The Effects on theThe Use of Water for the Production of Ethanol

Main Point # 1 - Corn’s versatility, global demand, and profit margin has led the over grown grass to emerge as America’s number one crop. The USDA evaluated corn’s crop value to be $76.9 billion in 2011, making it a huge contributor to the American economic system (National Corn Growers Association, 2017). Research gathered by Duke University found that the U.S. produced 40% of the world’s supply, 10% of which comes from the small town of Constantine, Michigan while an additional 10% is produced from the surrounding areas (“U.S and Employment,” 2015; Motz, T., 2016). These spikes in corn’s global demand have created an opportunity for farmers and mid-western field workers to become involved in the growing and profitable industry.

Many alterations have been applied to the area that corn is grown in. The main biome that corn is grown would be grasslands. Grasslands are an extremely important biome for producing food, it was shown that approximately 90% of the food produced today contains at least one of the fifteen species that are grown in grasslands. Unfortunately, for there to be enough space for corn to be grown and harvested, native grasses must be cleared, therefore having a devastating impact on the biome. Corn is known to be the most thirsty crop to be grown, taking up almost 7,000 to 8,000 gallons of water, draining countries, that don't receive as much rain, of their groundwater. Another impact on the environment of corn production would be the excessive use of fertilizers, this is due to the little nutrients returned back to the soil. As corn is mainly used for consumption, very little plant

Corn is a versatile crop, and that is why we grow so much of it. However, many people believe that corn should be used as a system and not as American agriculture. Due to this, people think this is the problem with food prices increase and causing hardship problems. I’m here to tell you the facts about corn ethanol is far more greater in negativity and that corn ethanol is being put into bad use.

With the Colorado River supplying 43% of all agricultural water consumption and 41% of all Municipal and Industrial water supply in the basin, losing access to this resource entirely for one year would cost $1.434 trillion in combined state GDP [2]. Just a ten percent decline in water availability will reduce combined basin states GDP by $143.4 billion, reduce employment in the area by 1.6 million job-years, and reduce labor income by 87.1billion dollars per year [2]. In addition to the shrinking economic production, the cost of living in the area would also start to increase. The water in the Colorado River provides inexpensive energy for the parts of the lower basin states, the cost of the power has doubled from the initial contracts, and if water levels fall to 1000', the costs could quintuple for customers that are bound to purchase the hydroelectric power until 2067 [8]. While the internal economy of the basin would suffer, the effects would also ripple into the rest of the country. The agricultural Imperial Valley in California, for example, provides two-thirds of the country's vegetables in the winter [9]. Without proper irrigation and water supply, production rates

the lifeblood of our planet. Many of these bodies of water may be out of sight and out of mind,

Cellulosic ethanol is a biofuel produced from the waste of corn, and its potential for minimalizing pollution is huge. The first company to find the breakthrough, DSM, gained recognition, but was met with obstacles in the production of this biofuel in the form of rocks, which contaminated the corn waste and clogged the machinery. However, DSM soon overcame this obstacle and now produces truckloads of cellulosic ethanol every week. This environmentally friendly biofuel is everywhere, ranging from animal feed to solar panels. DSM is aimed towards “improving the planet and the lives of people on it”. Feike Sijbesma, the CEO of DSM, states that the company values “People. Planet. Profit” and is geared towards addressing malnutrition and climate

The sources of food and water problems are vast. Some of the sources are using corn as an alternative to feeding animals such as cows and pigs. As Michael Pollan states in his book, The Omnivore’s Dilemma, corn was being mass produced after world war II after there were weapons of mass destruction with high nitrogen content that were the used as fertilizers. The issues mentioned in The Omnivore’s Dilemma and Blue Future by Maude Barlow share the same amount of issues in water and ability of the government to regulate farming practices and companies that are leading to these issues. Both books mention the major source of water loss as mass production of crops and meat.

Farming in the Texas Panhandle is a lifestyle. Corn is one of the largest produced crops in the world and in the panhandle. It is a lot of families’ lively hood. These families grow many crops, but corn seems to be one of the most popular. In order to grow corn, they need water, but with the recent drought, these families have been struggling to find alternative methods to produce high yields. Everything from simply just changing their crop to something that needs less water to scientist engineering new breeds of said crop so that it can flourish with less water. In this paper I will cover some of these methods and hopefully give an insight to what these farmers are dealing with on a daily basis.

I also believe it is important to research the corn crops and corn-based ethanol a little bit more before jumping into a decision like this. According to the 2014 Illinois Crop Budgets corn crops “have lower returns than received in recent years,” suggesting that incomes will be down for corn farmers in comparison to previous years (Schnitkey, 2013). Even with the increased demand for ethanol, knowing that projected incomes are potentially in decline is something one should not take lightly before making such a drastic career

The states of Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio are mainly known for their auto industries, but automobiles aren’t the only thing these states specialize in. For starters, Michigan has a growing industry in technology. Technology just happened to be one of the top five industries fueling Michigan’s economy. This industry is supported by their unrivaled epic center for research and development. The research and development center is where work is directed towards the innovation, introduction, and improvement of products and processes. When dealing with technology, water technology is a necessity because it aids greatly in Michigan’s ever improving agricultural industry. The agricultural industry brings in $101billion to Michigan’s economy which

One such farm uses more than 22 billion gallons of water annually to irrigate their 30,000-acre wheat and corn farm (Parker). Another contributing factor is the pressure for farmers to continue over irrigating their lands. The push behind this practice is coming from other businesses, like seed and grain mill operations, farm implement dealers, bankers, and anyone else that rely on these farms for a living. Even the majority of the farmers are for this because their property is worth more and earns more as long as it stays green compared to going to a dry land

Back in April 2014 AgriMet, a pilot crop water conservation project developed by Anheuser-Busch, the Bureau of Reclamation and two state universities was implemented to improve water efficiency for Idaho Falls area barley growers (Anheuser-Busch, "Bureau of Reclamation and Anheuser-Busch...”). The AgriMet project supports Anheuser-Busch long-term sustainability objective of reducing impacts across its global value chain. Further, Anheuser-Busch’s objective is to reduce water risks and improve water management in one-hundred percent of its key barley growing regions in partnership with local stakeholders (Anheuser-Busch, "Bureau of Reclamation and Anheuser-Busch...”). The partnership between the Bureau of Reclamation, University of Idaho and

Ethanol fuel has many positive features as an alternative to the use of liquid fuel. First, ethanol is renewable. A relatively safe fuel would show very few engine changes. Second, its energy density is much higher than with some of the other alternative fuels, such as methanol, which means there would be less volume required to go the same distance. With the third benefit of ethanol, it would be able to improve much of the agricultural economies by providing farmers with stable market crops, such as maize and sugar beets, and with

One notable energy source is biofuel. Biofuel is made from agricultural efforts. While this seems like a win/win for the energy industry, and the agricultural industry, it’s detrimental to the water industry. How? If you take a step back, you will see that the demand for fresh irrigation water is increased, so is the increase for pesticides and fertilizers. With unsustainable irrigation practices, water run-off, the lack of watershed management programs, and unpredictable climate changes and weather patterns, surface and ground waters are more susceptible to pollution and contamination. This is a reality that Lake Okeechobee knows all too well right now. Back pumping from sugar cane agricultural land into Lake Okeechobee has caused surface water contamination, and a call for a “state of emergency” for the lake and its water quality.

Irrigation played a crucial role in increasing Arkansas rice production. Rice farming in Arkansas uses the Mississippi River Valley alluvial aquifer, often referred to as the “alluvial aquifer” for irrigation. Arkansas farmers irrigated 0.949 Bgal/d in 1965 of groundwater for irrigation to 7.679 Bgal/d in 2010, an 800% increase in groundwater usage over the past 50 years. This increase in water usage will only increase as farmers convert more acreage to produce rice. The total water use for irrigation (groundwater and surface water) in Arkansas between 1965 and 2010 increased from 1160 Mgal/d to 9247 Mgal/d, a 800% increase. See table 2 for more detail on water usage. Graphs use data from the Arkansas water use reports. (“Water