The Biofuel Delusion

The Biofuel Delusion PDF Author: Mario Giampietro
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136573666
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 337

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Book Description
Faced with the twin threats of peak oil and climate change, many governments have turned for an answer to the apparent panacea of biofuels. Yet, increasingly, the progressive implementation of this solution demonstrates that the promise of biofuels as a replacement to fossil fuels is in fact a mirage that, if followed, risks leaving us short of power, short of food and doing as much damage to the climate as ever -- let alone the consequent impact on biodiversity due to additional loss of habitat for agricultural production and on rural development due to the additional stress on traditional farming systems. Worse still, these risks are being ignored. In this definitive expos Mario Giampietro and Kozo Mayumi present a theoretical framework and exhaustive evidence for the case against large scale biofuel production from agricultural crops. This book will be vital, sobering reading for anyone concerned with energy or agricultural policy, or bioenergy as a complex system.

The Biofuel Delusion

The Biofuel Delusion PDF Author: Mario Giampietro
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136573666
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 337

Get Book Here

Book Description
Faced with the twin threats of peak oil and climate change, many governments have turned for an answer to the apparent panacea of biofuels. Yet, increasingly, the progressive implementation of this solution demonstrates that the promise of biofuels as a replacement to fossil fuels is in fact a mirage that, if followed, risks leaving us short of power, short of food and doing as much damage to the climate as ever -- let alone the consequent impact on biodiversity due to additional loss of habitat for agricultural production and on rural development due to the additional stress on traditional farming systems. Worse still, these risks are being ignored. In this definitive expos Mario Giampietro and Kozo Mayumi present a theoretical framework and exhaustive evidence for the case against large scale biofuel production from agricultural crops. This book will be vital, sobering reading for anyone concerned with energy or agricultural policy, or bioenergy as a complex system.

The Biofuel Delusion

The Biofuel Delusion PDF Author: Mario Giampietro
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136573658
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 338

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Book Description
Faced with the twin threats of peak oil and climate change, many governments have turned for an answer to the apparent panacea of biofuels. Yet, increasingly, the progressive implementation of this solution demonstrates that the promise of biofuels as a replacement to fossil fuels is in fact a mirage that, if followed, risks leaving us short of power, short of food and doing as much damage to the climate as ever -- let alone the consequent impact on biodiversity due to additional loss of habitat for agricultural production and on rural development due to the additional stress on traditional farming systems. Worse still, these risks are being ignored. In this definitive expos Mario Giampietro and Kozo Mayumi present a theoretical framework and exhaustive evidence for the case against large scale biofuel production from agricultural crops. This book will be vital, sobering reading for anyone concerned with energy or agricultural policy, or bioenergy as a complex system.

The Biofuel Delusion

The Biofuel Delusion PDF Author: Mario Giampietro
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781282402171
Category : Biomass energy
Languages : en
Pages : 318

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Book Description
Faced with the twin threats of peak oil and climate change, many governments have turned for an answer to the apparent panacea of biofuels. Yet, increasingly, the progressive implementation of this solution demonstrates that the promise of biofuels as a replacement to fossil fuels is in fact a mirage that, if followed, risks leaving us short of power, short of food and doing as much damage to the climate as ever -- let alone the consequent impact on biodiversity due to additional loss of habitat for agricultural production and on rural development due to the additional stress on traditional fa

Biofuels and the Globalization of Risk

Biofuels and the Globalization of Risk PDF Author: James Smith
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1848135734
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 161

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Book Description
Biofuels and the Globalization of Risk offers a fresh, compelling analysis of the politics and policies behind the biofuels story, with its technological optimism and often-idealized promises for the future. This essential new critique argues that investment in biofuels may reconfigure risk and responsibility, whereby the global South is encouraged to invest its future in growing biofuel crops, often at the expense of food, in order that the global North may continue its unsustainable energy consumption unabated and guilt-free. Thus, Smith argues, biofuels may constitute the biggest change in North-South relationships since colonialism.

Global Economic and Environmental Aspects of Biofuels

Global Economic and Environmental Aspects of Biofuels PDF Author: David Pimentel
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1439834636
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 457

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Book Description
Biofuels and food are dependent on the same resources for production: land, water, and energy. The conjuncture of food, energy, and climate crises demands a new direction in how to harness agriculture to the joint tasks of energy-saving, emissions reduction, and food security. Global Economic and Environmental Aspects of Biofuels focuses on the all-important question of the efficacy of biofuels as a solution to the global energy problem. Written by a distinguished team from five countries and multiple disciplines including agronomy, petroleum engineering, ecology, and meteorology, the book addresses the use of biofuels produced from crops and various organic materials as alternatives or supplements to petroleum. Key Features Discusses biofuels within the context of the world population problem, food, malnutrition, resource depletion, and climate change Asks the critical question whether the production of ethanol from corn, sugar cane, crop residues, and other organic materials has proven too costly in both economic and environmental terms Analyzes the uses and interdependencies among land, water, and fossil energy resources in food versus biofuel production Includes case studies on the economic and environmental impacts of biofuel production and use from the United States, Europe, Brazil, and tropical environments Explores the future production of biodiesel and ethanol from salt-water algae and tropical palms, while recognizing the technological problems that must be resolved in processing these materials This book examines key environmental and economic issues associated with the production of ethanol as a fuel, from corn, sugar cane, crop residues, and other organic materials. It brings together the opinions of a number of U.S. scientists and experts from Spain, Italy, the United Kingdom, and Brazil, and highlights the remarkable agreement among the contributors on the pros and cons of biofuels as an answer to future petroleum shortages. This mix of contributors and opinions presents a well-rounded view of the subject that puts a spotlight on unresolved concerns and complexities that are often overlooked.

Peak Energy

Peak Energy PDF Author: James G. Speight
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1119301394
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 399

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Book Description
Does the Earth contain enough oil to provide energy for the human race indefinitely? If not, how long will the oil last? What about renewable energy technologies like wind and solar? Will they be able to supply an indefinite supply of energy for the human race? If not, how long will it last? And what role does overpopulation play in our world's energy supply? Even with multiple forms of energy available, how long will it last as long as more and more humans, and therefore more industries and energy consumption, are added? Taking a long-held theory called "Peak Oil Theory" the authors of this groundbreaking new text examine the theory of "Peak Energy" to examine all of these questions. Crude oil and natural gas are the major sources of fuel used to supply energy for various needs. Users of crude oil and natural gas must take into account that these energy sources are, without doubt, non-renewable depleting resources, and the cost of extraction depends not only on the current rate of production but also on the amount of cumulative production. In fact, many pundits believe projections that the world is rapidly approaching a precipice, after which crude oil and natural gas will no longer be in ready supply. This phenomenon has given rise to the peak oil theory – peak oil is the point in time when the maximum rate of petroleum recovery from the reservoir is reached, after which the rate of petroleum production enters terminal decline. From this concept has emerged the wider concept of the peak energy theory which, as it is related to the availability of all fossil fuels, is also subject to decline with fossil fuel use. This text, written by two of the world's most well-known, respected, and prolific writers in the energy industry, is a fascinating study of our world's energy needs and the future of the multi-source energy supply on this planet. Whether oil and gas, wind, solar, geothermal, or even nuclear, all sources of energy have their limits, and we, as scientists, engineers, and consumers of energy need to be knowledgeable on these topics. This book is a must-have for any engineer, student, scientist, or even layperson interested in energy and the idea of energy sustainability on planet Earth.

Environmental Politics and Policy

Environmental Politics and Policy PDF Author: John McCormick
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1350311472
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 317

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Book Description
This book provides systematic coverage of the key concepts in the study of environmental politics; the evolution of environmental thinking; the national and international actors involved in environmental policy; and a selection of specific environmental problems including their causes, the challenges and results of addressing them to date.

The Metabolic Pattern of Societies

The Metabolic Pattern of Societies PDF Author: Mario Giampietro
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136619941
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 438

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Book Description
It is increasingly evident that the conventional scientific approach to economic processes and related sustainability issues is seriously flawed. No economist predicted the current planetary crisis even though the world has now undergone five severe recessions primed by dramatic increases in the price of oil. This book presents the results of more than twenty years of work aimed at developing an alternative method of analysis of the economic process and related sustainability issues: it is possible to perform an integrated and comprehensive analysis of the sustainability of socio-economic systems using indicators and variables that have been so far ignored by conventional economists. The book’s innovative approach aims to provide a better framework with which we can face the predicaments of sustainability issues. It begins by presenting practical examples of the shortcomings of conventional economic analysis and examines the systemic problems faced when trying to use quantitative analysis for governance. In providing a critical appraisal of current applications of economic narratives to the issue of sustainability, the book presents several innovative concepts required to generate a post-Newtonian approach to quantitative analysis in the Musiasem approach. An empirical section illustrates the results of an analysis of structural changes in world and EU countries. Finally, the book, using the insight gained in the theoretical and empirical analysis, exposes the dubious quality of many narratives currently used in the sustainability debate. Overall, the performance of modern economies across different hierarchical levels of organization and across different disciplinary knowledge systems is fully analyzed and a more realistic measure of happiness and well-being is devised. The book should be of interest to researchers and students looking at the issue of sustainability within a variety of disciplines.

Fossil Fuel and the Environment

Fossil Fuel and the Environment PDF Author: Shahriar Khan
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
ISBN: 953510277X
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
The world today is at crossroads in terms of energy, as fossil fuel continues to shape global geopolitics. Alternative energy has become rapidly feasible, with thousands of wind-turbines emerging in the landscapes of the US and Europe. Solar energy and bio-fuels have found similarly wide applications. This book is a compilation of 13 chapters. The topics move mostly seamlessly from fuel combustion and coexistencewith renewable energy, to the environment, and finally to the economics of energy, and food security. The research and vision defines much of the range of our scientific knowledge on the subject and is a driving force for the future. Whether feasible or futuristic, this book is a great read for researchers, practitioners, or just about anyone with an enquiring mind on this subject.

Globalisation, the State and Regional Australia

Globalisation, the State and Regional Australia PDF Author: Amanda Walsh
Publisher: Sydney University Press
ISBN: 1743325568
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 378

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Book Description
‘If we are to understand global capital, neoliberalism and the state in meaningful ways, we must understand them as they operate in, and on, particular places and people.’ Amanda Walsh Globalisation is an inescapable term in the 21st century, but its real meaning is often difficult to pin down. This book sheds new light on the political and economic implications of globalisation by examining the lived experience of a particular region: the Shoalhaven area of New South Wales, where two iconic Australian industries – dairying and manufacturing – struggled to survive in the face of global competition. Drilling down through layers of theory, policy and politics, Amanda Walsh surveys how globalisation has played out in regional Australia. Using industry case studies, she explores how decisions made at a national level have affected regional communities, and considers the role of the state in promoting and mediating globalising forces.