Originally published December 29 2005
New York official believes unused farmland could pay off with crops to make ethanol
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Nathan Rudgers, head of the New York Department of Agriculture and Markets, believes that unused farmland across the state could be used to produce crops for ethanol.
There are about 2 million acres of former farmland in New York that could be used to boost the state's rural economy while reducing the country's dependence on foreign oil, the state's agriculture commissioner says.
Nathan Rudgers, head of the state Department of Agriculture and Markets, said the land - particularly in struggling areas like northern New York and the Southern Tier - could be used to grow crops to make ethanol.
It is the fuel made from those sources, called cellulosic ethanol, Rudgers is touting as "the most exciting future opportunity" for New York farmers.
"If you take the troubled combination of a pretty big rural land base here that has a lot of marginal farm land, crops that might be grown there that aren't being grown now, and a ready market for the end product of that crop production, that's a compelling case," Rudgers told The Associated Press.
According to the industry, only about 500 of the 180,000 fuel stations in the United States currently offer E85, an alternative fuel made from a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline.
Just a fraction of the vehicles on the road are able to burn E85, and those have tended to be sport utility vehicles or pickup trucks such as the Dodge Durango or the Ford F-150.
Ethanol production at the plant is expected to begin in late 2006, producing a minimum of 100 million gallons a year, managing partner Eric Will II said.
Currently, the estimated cost to produce cellulosic ethanol is $2.30 per gallon, according to the Energy Department.
"We have made strong headway in reducing the cost of conversion of cellulosic feedstock to ethanol and into high value products, including chemicals," she said.
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