More ethanol in gas a political move?

Re: In Eco move, Ontario to require more ethanol in gasoline, Nov. 29

At first glance this sounds like a step in the right direction.

Renewable biofuel has a good ring to it. But before we heap praise on Ontario's government, we should take a closer look at the science behind the ethanol addition to gasoline.

For that we need to look at the entire process. Corn needs to be seeded, grown, harvested and transported to the ethanol plants that in turn will have to deliver the ethanol to the refineries — with lots of fossil fuel powered equipment used at every step.

Since it is GMO corn, there will be plenty of agri-chemicals used for weed control. Those agri-chemicals are mostly petrochemicals based on oil-derived substances. The most commonly used control chemical is Roundup with glyphosate as its active ingredient — a carcinogen.

Additional agricultural run-off into our rivers and lakes is almost unavoidable. Several studies have shown that there is hardly any reduction in greenhouse gas emissions using corn derived biofuel when you consider the whole process and the reduction in fuel efficiency of internal combustion engines resulting from the added ethanol.

So, is this an eco move or just a politically motivated shot in the arm for corn growers and ethanol manufacturers?

By the way, agriculture contributes a similar share to greenhouse gases as transportation.

Eckart Scheuing, Kingsville