Sunday, May 3, 2009

Enviros, politicians push pseudo-science

http://tinyurl.com/cc35l2
Ethanol test for Obama on climate change, science AP By H. JOSEF HEBERT
WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama's commitment to take on climate change and put science over politics is about to be tested as his administration faces a politically sensitive question about... ethanol: Does it ...hurt the fight against global warming?The Environmental Protection Agency is close to proposing ethanol standards. But two years ago, when Congress ordered a huge increase in ethanol use, lawmakers also told the agency to show that ethanol would produce less pollution linked to global warming than would gasoline.So how will the EPA define greenhouse gas emissions from ethanol production and use? Given the political clout... will the science conflict with the politics?
****It's clear that narrow "defining" means factual distortion.("Aside from that, Mrs Lincoln, how did you like the play?") Scientists cannot ignore inconvenient facts just to please politicians and enviros and still be scientists. Ethanol from corn is counterproductive. If the proponents are sincere, they should facilitate importation of sugar-based ethanol (clearly MORE energy efficent) from Brazil instead of putting on a tariff of $0.50/gallon ( and not requiring the $0.50/gal SUBSIDY provided to corn-based ethanol.)It's clear they are insincere with respect to corn as further evidenced by the provision: "Congress said any fuel produced in plants built after 2007 must emit 20 percent less in greenhouse gases than gasoline if it comes from corn, and 60 percent less if from cellulosic crops." What will the President do? He's shown no understanding of science but, worse, he has shown no sign that he cares. In fact, he'll likely claim that pandering to the corn-state senators shows "bipartisanship." ****

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