Indian Finance Minister P. Chidambaram on Wednesday criticised countries like the US for diverting farm products to produce biofuels, saying this had led to soaring global food prices. While growing demand was one reason for skyrocketing food prices, the use of agricultural products to make biofuels was another cause, he told a public lecture organised by the Lee Kuan Yew School Public Policy in Singapore…. “It has been estimated that nearly 20 percent of corn grown in the United States is diverted for producing biofuels,” he said in his speech to academics, students and diplomats…. “As citizens of the world, we ought to be concerned about the foolishness of growing food and diverting it into fuel.”
I’m all for alternative fuels, and anything that can help reduce our collective carbon footprint is a good thing. Or is it? I’ve been concerned for some time now that the growing excitement over alternative fuels, while a laudable and worthwhile pursuit, will have adverse effects on other important aspects of our existence- like the world food supply, for instance. Sadly, it’s beginning to appear that my concerns are being borne out…and the impact is far worse than anything this non-economist could have possibly envisioned.
Rather than feeding people, crops are being grown to feed our growing appetite for fuel. Rather than fighting hunger and starvation, we’re filling our SUVs with fuel distilled from corn. While I’m supportive of the idea of alternative fuels, does it really have to be a zero-sum proposition (we drive, you starve)? When 20% of the corn grown in the US is no longer used for feeding people, how can this not be seen as a significant and far-reaching problem?
This disturbing trend extends, in my mind at least, to the rush toward hybrid vehicles. Again, another laudable concept, but the execution is somewhat less rosy. While people rave about the mileage and the environmental friendliness of hybrids, there’s a very troubling reality that’s been conveniently and completely overlooked. The large batteries that power hybrid vehicle are a nightmarish stew of toxic chemicals that provide their own ecological challenges- like how to dispose of them, f’rinstance.
I could go on, but the argument seems pretty clear. While I continue to believe that striving for more ecologically-friendly fuels and means of transportation is a very good thing, overlooking the unpleasant side effects does nothing to advance the cause. If you believe, as I do, that every action has an equal and opposite reaction, we need to be at least as concerned with dealing effectively with the reactions as we are with the actions. Ethanol does mankind no good at all if it comes at the cost of more people hungry and starving. Likewise, hybrids do us no good if the byproducts include batteries filled with toxic chemicals fouling our landfills and water tables once their useful life is over.
It seems that once something can be sold as eco-friendly, the hype machine takes over and reality goes out the window. In the end, that reality just might kill us.
