There is a debate quietly raging over whether ethanol is a valid response to global warming. We consider Farrell &al’s survey paper an authoritative overview. It shows a distinction between current, corn ethanol and future, everything ethanol on the two key comparisons with oil:

Is ethanol energy-positive?

Current ethanol uses almost as much natural gas and coal as is replaced by oil. We can conclude that this is a beneficial conversion in Canada given that the tar sands, which use steam extraction methods, are a similar conversion:

tar sand + people [labour] + water + natural gas = oil

Is ethanol emissions-negative?

Current ethanol is close to emissions-neutral. However, Canada happens to be the world leader in low-emissions ethanol, and increasing demand for all ethanol should build that market.

Ethanol is awesome for Canada – who cares if it’s good for the rest of the world?