Sunday, April 08, 2007

HIDDEN CANADIAN GOVERNMENT REPORT FIND ETHANOL POLLUTES LIKE GASOLINE



CBC - An unpublished federal report appears to undermine the belief that
commercially available ethanol-blended fuel produces cleaner emissions
than regular gasoline. . . The federal Conservative government committed
$2 billion in incentives for ethanol, made from wheat and corn, and
biodiesel in last week's budget. But based on Ottawa's own research,
critics say the investment is based more on myth than hard science. 'Not
a lot of difference'

Scientists at Environment Canada studied four vehicles of recent makes,
testing their emissions in a range for driving conditions and
temperatures. "Looking at tailpipe emissions, from a greenhouse gas
perspective, there really isn't much difference between ethanol and
gasoline," said Greg Rideout, head of Environment Canada's toxic
emissions research. "Our results seemed to indicate that with today's
vehicles, there's not a lot of difference at the tailpipe with
greenhouse gas emissions."

The study found no statistical difference between the greenhouse gas
emissions of regular unleaded fuel and 10 per cent ethanol blended fuel.
Although the study found a reduction in carbon monoxide, a pollutant
that forms smog, emissions of some other gases, such as hydrocarbons,
actually increased under certain conditions. . .

Federal Environment Minister John Baird said he knows about the report,
which was commissioned under the previous Liberal government. However,
he said, he is looking at the big picture. "I think there's an issue
between the tailpipe and the whole cycle," he said. "The whole cycle is
better than the tailpipe." Other ethanol proponents agreed, saying
tailpipe emissions are not the only statistic that matters.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/03/30/ethanol-emissions.html/


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