Northwest's Biofuel Boom Goes Bust (And Why Community Scale Production Is Better)
The Oregonian reports that, in two short years, the Northwest has gone from biofuels boom to biofuels bust. Meanwhile, the Western Organization of Resource Councils released a study on the viability of community scale biofuels projects and their importance in a larger sustainable energy policy.
Back in June, Scott Learn reported for The Oregonian on the apparent end to a short-lived market boom in the Northwest on biofuels - especially ethanol. The boom came as a result of "tax breaks and Oregon and Washington standards designed to require biofuels' use," and "the companies promised environmental benefits on an industrial scale, a quantum leap from smaller-scale producers making fuel from cooking grease and Northwest crops."
With the arrival of the current recession, the boom started to fade. Cascade Grain and Pacific Ethanol, two of the big players in the Northwest's biofuels market, both declared bankruptcy this year. Similarly, Imperium and U.S. Ethanol idled their plants indefinitely.
According to Learn, "Last year, the U.S. produced more than 9 billion gallons of biofuels, almost all corn ethanol, using a quarter of the nation's corn crop. The fuel displaced enough petroleum gasoline to power 2.1 million cars. But it reduced greenhouse gas emissions from the U.S. transportation sector by less than 1 percent, the Congressional Budget Office estimates." Critics have charged that increased biofuels production was responsible for the sharp rise in food prices in 2008 and even for riots throughout the world over the cost of food. Supporters have conceded that biofuels should not be pursued if needed food supplies are taken out of production, but have also countered that biofuels are a renewable resource that benefits the country's agricultural economy and that they halt an increase in carbon emissions (because biofuels crops release the same amount of carbon when burned as they sequester when grown).
What the boom and bust of the Northwest's industrial biofuel industry illustrates is the need for a return to more decentralized, community-led efforts to create local energy solutions - of which biofuels may be but a part. Oregon Rural Action and the WORC network continue to support and encourage community scale development of biofuels as a way to extricate ourselves from dependence on fossil fuels and environmentally damaging extractive industries, as well as foster thriving local economies.
WORC recently released a comparative study of several community scale biofuels projects called "Homegrown Prosperity From the Bottom Up." In the report, six case studies are presented covering biodiesel’s economic potential, legal and systemic issues, sustainability, available technical assistance and financial resources. The report found reasons for optimism for a locally-owned and operated biodiesel sector and outlined factors likely to cause uncertainty for producers and prospective producers.
Helen Waller of WORC says, “For small and community-scale biodiesel to be an economic stimulus, we need good public policies. We urge federal and state officials to help spur rural economies by adopting these policies and firmly establishing small and community-scale biodiesel production. Policies should be made friendlier so small and community-scale producers can make biodiesel in a sustainable manner.”
Read more of Learner's article >>
Download "Homegrown Prosperity From the Bottom Up" (PDF)
