Ethanol as Fuel: Energy, Carbon Dioxide Balances, and Ecological Footprint

• Published in: Bioscience Vol. 55; no. 7; pp. 593 - 602
• Main Authors: DIAS DE OLIVEIRA, MARCELO E, VAUGHAN, BURTON E, RYKIEL, EDWARD J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Circulation, AIBS, 1313 Dolley Madison Blvd., Suite 402, McLean, VA 22101. USA American Institute of Biological Sciences 01.07.2005; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Agricultural Production; biofuels; biogeochemical cycles; Carbon dioxide; Carbon dioxide emissions; Climate; Climate change; CO2 balance; Corn; Ecological footprint; Energy; energy balance; Environmental impact; environmental impacts; Ethanol; Ethanol fuels; Ethanol production; Fossil fuels; Fuel cells; fuel ethanol; Fuels; gas emissions; Gasoline; Global warming; Greenhouse gases; OVERVIEW ARTICLES; Pollutant emissions; Power resources; Renewable energy sources; Sugar cane; Brazil; United States; United States > US; ecological footprint; environmental impacts; energy balance; fuel ethanol; balance; CO
• ISSN: 0006-3568; 1525-3244
• DOI: 10.1641/0006-3568(2005)055[0593:EAFECD]2.0.CO;2

The major contributor to global warming is considered to be the high levels of greenhouse gas emissions, especially carbon dioxide (CO2), caused by the burning of fossil fuel. Thus, to mitigate CO2 emissions, renewable energy sources such as ethanol have been seen as a promising alternative to fossil fuel consumption. Brazil was the world's first nation to run a large-scale program for using ethanol as fuel. Eventually, the United States also developed large-scale production of ethanol. In this study, we compare the benefits and environmental impacts of ethanol fuel, in Brazil and in the United States, using the ecological footprint tool developed by Wackernagel and Rees. We applied the STELLA model to gauge possible outcomes as a function of variations in the ethanol production scenario.