Ethanol is beneficial in so many ways

I am compelled to set the record straight about information contained in the op-ed article "Ethanol: an energy sinkhole" by Russ Kullberg.

The basis for Mr. Kullberg's misinformation is a dubious study that alleges ethanol production requires more fossil energy than the resulting ethanol fuel contains. The study by David Pimentel of Cornell University and Tad Patzek of the University of California-Berkeley has been disputed since its release, being referred to as "an amazing routine of mathematical gymnastics."

Critics of the study have questioned the methodology, use of outdated data and the expertise of two researchers. Pimentel is an entomologist. Patzek is a 30-year-plus associate with Shell Oil Co. in research and consulting. He has been an expert witness as well as a member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers. In fact, Patzek established the University of California Oil Consortium in which companies such as Chevron, BP, Mobil USA, Phillips Petroleum and many others have been participants.

A simple example of the obsolete data is that the Patzek-Pimentel study assumes ethanol plants convert one bushel of corn into 2.3 gallons of ethanol. But the industry average today is much closer to 3 gallons per bushel.

What is even more ridiculous are the assumptions by Mr. Kullberg of a "ripple" effect of price increases across the board of food supplies. As a former biology professor, Kullberg should have utilized data from the University of Missouri Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute that states the increase in corn price will amount to approximately 12 cents a bushel when the output of ethanol reaches seven billion gallons, and the effect on livestock producers will be neutral or even beneficial because of the low-cost feed stock that is left over from the ethanol process.

There is a wealth of research available that conclusively confirms ethanol production with a positive net energy balance. Nine other studies have, in fact, documented a positive energy balance ranging anywhere from 25 percent to 67 percent. These studies were conducted by institutions such as National Renewable Fuels Laboratory, USDA, Michigan State University, Colorado School of Mines as well as Agri-Food Canada. Unfortunately for Pimentel and Patzek, they have yet to find another study to concur with their own.

In recent years, ethanol production has been a great success story for modern-day agriculture and rural communities. Ethanol production facilities bring jobs to communities and help keep farmers in business, who in turn help keep the economy dollars pumping down the main streets of rural America. Ethanol returns profits to farmers and rural communities, not Big Oil companies. While these profits will never supersede the multibillion-dollar quarterly profits that oil companies are experiencing, I doubt you will find many people who would not like to enjoy energy-related profits for their own communities.

Ethanol and other biofuels help to reduce dependency on foreign oil imports and disruptions in domestic production and distribution of gasoline. Case in point: With Hurricane Katrina's recent devastation of our Gulf Coast area, how high do you think gasoline prices would have gone if it had not been for ethanol? Most fuel blenders used ethanol during this critical time to extend the amount of refined gasoline that was available to consumers.

Possibly the most important benefit of ethanol is our environment. Ethanol is an oxygenate that can replace MTBE, which has horrendous effects on groundwater should a tank leak or a major spill occur. Many states have banned the use of MTBE, and American farmers have the ability to provide a solution with ethanol while reducing emissions from vehicles.

We are truly blessed to have the ability to produce a product that will benefit society in so many ways, including reducing emissions, protecting groundwater, lessening dependence on foreign oil and revitalizing segments of rural America by bringing industry into areas that are so desperately seeking new enterprise. This is a concept that should not be curtailed by two men and a handful of followers who obviously do not understand that biofuels will be an extremely important component of our economy and environment, both now and into the future.

David Herbst is a fourth-generation family farmer in Chaffee, Mo.