Study Suggests Ethanol May Tap Too Much Of Nation's Water Supply

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David Goodhue - AHN Reporter
August 6, 2009 6:03 a.m. EST

St. Paul, MN (AHN) - A new report suggests ethanol mandates are having a negative impact on the nation's water supplies, and that regional considerations should be factored when creating ethanol policy.

Ethanol production from corn and sugarcane is about 9 billion gallons a year, and is expected to increase with more federal and state mandates. Previous studies estimated that a gallon of corn-based ethanol requires the use of between 263 to 784 gallons of water from the farm to the fuel pump.

But researchers from the University of Minnesota say that number may be much higher. They say it may be more along the lines of 2,100 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, depending on regional irrigation practices of growing corn.

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