Sunday, July 15
The end of the biofuels money train?
Iowa benefits more than any other state in getting federal funding for
biofuels. Livestock producers and the food industry oppose the practice. As
Congress looks at new farm and energy bills, biofuels could lose.
By PHILIP BRASHER
Register Washington Bureau
Few industries are more dependent on government subsidies and mandates than
biofuels producers, and no state has benefited more than Iowa.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070715/BUSINESS01/707150330/1029/archive
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Biofuels tax abatements mean lost revenue
Towns weigh trade-offs of incentives to plants
By PAULA LAVIGNE
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
Ogden, Ia. - If Bill Roederer had more money, he'd figure out what to do
with that empty swimming pool.
The Ogden schools superintendent has a wish list of renovations for the
40-year-old high school that would include turning a leaky indoor pool into
something useful.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070715/BUSINESS01/707150333/1029/archive
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Plants, gas stations want incentives
Flex-fuel vehicles multiply, but E85 still hard to find
By PHILIP BRASHER
Register Washington Bureau
Austin, Texas - The challenge facing the ethanol industry - and taxpayers -
is evident in places such as Austin, 900 miles south of the heart of the
nation's ethanol production.
Only three stations in the fast-growing Austin area, with a population of
1.5 million, sell E85.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070715/BUSINESS01/707150331/1029/archive
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Major biofuel proposals in Congress
Proposals that could affect Iowa
Bigger ethanol mandate: A Senate energy bill would increase the amount of
ethanol and other biofuels that refiners are required to use to 15 billion
gallons by 2015 and 36 billion gallons by 2022. The House is developing
similar legislation.
More use of E85: Sen. Tom Harkin, D-Ia., and others have proposed requiring
carmakers to make nearly all vehicles capable of using E85 within 10 years.
Oil companies also would be required to install E85 pumps. To get motorists
to buy E85, the lawmakers want a special subsidy that starts at 35 cents a
gallon and then decreases.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070715/BUSINESS01/707150332/1029/archive
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Saturday, 7-14-07
Appeal to Harkin: Hold ground on conservation
By JAMES CALIGIURI and BRAD REDLIN
SPECIAL TO THE REGISTER
This month marks the beginning of earnest work on the 2007 farm bill, as
members of congressional committees hammer out details of U.S. agricultural
policy for the next five years.
Iowa's Sen. Tom Harkin, chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, plays
a key role in determining the future of American farming as he shapes this
year's bill.
http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070714/OPINION01/707140306/1035/archive
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LTE
In a fair comparison, Prius greener than Hummer
Regarding Steven Whitehead's July 2 letter, "Hummers are Picked-on,
Misunderstood": I can understand why a Hummer sales manager would be
frustrated about the public's perception of his product. The Hummer is the
planet's most-maligned line of vehicles for its environmental impact - among
other things. I can understand the "me-too" argument, that the H3 is no
worse than many other vehicles already available. Instead, he had to push
the envelope making preposterous claims about the H3's "very positive impact
on the environment."
He cites CNW Marketing's study "Dust to Dust," which claims Hummers are more
environmentally favorable than Toyota Priuses over their lifetimes. He fails
to mention the reason for this is that CNW took the controversial step of
estimating a Prius's life span at a mere 100,000 miles, a third of the
Hummer's estimated life span.
If you assume a Prius will last 300,000 miles, and there's no mechanical
reason to doubt it would, the Hummer becomes much dirtier by comparison.
Whitehead also misses the point of the entire study, which is that
manufacturing a new car is a filthy process. Buying a new car is the single
most polluting act most of us can do. If you want to minimize your
environmental impact, you should look for a used fuel-efficient vehicle, or
better yet, hold onto your current one.
- Matt Bishop,
Johnston.
Humming along in my Prius, at half the cost
I was amused to read the July 2 letter by the Hummer sales manager, Steven
Whitehead. This reminds me of a book I bought, "How To Lie With Statistics."
CNW Marketing is an organization funded by the U.S. auto industry. When I
bought my Prius, my son e-mailed me a copy of the "Dust To Dust" report,
which I read.
I just finished a 3,500-mile round trip and averaged 45 miles per gallon.
Around Memorial Day, gasoline cost an average of $3.41 a gallon on the
interstate. I used 78 gallons, which cost me $266.
A Hummer that maybe gets 20 miles per gallon would have used about 175
gallons of gas and cost $597 for the same trip.
- Juris Bets,
Des Moines.
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Plowing trails questionable use of money
An editorial in the July 3 paper promoted making Iowa "bike friendly" 52
weeks a year ("Make Iowa Bike-Friendly All Year"). Although not listed as a
maintenance activity, money for plowing snow on trails would certainly be
needed, as well as a few strategically placed warming houses.
Is this really where we want to spend our money?
- Kathi Stanfield,
Indianola.
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