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     Setting emission standards and policies is an ever more
confusing issue.  In setting carbon intensity for the production of
ethanol, the large picture is over looked while indirect land use
is debated.  While crop acre reports and yield production numbers
don’t line up with the critic’s arguments against ethanol, the
potential for ethanol is not being discussed.
     Several market ready approaches for higher efficiency with
ethanol could move into the market very quickly, AVL’s / Ford’s
Bobcat engine or Ricardo’s EBDI engine are two great engine
platforms that are developed and certified.  This offers an
additional 20 to 30 percent reduction to carbon over the numbers
being discussed today.  Along with this, ethanol has the potential
to displace 25 percent more oil by approaching the next generation
of FFV’s from the perspective of efficiency and mileage
capabilities.
      By listing the emission of carbon per horsepower hour, this
is the most straight forward approach to evaluating cars, trucks or
any other engine application. Carbon per horsepower hour would see
significant reduction when ethanol is used. Ethanol can achieve
much higher efficiency then gasoline and has demonstrated higher
efficiencies of even the most advanced diesels with significant
reductions of not only carbon but other harmful emissions.
     Saab introduce their FFV with much of the same technology as
the two previously listed engines some two years ago, while for
some reason this is still not marketed in the US , it offered near
equal mileage with E85 in the tank as compared with today’s regular
gasoline.  With 30 percent less carbon in the tank, this simply
means less carbon out the tail pipe.
    What many need to realize at the California ARB is that in
order for cellulose ethanol to be successful, we need to raise the
value for ethanol.  If corn ethanol is not successful, if the big
picture for corn ethanol is not recognized and the critics are
allow misrepresenting the facts, then not much progress is going to
be made.

Steve Vander Griend