Andrew Caggiano English 1102-073 Connie Douglas Annotated Bibliography March 23, 2014

Annotated Bibliography: Do the positive effects of biofuels outweigh the negative effects of biofuels?

1. Bettelheim, Adriel. "Biofuels Boom." CQ Researcher 29 Sept. 2006: 793-816. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. This database article written by Adriel Bettelheim pushes more towards the positive effects of biofuels. The author spends a lot of time explaining the need for biofuels as well as the political influences at hand as well as begging the question of if biofuels can wean the US off of the dependence of foreign oil. This source provides somewhat biased information on the subject of biofuels, but provides compelling evidence of the positive effects they could have on society. She talks about new technologies coming into the world to make the production of biofuels more affordable; genetically engineered corn crops that ferment themselves, as well as car manufacturers designing cars to have the ability to consume ethanol and gasoline (flexfuel). More information and facts on the rise and fall of ethanol and biodiesels in the US before the civil war to present were provided also in a section of the history behind biofuels. This article does touch on the fact that biofuels arent as energy efficient as fossil fuels, and provides information on why the government still supports the production of biofuels. This source was helpful for the reason of the politics behind the topic of biofuels, but does not provide good facts and information on the technical aspects of biofuels.

2 With this source I can now map out the why behind the boom of biofuels in the last couple of years, and show some key connections with the rest of the research I gather. This article has not changed my mind because the other evidence I have gathered is far more technical and compelling.

2. Glazer, Sarah. "Rising Food Prices." CQ Global Researcher 18 Oct. 2011: 499-524. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. This article goes through the basics of why food prices are rising: Biofuel production, global warming, or increased fuel prices. The article does not just talk about the influence of biofuels on the rise of food prices, but does go to lengths to explain how biofuels play a key role. Sarah Galzer, continually talks about how 40% of the US corn production goes directly to ethanol production and how most food products are cornbased. This article gives good diagrams and graphs that represent relationships between food prices and ethanol production. More graphs and tables show the countries around the world and their future ethanol production standards. The information is very well represented and is not biased in anyway; the author writes a balanced piece on what areas are to blame for the rise in food costs. This article shows more information on the effects to food, rather than other things that include topsoil degradation, and depletion of phosphates. Other sources include the big picture items that help explain the rise in food prices. This source was helpful to identify how biofuels play a role in the rise of food costs, but does not touch on the other issues of how the production causes more

3 greenhouse gasses than burning fossil fuels. This article has not changed my current stand on the subject, but adds fuel to the fire of why biofuels will not help the US dependence on oil.

3. Calder, Christopher. "The Renewable Energy Disaster." The Renewable Energy Disaster. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Mar. 2014. This article is by far the most informative sources currently in procession; it provides 10 reasons on why biofuels are bad for the world. Starvation, not economical, and the substantial environmental damage as well as others are listed; professors and researchers support the evidence and facts included in the reasons. This source is by far my most useful source because it opens the doors to more sources supporting the abolishment of biofuels. The topic of biofuels is supported with technical information that explains the logic behind why biofuels do more harm than good. The information provided is supported in scholarly essays, publications, and also websites. The goal through out the article is to show the facts about green energy products and how they arent as efficient as everyone props them up to be. This source forms the basis of my argument and assists me in finding more sources to use. This source will provide the ground work for my argument, it gives reasons why biofuels along with other green energy projects are detrimental to the world we live in.

4. "Nitrous Oxide Emissions." EPA. Environmental Protection Agency, n.d. Web. 15

4 Mar. 2014. This article is done by the Environmental Protection Agency, this article shows the effects of nitrous oxide fumes in the atmosphere. The article is more informative; it gives facts about the impact of nitrous oxide gas and how 300 pounds of CO2 equivalent to 1 pound of N2O gas. The article also shows how nitrous oxide gas is admitted into the atmosphere by showing a pie chart of where the most N2O gas is made. This EPA source is very helpful and knowledgeable; the information in the article is going to serve as a stepping-stone to proving my argument. The picture to the right is shown on the website I found this article and shows how the production of food products using nitrogen fertilizers accounts for most of the nitrous oxide pollution in the United States. The goal of the source was to inform the public of the detrimental effects of nitrous oxide gases and show them where most of the pollution comes from. This source will help in proving the point that biofuels do more harm than good, and that they should be non-existent for the reason of inefficiency. This article has supported my stance on the subject of biofuels. 5. Lang, Susan S. "Cornell ecologist's study finds that producing ethanol and biodiesel from corn and other crops is not worth the energy." Cornell Chronicle. Cornell University, 5 July 2005. Web. 22 Mar. 2014.

5 This article shows a study that is being done by Cornell University and University of California at Berkley. The study says that the production of biofuels and ethanol costs more energy than the amount of energy it produces. The methods of using plants and biomass to produce fuel are inefficient, and also producing these fuels is worsening the global warming crisis. When these plants are grown they are producing more greenhouse gases, than if we were just burning fossil fuels. This source will be very useful to the fact of providing information for the voice of the farmers as well as the taxpayers. The article itself was published in the Cornell University a prestigious school in Ithaca, NY; it provides the voice of the green energy and environmental scientist opinion on the subject as well. I dont believe the source is biased in anyway; the information in the article is factual and backed by university studies. Also, in the article, two universities are involved in the studies making it that more less biased. This article is helpful, it provides the voices of the farmers, US Taxpayers, and green energy scientists; these voices can help make a structured argument against the production of biofuels. 6. Jordan, James, and James Powell. "James Jordan and James Powell - The False Hope of Biofuels." Washington Post: Breaking News, World, US, DC News & Analysis. Maglev Research Center at Polytechnic University of New York, 2 July 2006. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. The Polytechnic University sponsored article in the Washington Post, the scientists James Jordan and James Powell stress that even if we used all the land currently being used for corn production on biofuels it would not be sufficient enough to supply the

6 needs for the transportation industry. The scientists go into more depth talking about the actual energy output of ethanol and biofuels, saying that 1.5 gallons of ethanol equals 1 gallon of gasoline in energy. The source cited above is supported by two coordinating universities and provides valuable facts that I can use in my argumentative paper. The article goes into a conclusion that really hits home, connecting that if croplands are continually used for biofuel production that it could raise the amount of people dying from hunger related sickness and diseases. This article could serve as my sword to connect the production of biofuels to deaths of people in impoverished nations. The source is trying to directly show that the sense of biofuels being green energy is bologna, and that these new actions to create biofuels are putting the world in worse position. This Washington Post article has a lot of information I can use to expose the ugly realities of biofuels that people havent even realized. This will help in trying to connect the idea of biofuels to the opinions of the American taxpayer, and the facts that the American Citizens tax money being used to subsidize the biofuel industry. This article as well as others has strengthened my opinion and standing on the biofuel production controversy. 7. Weeks, Jennifer. "Energy Policy." CQ Researcher 20 May 2011: 457-80. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. This article in part focuses on the government subsidies involved in the ethanol production process, also the article shows specifically in one quote that ethanol production has resulted in a direct increase of gasoline prices at the pump. Because ethanol is more expensive to produce than gasoline, consumers pay the extra cost at the

7 pump. (Weeks) The author, Jennifer Weeks, goes into extensive detail involving the fact that the US government subsidizes the oil companies for every gallon of ethanol mixed with gasoline, and they provide tariffs for the ethanol production companies so they can sell their products without to worry about cheaper imports. This source provides the information I need to connect the biofuel and ethanol crisis with the average American Citizen. After reading the source I do not believe that the source is biased in anyway, Jennifer Weeks presents the information for what it is. The goal of the article is to expose the United States Energy Policy, connecting ethanol production as a part of the policy. The article itself helps give opinions to the various voices involved in the ethanol production issue. The United States Energy Policy has opened my mind on the extent of how the biofuel production effects the taxpayer and how the taxpayer pays for these subsidies. 8. Katel, Peter. "Future of the Airlines." CQ Researcher 7 Mar. 2008: 217-40. Web. 22 Mar. 2014. This article is focused on mostly the production of biofuels and the influence of such biofuels in the Airline industry. The author does provide information and facts that support the fact that corn based ethanol is not the way of the future, but possibly using algae pools to produce biofuel because its far more efficient. This article doesnt compare to my other sources, because this source is far more explorative; the article puts forth the idea that scientists should experiment and explore more viable options before biofuels are mass-produced. The Boeing Aviation Company along with scientists backs the information, so therefore the information is reliable. The

8 article goes on to reveal that biofuels, or ethanol, cannot subsidize the kerosene based airplane fuel for now, but give it a couple of decades and the technology should be up to speed. The article does change my opinion slightly, because before I had thought biofuels would never work; this particular article broadens my opinion on the subject of biofuels. I currently dont think that biofuels should be forced into the market, rather letting privatized organizations tamper with the idea and build off of it to create a better more efficient solution. I can use this article to support the idea that biofuels are not in the right place currently, but with new innovations and scientific discoveries the idea could have some ground in the future as the world fossil fuels are being depleted.