I read a short article on the NY Times website.
U.S. and Brazil Seek to Promote Ethanol in West - The New York Times
Article writes:
WASHINGTON, March 2 ” President Bush, hoping to reduce demand for oil in the Western Hemisphere, is preparing to finish an agreement with Brazil next week to promote the production and use of ethanol throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, according to administration officials...
Article writes:
...Administration officials are hoping to complete a memorandum of understanding that calls for cooperation between the countries on research and common standards for biofuels, as well as on helping other countries replicate Brazil’s expertise in producing ethanol from sugar...
... American officials expressed a similar enthusiasm for making ethanol and ethanol-producing equipment on a huge scale. The biggest area of cooperation, they said, will be in helping countries identify and remove obstacles to building their own ethanol production capacity...
..."We want ethanol to become a global commodity, and for that to happen, Brazil can’t be the only producer,” said José Luiz Oliverio, vice president for operations at Dedini Industries, Brazil’s leading manufacturer of equipment for sugar cane and ethanol mills.
This was an intriguing yet troubling article. Ethanol use will lessen the dependence upon fossil fuels, especially petroleum.
It also has the possibility of strengthening the economies of several Central and South American nations. But even this benefit in the face of NAFTA leads one to perplexion.
Also, reading over these statements in particular, and from what I noticed there was no mention of the increase in clearing forests for farm land to grow the sugar cane? or how many acres would need to be cleared to accomplish their goal of ethanol becoming a "global commodity"?
The article was bereft of information concerning the loss of biodiversity.
So, a little searching and up popped this:
bioscience | AIBS
So, to put it simply, where do others stand on this issue? Does anyone have any more information regarding this topic? Possibly Quetzal? who I beieve, but may be wrong, is currently residing south of the US border?
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