|
Showing 1 - 8 of
8 matches in All Departments
In light of a changing regulatory and legislative environment,
concern has arisen regarding the future prospects for ethanol as a
motor fuel. Ethanol is produced from biomass (mainly corn) and is
mixed with gasoline to produce cleaner-burning fuel called
"gasohol" or "E10." The market for fuel ethanol, which consumes 10
% of the nation's corn crop, is heavily dependent on federal
subsidies and regulations. A major impetus to the use of fuel
ethanol has been the exemption that it receives from the motor
fuels excise tax. Ethanol is expensive relative to gasoline, but it
is subject to a federal tax exemption of 5.2 cents per gallon of
gasohol (or 52 cents per gallon of pure ethanol). This exemption
brings the cost of pure ethanol, which is higher than that of
conventional gasoline and other oxygenates, within reach of the
cost of competitive substances. In addition, there are other
incentives such as a small ethanol producers tax credit. It has
been argued that the fuel ethanol industry could scarcely survive
without these incentives. The Clean Air Act requires that ethanol
or another oxygenate be mixed with gasoline in areas with excessive
carbon monoxide or ozone pollution. The resulting fuels are called
...
More than one million Americans are employed in manufacturing motor
vehicles, equipment and parts. But the industry has changed
dramatically since the U.S. Big Three motor vehicle corporations
(General Motors, Ford and Chrysler) produced the overwhelming
majority of cars and light trucks sold in the United States, and
directly employed more than that many people themselves.
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA, P.L.
110-140), significantly expanded the renewable fuel standard (RFS)
established in the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (EPAct 2005, P.L.
109-58). The RFS requires the use of 9.0 billion gallons of
renewable fuel in 2008, increasing to 36 billion gallons in 2022.
Further, EISA requires an increasing amount of the mandate be met
with "advanced biofuels"-biofuels produced from feedstocks other
than corn starch and with 50% lower lifecycle greenhouse gas
emissions than petroleum fuels. Within the advanced biofuel
mandate, there are specific carve-outs for cellulosic biofuels and
biomass-based diesel substitutes (e.g., biodiesel).
Instituting policies to manage or reduce GHGs would likely impact
different states differently. Understanding these differences may
provide for a more informed debate regarding potential policy
approaches. However, multiple factors play a role in determining
impacts, including alternative design elements of a GHG emissions
reduction program, the availability and relative cost of mitigation
options, and the regulated entities' abilities to pass compliance
costs on to consumers. Three primary variables drive a state's
human-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emission levels: population, per
capita income, and the GHG emissions intensity. GHG emissions
intensity is a performance measure. In this book, GHG intensity is
a measure of GHG emissions from sources within a state compared
with a state's economic output (gross state product, GSP). The GHG
emissions intensity driver stands apart as the main target for
climate change mitigation policy, because public policy generally
considers population and income growth to be socially positive. The
intensity of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions largely determines
overall GHG intensity, because CO2 emissions account for 85% of the
GHG emissions in the United States. As 98% of U.S. CO2 emissions
are energy-related, the primary factors that shape CO2 emissions
intensity are a state's energy intensity and the carbon content of
its energy use. Energy intensity measures the amount of energy a
state uses to generate its overall economic output (measured by its
GSP). Several underlying factors may impact a state's energy
intensity: a state's economic structure, personal transportation
use in a state (measured in vehicle miles travelled per person),
and public policies regarding energy efficiency. The carbon content
of energy use in a state is determined by a state's portfolio of
energy sources. States that utilise a high percentage of coal, for
example, will have a relatively high carbon content of energy use,
compared to states with a lower dependence on coal. An additional
factor is whether a state is a net exporter or importer of
electricity, because CO2 emissions are attributed to
electricity-producing states, but the electricity is used (and
counted) in the consuming state. Between 1990 and 2000, the United
States reduced its GHG intensity by 1.6% annually. Assuming that
population and per capita income continue to grow as expected, the
United States would need to reduce its GHG intensity at the rate of
3% per year in order to halt the annual growth in GHG emissions.
Therefore, achieving reductions (or negative growth) in GHG
emissions would necessitate further declines in GHG intensity.
Over one million Americans are employed in manufacturing motor
vehicles, equipment and parts. But the industry has changed
dramatically since the U.S. "Big Three" motor vehicle corporations
(General Motors, Ford and Chrysler) produced the overwhelming
majority of cars and light trucks sold in the United States, and
directly employed many people themselves. By 2003, most passenger
cars sold in the U.S. market were either imported or manufactured
by foreign-based producers at new North American plants (so-called
"transplant" facilities). The Big Three now dominate only in light
trucks, and are also now being challenged there by the foreign
brands. The Big Three have shed about 600,000 U.S. jobs since 1980,
while about one-quarter of Americans employed in automotive
manufacturing (nearly 300,000) work for the foreign-owned
companies. It is clear that the U.S. automotive industry has
undergone many drastic changes that have had a net adverse effect
on American interests. This book examines the causes of these
changes. Congressional acts, increasingly stringent emission laws,
the effects of NAFTA, labour unions and globalisation are all
within the scope of this book.
|
You may like...
Tenet
John David Washington, Robert Pattinson, …
DVD
(1)
R51
Discovery Miles 510
|