Ethanol: Green Fuel, Greener Lakes?

Wednesday's print MDL offers an AP report on potential negative environmental impacts of ethanol production on Chesapeake Bay [no author cited, "More Corn Acres for Ethanol Bad Deal for Chesapeake Bay?" Madison Daily Leader, 2007.08.22, p. 6]. A July 17 Washington Post article provides an account of the same study AP discusses [David A. Fahrenthold, "'Green' Fuel May Damage the Bay," Washington Post, 2007.07.17, p. B01].

The gist: Increased ethanol production means increased corn production. Corn requires more fertilizer than other crops. Runoff from cornfields thus contains more nitrogen, phosphorus, and other nutrients from fertilizer. Increased nutrient levels in runoff means increased algae blooms in the lakes and bays that receive that runoff. Algae blooms stink, but more importantly they "consume the oxygen that fish, crabs and other creatures need to breathe, creating the Chesapeake's infamous dead zones" [Fahrenthold].

These concerns arise in a region where corn production is increasing more slowly than the national average: Fahrenthold cites figures from the study predicting farmers in the Chesapeake Bay watershed will plant an additional 500,000 acres of corn over the next five years. South Dakota Corn Growers cite USDA figures predicting 400,000 more acres planted to corn in South Dakota just this year.

Does the increased risk of algae blooms and lake eutrophication mean we should give up on ethanol? No. That's not the conclusion the study reaches. We don't have to shut down corn production to protect our lakes. We do, however, need to take measures to reduce the amount of nutrient runoff from fields to lakes. That means keeping more CRP acres and grassy buffer zones around waterways to absorb the nutrients before they can contaminate other bodies of water.

Ethanol offers many benefits, but when it comes to fueling our passion for automobiles, we must remember that every energy solution will bring various costs. Ethanol is helping farmers cash in, but it is also driving up food prices and now may also make our lakes a little less healthy. South Dakota can cash in on ethanol and good corn prices, but we need to balance our desire for profit from the land with protection of the water.