Green Options

After what seems like an endless period of record-high gasoline prices, gas station signs are changing almost constantly as the cost for a gallon of gas tumbles. Although the numbers vary depending on where you are, the trend is the same: prices have hit the bottom of the (oil) barrel.

As I write, the lowest average price in America for a gallon of regular unleaded is $1.683 in Oklahoma, while the highest is $2.866 in Alaska.1 Whatever the exact figures, they are far more than half of what they were when prices were at their highest.

As I have watched prices plummet, I have felt my joy and relief rising in an inversely proportional ratio. I also know how many others feel the same, given the fact that commuting is a necessity for many folks…and that many folks drive a lot farther than I do and do not have a hybrid to help reduce consumption.

High gas prices have had serious effects on people’s lifestyles across the world, not to mention other things such as cost of food and other goods. People have been driving less and still paying more for just about everything, causing serious problems for people on fixed incomes or with large families, for instance. We have also witnessed the virtual death of the SUV…though you can still find a Hummer barreling down the highway now and again, gas prices be damned.

Ironically, Americans are lucky when it comes to gas prices. Consumers in many other countries pay a great deal more for their fuel, due to lack of subsidies, higher taxes, or other factors. According to NationMaster.com, the top five for gas prices are Uruguay, United Kingdom, Israel, Argentina, and Japan. America comes in at #102, fairly low on the list of 141 countries; the lucky last is Turkmenistan, of all places!2

Still, gas prices are dropping worldwide, whatever that means country by country and state by state. But with all the joy I am feeling, and just about every other human being is feeling, I also wonder if cheaper gas is not really a good thing.

The technology to make biobutanol, a non-food based biofuel, cost-competitive with gasoline isn’t here yet, but companies in the know say that it could be by 2010.

Regardless of how the debate between corn ethanol and second-generation, non-food ethanol (cellulosic ethanol) pans out, we may be arguing about the wrong thing. “Why’s that?” you might ask. You see, as a source of fuel, ethanol poses several serious problems.

If you think you’ve heard words like change, climate change, and gasoline a lot from our presidential candidates, you’re right. The Global Language Monitor, which has been tracking the entire Obama/McCain showdown, puts them as the top three “buzzwords” in this election.

In what could be a major breakthrough for second generation ethanol production, German researchers have developed a new method that easily converts raw wood into sugar using a liquid ionic salt bath at room temperature followed by reaction with a solid acid resin.

The process works by chopping the complex raw wood molecules into smaller and simpler bits — the end product being single sugar molecules. The method can also be used on other second generation ethanol feedstocks such as grass straw. Once you’ve made the sugar, the rest of the process of making ethanol is as simple as making beer — literally.

Every time the price of oil drops, the demand for that same product increases and the demand for alternate fuels, decreases. Why are gas prices falling?

This post was originally published on Eco-Libris blog on September 28.

Bill Roth is the author of the new and important book “On Empty (Out of Time)“, which readers have described as “America’s final “wake-up call”" and “A must read if you want freedom from high pump prices!”.

We reviewed the book at the beginning of the month and I felt afterwards that this issue is way too important and requires an interview with the author to learn more about his views and thoughts on the energy issues we’re facing.

Firstly here’s a little background of the author (see also photo below): Bill Roth has a solid experience in the energy sector, with a career that included posts such as senior VP of marketing and sales with PG&E Energy Services and COO of Texaco Ovonics Hydrogen Solutions. Currently he is the President of NCCT, a San Francisco-based consulting firm helping businesses define and integrate Sustainability into their strategies, performance metrics, branding/marketing and business processes.. He is also Entrepreneur.com’s Green Business Coach.

Editor’s Note: This post was provided by one of our paid sponsors, the Ethanol Promotion Information Council (EPIC). EPIC is a nonprofit alliance of ethanol industry leaders who have come together to grow consumer demand for ethanol energy through targeted marketing.

The Ethanol Promotion Information Council (EPIC) is working to get the word out that ethanol is actually helping to keep gas prices lower. The following is from an interview with Toni Nuernberg, executive director of EPIC.

If you’ve been exposed to the media lately you’ve probably heard the phrase “renewable fuels.” What exactly are renewable fuels? According to Wikipedia, “renewable fuels are alternative fuel sources such as biofuels (ethanol, biodiesel -e.g. soy, vegetable oils, animal fats, or recycled restaurant greases-) or hydrogen.” Texas Governor Rick Perry recently petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lower ethanol mandates, saying that the production of ethanol was causing food and fuel prices to go up. The EPA rejected Gov. Perry’s request in August, saying that the Renewable Fuels Standard “remains an important tool in our ongoing efforts to reduce America’s greenhouse gas emissions and lessen our dependence on foreign oil.”

Using microscopic metal particles, scientists from the University of Wisconsin-Madison have found that plant-based sugar can be converted to gasoline to be used in current engines. The substance is cleaner-burning than petroleum-based gasoline and more stable than ethanol.

According to a sweeping report released by the Center for American Progress and authored by researchers from the UMass Department of Economics, if the US government were to invest $100 billion dollars over two years in six key areas of green and sustainable development — including advanced biofuels — the result would be the creation of 2 million high-paying jobs across nearly all sectors of employment.

This represents four times the amount of jobs that would be created if that same $100 billion were invested in the oil industry for things like more offshore drilling. It also represents significantly more jobs of much higher diversity, pay, and longevity than were created by the $100 billion spent last April so that all us ‘mericans could all get our $600 tax rebates.

With American S.U.V. sales at an all time low and owners unable to sell them, manufacturers have had to come up with new market.  Right now that market is in Russia.

Russia, with a population of over 150 Million people, may not sound like the greatest market, but the fact that less than 20 percent of the population even owns a vehicle, makes it huge rife for potential.  According to Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP, Russian bought 1.6 million vehicles in the first six months of the year, a 40 per increase from the first half of 2007. Well, to begin with, gas cost’s more than half as much than in most Western European Markets.  Add in the fact that their economy is growing from between 6 and 8 percent annually, partly do to swelling commodity prices on its vast oil reserves, and the countries notoriusly rough roads and winters, and you have a mix ripe with possibilities.

Though Russia’s economy is doing well, housing continues to be very cost prohibitive to a great  portion of the population.  Not everyone can afford decent housing, and a lot of people have actually invested their money in high end S.U.V.’s to live in.

As with any society that is going through burgeoning growth, Russian consumers have become very brand conscience, and you can be sure that American Auto Manufacturers will be there to make sure that even they, can have a piece of the American Way.

By Jonathan G. Dorn

Background

• The United States consumes nearly 21 million barrels of petroleum per day (7.5 billion barrels per year), one fourth the world total.
• Of the crude oil consumed in the U.S., 66 percent is imported.
• The U.S. is on pace to spend over $500 billion on petroleum imports in 2008.
• U.S. oil production currently occurs onshore in the lower 48 states (2.9 million barrels per day (mbd)), offshore (1.4 mbd, primarily in the Gulf of Mexico), and in Alaska (0.7 mbd).

More Drilling Cannot Make the U.S. Energy Independent

• The U.S. Geological Survey estimates that 10.4 billion barrels of oil are technically recoverable in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR)—less than one and a half years of consumption.
• The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) estimates that of the 59 billion barrels of technically recoverable oil in the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) of the lower 48 states, only 18 billion are off limits under the federal moratorium.
• DOE projects that lifting the OCS moratorium would not increase production before 2017 and that by 2030 production would only amount to 0.2 million barrels per day—less than 1 percent of current consumption.
• Total U.S. proved oil reserves are estimated at 21 billion barrels—less than a 3 year supply at the current rate of consumption.
• Since peaking in 1970, U.S. crude oil production has declined 47 percent. World production could be peaking now.