The Cost of Biofuel

Every sector of the economy depends on energy for production and other day-to-day activities. Arguably, transport sector is one of the sectors that highly depend on energy.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Cost of Biofuel specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Each vessel of transportation uses one source of energy or the other. However, oil which is mostly used as a source of energy in the transport sector is non-renewable. In this regard, the campaign by environmentalists about the need to use renewable sources of energy which are environmentally friendly has led to the introduction of biofuel as a source of energy. Unfortunately, biofuel uses food crops in its production thus reducing the amount of food available for human consumption. Moreover, food prices have increased drastically in recent years thereby becoming unaffordable especially for the poor people. Part of this increase has been attributed to use of b iofuels. Consequently, there have been arguments as to whether measures should be taken to ensure that people do not die of hunger while food crops are used to produce biofuel. With the trend of current use of energy, it is quite crucial that alternative sources of energy are found. Fossil fuels which are majorly used in energy production are not only non-renewable, but also a source of environmental pollution. Consequently, it is quite crucial that other sources of energy which are environmentally friendly should be explored to reduce the effects of environmental degradation (Gasparators Stromberg, 2012). In Addition, a source of energy that will support future generations should be found or else we leave the future generation at the mercy of fate. Biofuels are thus very crucial because despite the fact that they are renewable and will therefore be sustainable in the long run, they do not pollute the environment. It is important to note that production of biofuel does not only hav e advantages as its activists may want us to believe. Increase in use of biofuels has increased competition in food production. The amount of corn used in the production of ethanol has increased sharply in recent years. On the same note, soybeans are also increasingly being used in production of biodiesel while their consumption as food is reducing. Unfortunately, increase in production of food is not proportionate to the increase in the quantity of food demanded. Consequently, prices have had to increase due to high demand (Scragg, 2009). This has reduced the ability of people especially the poor to afford food thus exposing them to danger of starvation.Advertising Looking for essay on environmental studies? Let's see if we can help you! Get your first paper with 15% OFF Learn More Moreover, due to increased demand of corn and soybeans coupled with the good prices that these crops fetch, more and more farmers are dedicating their land to production of these crops. Thi s has encouraged monocropping which has proved to be dangerous in the past. It is important to note that planting one type of crop repeatedly in a place reduces fertility of the soil while at the same time it leads to resistant pests (Westhoff, 2010). Consequently, this reduces quantity of production in the long run. Though, these effects may take time to be felt, they will definitely affect future production. Similarly, increased demand for production of ethanol and biodiesel has made farmers to look for farming ways through which they can increase their production. As a result, farmers are using more aggressive methods of farming (Westhoff, 2010). These include; too much mechanization and increased use of fertilizers as well as pesticides. The result is soil depletion, increased soil erosion and environmental pollution. Therefore, contrary to the main aim of using biofuels which is to conserve the environment, biofuels contribute to environmental degradation. Notably, biofuel acco unts for a very minimal percentage of energy consumed in the world currently. Nevertheless, the amount of energy used in its production is far much higher than the amount of energy produced from biofuels. However, biofuels are responsible for a very significant increase in the quantity of food consumed. Similarly, biofuels have affected biodiversity by encouraging people to rely on one crop farming. All these will affect the low income earners not only due to increased food prices, but also due to reduced choices (Scragg, 2009). We all agree that renewable and eco-friendly sources of energy should be explored to ensure sustainability of energy in the future. However, increase in world population means that food production especially for human consumption should be increased, not decreased.Advertising We will write a custom essay sample on The Cost of Biofuel specifically for you for only $16.05 $11/page Learn More Much as biofuels have to be produced, s teps should be taken to ensure that food security is achieved. It is very inhuman to produce food which is used for energy production while people are dying of hunger. Research should be done to increase the number of crops that can be used to produce biofuel (Gasparators Stromberg, 2012). Moreover, mixed farming should be encouraged so that the quantity of crops produced will be increased thus ensuring that food is always available. In addition, there is need to educate farmers that food can be produced for profits. This will ensure that people do not stop producing food because biofuel crops pay well. In a nutshell, the cost of biofuel should be balanced with the sacrifices made. If stakeholders do not take care, production of biofuel will jeopardize food security. References Gasparators, A. Stromberg P. (2012). Socioeconomic and Environmental Impacts of Biofuels: Evidence from Developing Nations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Scragg, A. H. (2009). Biofuels: Production, Application and Development. Wallingford: CABI. Westhoff, P. (2010). The Economics of Food: How Feeding and Fueling the Planet Affects Food Prices. Upper Saddle River: FT Press. This essay on The Cost of Biofuel was written and submitted by user June P. to help you with your own studies. You are free to use it for research and reference purposes in order to write your own paper; however, you must cite it accordingly. You can donate your paper here.

Hoa Essay Essays

Hoa Essay Essays Hoa Essay Essay Hoa Essay Essay WHY HISTORIANS DISAGREE: Facts Versus Interpretations http://amstd. spb. ru/Library/Current/amhist3. htm Brinkley, Alan. American History: A Survey. 12th Edition, McGraw Hill 2007 Unlike some other fields of scholarship, history is not an exact science. We can establish with some certainty many of the basic facts of history- that the United States declared its independence in 1776. for example; or that the North won the Civil War; or that the first atomic bomb was detonated in 1945. But wide disagreement remains, and will always remain, about the significance of such facts. There are as many different ways of viewing a historical event as there are historians viewing it. In reading any work of history, therefore, it is important to ask not only what facts the author is presenting but how he or she is choosing and interpreting those facts. Historians disagree with one another for many reasons. People of different backgrounds, for example, often bring different attitudes to their exploration of issues. A black historian might look at the American Revolution in terms of its significance for the members of his or her race and thus draw conclusions about it that would differ from those of a white historian. A Southerner might view Reconstruction in terms different from a Northerner. Social, religious, racial, ethnic, and sexual differences among historians all contribute to the shaping of distinctive points of view. Historians might disagree, too, as a result of the methods they use to explore their subjects. One scholar might choose to examine slavery by using psychological techniques; another might reach different conclusions by employing quantitative methods and making use of a computer. Because history is an unusually integrative discipline- that is, because it employs methods and ideas from many different fields of knowledge, ranging from science to the humanities, from economics to literary criticism- the historian has available an enormous range of techniques, each of which might produce its own distinctive results. One of the greatest sources of disagreement among historians is personal ideology- a scholars assumptions about the past, the present, politics, society. Historians who accept the teachings of Karl Marx and others that economics and social classes lie at the root of all historical processes will emphasize such matters in their examination of the past. Others might stress ideas, or the influence of particular individuals, or the workings of institutions and bureaucracies. A critic of capitalism, for example, might argue that American foreign policy after World War II was a reflection of economic imperialism. A critic of communism would be more likely to argue that the United States was merely responding to Soviet expansionism. Perhaps most important, historical interpretations differ from one another according to the time in which they are written. It may not be true, as many have said, that every generation writes its own history. But it is certainly true that no historian can entirely escape the influence of his or her own time. Hence, for example, historians writing in the relatively calm 1950s often emphasized very different issues and took very different approaches from those who wrote in the turbulent 1960s, particularly on such issues as race and foreign policy. A scholar writing in a time of general satisfaction with the nations social and political system is likely to view the past very differently from one writing in a time of discontent. Historians in each generation, in other words, emphasize those features of the past that seem most relevant to contemporary concerns. All of this is not to say that present concerns dictate, or should dictate, historical views. Nor is it to say that all interpretations are equally valid. On some questions, historians do reach general agreement; some interpretations prove in time to be without merit, while others become widely accepted. What is most often the case, however, is that each interpretation brings something of value to our understanding of the past. The history of the world, like the life of an individual, has so many facets, such vast complexities, so much that is unknowable, that there will always be room for new approaches to understanding it. Like the blind man examining the elephant, in the fable, the historian can get hold of and describe only one part of the past at a time. The cumulative efforts of countless scholars examining different aspects of history contribute to a view of the past that grows fuller with every generation. But the challenge and the excitement of history lie in the knowledge that that view can never be complete.

Personal Responsibility to Nature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Personal Responsibility to Nature - Essay Example Under the section titled â€Å"Political Implications,† Friends of the Earth continue to arouse emotions such as anger and dismay by stating that the gulf oil spill occurred mainly because of the inaction of the federal government and the encouragement of certain politicians who will be benefitted through the oil companies.   The rhetoric used to describe the oil companies, particularly BP which caused the gulf oil spill this time, is very negative, with words such as â€Å"dirty,† and â€Å"dangerous.†Ã‚   Friends of the Earth adopt a different strategy when describing the economic and environmental consequences by highlighting numbers instead of blatantly villainizing oil companies.   For example, the website states that â€Å"At a rate of 5,000 to 20,000 barrels of oil being spilled per day, the spill's volume could eclipse that of the Exxon Valdez spill in two weeks to a month.†Ã‚   Using statistics and a well-known environmental accident as an exa mple are useful in orienting people to the seriousness of the current gulf oil spill, and thus they will be more likely to read on and take appropriate measures against the oil companies.   Another environmental group, Sierra Club, uses even more flaming rhetoric to blame the politicians by saying that â€Å"It's troubling at a time like this to see that some of our nation's leaders are still more interested in protecting the oil industry than protecting American taxpayers.† Contrary to the emotionally charged diction used in the statements of environmental groups, the BP press releases are written in plain language.  , offering the public a simple updates on their remedial work at the gulf. However, it appears that despite the great number of personnel and machinery deployed, the gulf remains highly contaminated. Considering the emotional appeal of the Friends of the Earth website, it is very likely that most of us will believe that the oil companies are villains with no redeeming properties. However, despite the responsibility we all should take in protecting the environment, we also cannot dismiss that our demand for oil is ever increasing as technology advances. It seems inevitable for politicians and oil companies to advocate and develop more means and locations for oil drilling. Otherwise, the whole country will suffer when we run out of energy. If we are not