Governors Talk Of Moving Beyond Corn-based Ethanol

CBS News

"Move To Phase Two:" Governors In Philadelphia Talk Of Moving Beyond Corn-based Ethanol
PHILADELPHIA, Jul. 13, 2008

(AP) Governors from the coal fields of West Virginia to the corn fields of Iowa talked Sunday at their summer meeting about moving beyond ethanol produced just from food sources.

They sometimes have different priorities in reaching this conclusion _ priorities that can be as simple as who grows corn and who feeds it to livestock.And they're also not talking about replacement so much as supplementing: using switchgrass or wood waste products, for example, along with corn.

Still, the conversation _ including an energy forum Sunday _ has big implications. The nation has 134 ethanol plants in 26 states with 77 more under construction or expanding, according to the Renewable Fuels Association, a trade group for the ethanol industry.

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