Tweaking model improves ethanol's footprint

Stock & Land (Australia)
JACQUI FATKA
12 May, 2010 11:53 AM

CALIFORNIA has led the charge in enforcing stricter air emissions requirements.

For ethanol, an initial analysis from Purdue University made ethanol seem less attractive at reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions compared to other alternatives. Now, a revision to the Purdue economic analysis is showing that ethanol could be a somewhat better option than previously thought.

Wally Tyner, a Purdue agricultural economist and the report's lead author, said revisions to the Global Trade Analysis Project (GTAP) model better reflect market conditions and land productivity than a 2009 report showing that corn-based ethanol wouldn't significantly lower GHG emissions over gasoline.

"The difference between this report and previous reports is advances in science," Tyner said. "With any issue, your first cut may not be the best, but when you get new data and new methods, you improve."

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