may not know that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) has a Renewable Energy Standard as part of the National Energy Policy Act of 2005, that states 1:

The RFS program is a national policy that requires a certain volume of renewable fuel to replace or reduce the quantity of petroleum-based transportation fuel, heating oil or jet fuel. The four renewable fuel categories under the RFS are:

• Biomass-based diesel
• Cellulosic biofuel
• Advanced biofuel
• Total renewable fuel

With the following goal of 36 Billion Gallons of Renewable Fuel by 2022:

Source: http://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/congressional_volume_target-02_0.png

With these standards, it sounds like a great goal, right? Meaning that the "renewable fuel" needs to reduce the Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions by 20%; Advance and Biodiesel by 50%; and, Cellulosic Fuels by 60%

Source: http://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2015-09/lifecycle_ghg_emissions-03.png

Yet, where and how are we sourcing these fuels? Where do they come from? Algae, corn, food compost?? Well, on top of some of the algae posts I have done recently, yesterday the University of Illinois published a paper in Nature Energy talking about utilizing second-generation crops as a source for such biofuels 2:

Second-generation biofuels are much cleaner than corn ethanol thanks to a number of biological characteristics, said [Evan] DeLucia, a professor of plant biology at the U. of I. In a 2011 study, DeLucia used a model to show what would happen if the land being used to grow corn for ethanol production was instead converted to Miscanthus and switchgrass."Our results were staggering," DeLucia said.  

"Our results were staggering," Delucia said. "Since both of those plants are perennial, you don't till every year, so you release less carbon to the atmosphere. The grasses also require less fertilizer, which is a source of nitrous oxide, and they store more carbon in the ground than corn." 

 [... Before second-generation biofuels can have an edge] the market for biofuel needs to grow, meaning the amount of cars that can take high ethanol fuel needs to increase, and biofuel producers need to be certain that the policy will stay intact 

Sounds great, yes? Yeah, I thought so too! It sounds great that we can start to utilize more options for biofuel to decrease the societal dependency on fossil fuels, as well as decreasing the emissions that deplete our biosphere protection. Yet, more questions began to metaphorically burn in my mind. 36 billion gallons of biofuel sure sounds like a lot, so how many gallons does the US go through in a year, and how many gallons do we think we're going to use in 2022, when this 36 billon gallons of biofuel is supposed to be met? Let's go back to the volume goals of biofuel, in accordance to the EPA Energy Policy Act 1, and how much fuel is currently being consumed by USA citizens, in accordance to the US Department of Energy 3:

In 2014, about 136.78 billion gallons¹ (or 3.26 billion barrels) of gasoline were consumed² in the United States, a daily average of about 374.74 million gallons (or 8.92 million barrels).³

¹ There are 42 U.S. gallons in a barrel.  

² EIA uses product supplied to represent approximate consumption of petroleum products. Product supplied measures the disappearance of these products from primary sources, such as refineries, natural gas processing plants, blending plants, pipelines, and bulk terminals.  

³ Preliminary data for 2014. 

Woah, woah, woah... in 2014, the USA consumed 137 BILLION gallons of gasoline?? And the goal by the US EPA is 36 billion gallons of biofuel by 2022?? Even, if the EPA Renewable Energy Standard was put into place back in 2014, it's only 26.31% of the total fuel consumed in the United States. The scary thing is to realize that the fuel consumption, by the USA alone, has only increased since 2014. Are the US EPA Biofuel Goals Realistic? Honestly, I don't think so...

Based on a report by the US Department of Energy (US DoE) in 2004, the projection of fuel consumption were to increase up to 7% each year, resulting in 250 billion gallons by 2022 4. Now, this was nearly twelve years ago that the report was completed. However, it was reviewed again in 2013 by the US DoE Energy Information Administration, which provided another projection of 3.9% average yearly increase of consumption, resulting in a projection of 186.05 billion gallons of fuel consumed in 2022 5... So, if we do meet the 36 billion gallons of biofuel as mandated by the Biofuel Energy Standard in 2022, that's only 19.34% of the total fuel projected to be consumed.

This is not to say that the investigations of biofuels aren't worth while, or are a moot point. Quite the contrary! Looking for alternative energy sources that are less damaging to our atmosphere and environment is entirely necessary. Yet, supposing the bigger and more applicable question is: What can we do about the energy situation? Frankly, humans need to decrease the amount of energy is consumed. It's that simple. Humans cannot continue to consume the amount of energy and resources on Earth at the rate we are doing so, and expect to support an exponentially growing population.

If you're feeling brave enough, try this: consider what your footprint is. Go around your house and look at all the items you have that requires energy (electricity, petrol, or gas) and try to calculate how much you consume each day and average your year's consumption. How can you reduce your own consumption of energy? 

Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYEoRkoAtfgSNUf7-_R0ESQ_NTg5uNSCk-t6JN5XS6eQvvIRyrzdl5dkV3g1my3lac7_GNeSCzSrUG4-0C946y6ZCILaU56y_Wt2ARzlVHPFKYY4AwxHzsFSLALXxO46bYqL3R8hU8XQ7q/s1600/reduceenergyuse.jpg

Sources:

1) US EPA. "Program Overview for Renewable Fuel Standard Program." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, 28 Sept. 2015. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. http://www.epa.gov/renewable-fuel-standard-program/program-overview-renewable-fuel-standard-program.

2) University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. "Second-generation biofuels can reduce emissions." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 11 January 2016. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160111121025.htm.

3) US EIA. "U.S. Energy Information Administration - EIA - Independent Statistics and Analysis." How Much Gasoline Does the United States Consume? US DoE, 12 Mar. 2015. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=23&t=10.

4) US EIA. "Annual Energy Outlook with Projections to 2025-Market Trends - Oil and Natural Gas." Annual Energy Outlook with Projections to 2025-Market Trends - Oil and Natural Gas. US DoE, 26 Nov. 2004. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. <http://www.hubbertpeak.com/us/eia/2004/>. 

5) US DoE. "The U.S. Economy to 2022: Settling into a New Normal : Monthly Labor Review: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics." U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2013. Web. 14 Jan. 2016. <http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2013/article/the-u-s-economy-to-2022-settling-into-a-new-normal.htm>.
 

Volunteering Your Time

Source: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwi9gIq0gY_KAhXGKWMKHUW7D9IQjRwIBw&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cmich.edu%2Foffice_provost%2FOID%2FMASS%2FPages%2FVolunteer-Opportunities.aspx&psig=AFQjCNGQuKHxHhY_8Jecq29BMN8dtDVIqQ&ust=1451957470564785

Happy New Calendar Year!!

The calendar year has changed, and one of the things that many people do, is make a resolution towards bettering themselves in one way or another. Yet, how often do we think about ways that we can help better another person, area, region, or family? More recently, I have begun to heed the thought that there is not greater gift than the gift of time; the ultimate gift is towards the service to another. So, if I may be so bold: Consider where you could give your time towards another, in 2016.

The gift of time could be in the form of volunteering for human rights; animals; arts and culture; board development; environmental stewardship... what is it that you feel passionate about?

To start you out, below are a few websites that I found online, that you may wish to look at:

USA

Volunteer Connections

Volunteer Match

All for Good

UK

Do It

Royal Voluntary Service

NCVO - Finding a Volunteer Centre

 

May your endeavors be welcomed with smiles, joy, and happiness!!! Happy 2016!!

 

Climate Change... Urged by Economy??

Source: http://dailyguideafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Global-Warming-Climate-Change.jpg

After all the hype of COP21 and the UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, I was anxious to hear about the final results -- what happened? -- after seeing image after image of some form of success, what does it mean? Honestly, after much digging and sifting through web searches, this is the best recap I can find from the UN FCCC Website:

On one hand, it seems wonderful that we have finally reached a point in which our leaders acknowledge the need for change. Yet, one question still remains: What is our course of action? According to the COP21 Website:

Why is this agreement historic and why will 12 December 2015 be remembered as a great day for the planet?
It has been widely recognised, with unanimous agreement from scientists, that the earth’s atmosphere is growing warmer due to greenhouse gas emissions generated by human activity. The aim of the Paris Conference that was held from 30 November to 12 December at the Le Bourget exhibition centre was to come up with a response to this problem, which is threatening to wipe out the human presence in certain parts of the world.
Keeping the rise in temperature below 2°C
This agreement marks a change in direction, towards a new world. It confirms the target of keeping the rise in temperature below 2°C. Scientists believe that a greater increase in temperature would be very dangerous. The agreement even establishes, for the first time, that we should be aiming for 1.5°C, to protect island states, which are the most threatened by the rise in sea levels.
How can we manage to avoid global warming?
By 12 December 2015, 186 countries had published their action plan (further information); each of these plans sets out the way in which they intend to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. The UN body that deals with climate change (the UNFCCC*) published an evaluation of these contributions on 1 November 2015 (further information). This study showed that despite the unprecedented mobilization shown by States, at this rate global warming would still be between 2.7°C and 3°C, i.e. above the threshold set by scientists.
The Paris agreement therefore asks all countries to review these contributions every five years from 2020; they will not be able to lower their targets and are encouraged, on the contrary, to raise them.
In addition, emissions should peak as soon as possible and the countries will aim to achieve carbon neutrality in the second half of the century. This is a real turning point. We are going to gradually stop using the most polluting fossil fuels in order to reach this goal.

And just how are the governments going to do this? Oh, well, they're supposed to implement carbon mitigation to reduce the current carbon emissions that are contributing to the environment with the goal of keeping global temperature rising below 2ºC. Let's face it though - no government or business is going to do this without incentive and to their benefit - the economy and money will have the final toll on whether or not this is going to happen. So, the UN has devised the following incentive for financial purposes; according to the UNFCCC Paris Agreement:

"[COP 21] Recognizes the importance of adequate and predictable financial resources, including for results based payments, as appropriate for the implementation of policy approaches and positive incentives for reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, and the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks; as well as alternative policy approaches, such as join mitigation and adaptation approaches for the integral and sustainable management of forests; while reaffirming the importance of non-carbon benefits associate with such approaches; encouraging the coordination of support from inter alia, public and private, bilateral and multilateral sources, such as the Green Climate Fund, and alternative sources in accordance with relevant decisions by the Conference of Parties." - Paragraph 55

Really?? Are we really putting the economy before the health and well-being of the planet we live on? This is where I think back to the many lectures of Dr. David Suzuki:

So, what are we, as people on the ground, the front line, going to do about it? Well, a number of things can be done, though what is really going to make a difference? How about taking a real close look at our lives, and our lifestyle. Do you know the actual impacts of what you buy? Before you purchase something, do you think about what message you are sending to the overarching 'powers-that-be' that control industry, our economy, and the world we live in? Perhaps what we really need is a social revolution - one that reconsiders the way we live our lives - yet, this is going to require change at a real, true, fundamental level... because, continuing to do what we're doing is a form of madness. Doing the same thing over and over, expecting different results, is madness.

It's time to stop rewarding negative behaviour with positive incentives (i.e. money, tax reductions, "green" labeling, etc.). Can we really leave the future of our planet in the hands of people that are influenced by money? What price would you put on the world your future grandchildren will have??

2016 is nearing and a time that many people start to consider what direction they want their lives to go in the next year, five years, or ten years. Perhaps it's time to start thinking about the present day, for the benefit of that future.

UN Climate Change Conference in Paris, COP21: USA & China

Source: https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAxF3AmusXZ-xq-unhph73LgZgsAIUfGY8EFUtCPQQm79AenC_jCtDKpexavMsh_oSOxrZsisHeFknZjvKReGjtC3VcnVec9XB2rskV9ygR23jooP1bzLis5taDFrPRujDGRCXTkfBqh4/s1600/Logo+COP21+Paris+Climat+2015.jpg

US President Barack Obama has delivered a speech at the COP21 meeting, saying that he hoped the Paris summit can be a "turning point” in the fight against climate change.



Experts say cooperation between China and the US is crucial if there's to be progress at the climate change conference in Paris. The two countries have the largest economies in the world, but are also the two largest emitters of greenhouse gases. Each exerts a different influence on nations around the world trying to reduce emissions and reach the ambitious targets Paris has set.

More Algae: Coccolithophorids & Climate Change

Coccolithophorid - A Haptophyte Algae
Source: http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/naturelibrary/images/ic/credit/640x395/c/co/coccolithophore/coccolithophore_1.jpg

More of my beautiful green beasties... Algae!!!

A John Hopkins University Scientist has found a deifying correlation between carbon dioxide (CO2) and the abundance of the Coccolithophore population in the North Atlantic. Coccolithophorids are characterized by special calcium carbonate plates (sometimes called scales) of uncertain function called coccoliths. However, not all organisms within the Family Prymnesiophyceae are coccolithores, as there are some species that lack coccoliths (e.g. Prymnesium). 


According to ScienceDaily report: Increased carbon dioxide enhances plankton growth, opposite of what was expected

Coccolithophores--tiny calcifying plants that are part of the foundation of the marine food web--have been increasing in relative abundance in the North Atlantic over the last 45 years, as carbon input into ocean waters has increased. Their relative abundance has increased 10 times, or by an order of magnitude, during this sampling period. This finding was diametrically opposed to what scientists had expected since coccolithophores make their plates out of calcium carbonate, which is becoming more difficult as the ocean becomes more acidic and pH is reduced.
[...]
When the percentage of coccolithophores in the community goes up, the relative abundance of other groups will go down. The authors found that at local scales, the relative abundance of another important algal class, diatoms, had decreased over the 45 years of sampling.

And in another ScienceDaily report: Rapid plankton growth in ocean seen as sign of carbon dioxide loading

"Coccolithophores have been typically more abundant during Earth's warm interglacial and high CO₂ periods," said Balch, an authority on the algae. "The results presented here are consistent with this and may portend, like the 'canary in the coal mine,' where we are headed climatologically."
[...]
"What is worrisome," he said, "is that our result points out how little we know about how complex ecosystems function."

Yes, the garden of ocean life is changing in response to climate change... the question really being: what does it mean? At this point, to my knowledge, all we really know is that the changes are occurring faster than scientific prediction modeling and at a rate that is unlike what our historic records indicate, leading many scientists to continued concern of the impact of global emissions and the future of Earth's resources.

Considering that the UN Conferences on Climate Change has begun in Paris today, it will be interesting to see what becomes of our legislated requirements as governments argue the value of economics over the stability of our planet. Will this newly published information be part of the discussion? We shall see in the next two weeks.

Blue-Green Algae, A Source of Power?

Blue-green algae (stock image).

Credit: © laurent dambies / Fotolia

Most people that know me, know that I am a little bit obsessed with algae... they are the most amazing organisms on the planet (in my opinion). They're responsible for our environment as we know it - early microorganisms, especially cyanobacteria, were the first living organisms on this rock, flying around the Sun - and without them, life today wouldn't exist. Now, this is not to say that there are other really fantastic organisms out there, or that life wouldn't have evolved in any other way, because that would be an incorrect statement. It just so happens that Stromatolites are the earliest records we have found for life on Earth, dating 3.5 Billion Years Ago.

Now, what in the world does this have to do with today's blog? Well, my friends, the United Nations Conference on Climate Change is having it's next meeting in Paris from November 30th through December 11th, 2015. And, a team from Concordia University in Montreal might have found an answer to the ever-going question of how we can reverse our dependence on fossil fuels: Cyanobacteria, also known as blue-green algae!! Once again, my beloved algae come to the forefront of the survival of Earth!! These wonderful organisms are found everywhere, are found in some of the most hardy environments as well adapted extremophiles, and produce energy through photosynthesis, nitrogen fixation, and respiration; cyanobacteria are arguably the most successful group of microorganisms on earth!! While the details of technology are continuing to work on a sustainable source of harvesting these little power houses.

As published in Science Daily, A New Green Power Source:

"By taking advantage of a process that is constantly occurring all over the world, we've created a new and scalable technology that could lead to cheaper ways of generating carbon-free energy," says Packirisamy [lead engineering professor at Concordia University].
He notes that the invention is still in its early stages. "We have a lot of work to do in terms of scaling the power cell to make the project commercial."
Currently, the photosynthetic power cell exists on a small scale, and consists of an anode, cathode and proton exchange membrane. The cyanobacteria or blue green algae are placed in the anode chamber.
As they undergo photosynthesis, the cyanobacteria release electrons to the electrode surface. An external load is connected to the device to extract the electrons and harness power.
As Packirisamy and his team develop and expand the project, he hopes that the micro photosynthetic power cells will soon be used in various applications, such as powering cell phones and computers. And maybe one day they'll power the world.

And what comes to mind is the Wicked Witch of the West, stirring her crystal ball (which looks like it has algae in it, by the way!), in the Wizard of Oz, substituting her words for "Continue to flourish, my little green beasties, flourish!!!"

Source: https://i.ytimg.com/vi/KnMa652dZ5E/hqdefault.jpg

"Who Wants Change" Cartoon

This depicts the very message of yesterday's post:

http://wp.production.patheos.com/blogs/exploringourmatrix/files/2015/01/Who-Wants-Change.jpg