Corn and Ethanol: Effects on land and water in the Midwest United States - Research Proposal Example

Corn and Ethanol: Effects on land and water in the Midwest United s Synopsis The increased demand for corn and ethanol in United s has brought about many environmental changes including, increased area of corn cultivation, decrease in cultivation of other food crops. Increase in agricultural inputs to gain more productivity and soil degradation and environmental degradation caused by the increased input, in the Midwest US (Malcolm, 2010, p.19). As the demand for ethanol goes on increasing in the present fuel scenario, this tendency will continue more vigorously in the future also.

In this context, the objective of this study is to find out which are the effects of corn cultivation and extraction of ethanol from corn, on land and water in the Midwest United States. This area of US is rightly called, the corn belt (World Book, 2002, p.1060). It has been a known fact that “land use and land cover change … cause important changes to the hydrology of the [Mississippi] basin through their impacts on the land surface energy and water balance” (DeFries, Asner and Houghton, 2004, p.254). Also it has been observed that land cover change can “alter evapotranspiration, soil moisture, water yield and river discharge” and also “the quantity and quality of water” (DeFries, Asner and Houghton, 2004, p.255-256). As the majority of ethanol production factories are situated in the Midwest United States, environmentalists have been drawing attention to the impact of this industry on environment (Soetaert and Vandamme, 2009, p.43). Another interesting and alarming finding has been that “clearing natural vegetation to make way for bio-fuel crops also deprives the planet of “sponges” [humus and grasses] that absorb carbon (Shaffer, 2009, p.141). Studies have also shown that “using fossil fuel-dependent industrialized agriculture to grow corn and then using more fossil fuel to convert the corn to ethanol provides a net energy yield of only about 1.1-1.5 units of energy per unit of fossil fuel input (Miller and Spoolman, 2008, p.424). One study has suggested that “3.

5 to 6 units of water are used for each unit of ethanol produced (Keeney and Muller, 2006). Another negative impacts of corn cultivation have been “ crop residue removal effects on water capture (runoff and inflitration effects), water retention (evaporation control)” and also the impact on the soil which needs “surface protection for controlling erosion, organic matter content, structure development” etc. (Schillinger and SSSA, 2010, p.34). The existing national bio-fuel policies and projects will need the usage of more water and will thus affect the country's water resources considerably (World Water Assessment Programme (United Nations), Unesco, 2009, p.111). Yet another significant finding has been that the changes in land use caused by rising demand for corn-based ethanol is causing global warming by making green house gas emissions almost double over 30 years (Johansen, 2008, p.74). The ethanol producing companies have to get water consumption permission from local water districts.

The deepening of the crisis regarding water use became evident when, “one Minnesotta local water district denied a permit for a proposed biorefinery due to concerns about limited water supply in the area” (Mittal,2010, p.15). While discussing the energy versus environment conflict behind this issue, it has to be kept in mind that, “the bio-fuel conversion process generally requires high-quality water because the primary use for ethanol production is for cooling towers and boilers, and cleaner water transfers heat more efficiently and does less damage to this equipment” (Mittal,2010, p.15). All these negative impacts need to be addressed and this study will help assess the impacts on and land and water and suggest ways to lessen the impact.

Bibliography DeFries, Ruth.S, Asner, Gregory.P, and Houghton, Richard.A. 2004. Ecosystems and Land Use Change. Washington DC: American Geophysical Union. Johansen, Bruce Elliott. 2008. The Global Warming Combat Manual: Solutions for a Sustainable World. Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. Keeney, D and M.Muller. 2006. Water Use by Ethanol Plants: Potential Challenges. Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Minneapolis, MN. Malcolm, Scott A. 2010. Ethanol and a Changing Agricultural Landscape.

Pennsylvania: DIANE Publishing. Miller, G.Tyler and Spoolman, Scott. 2008. Living in the Environment: Principles, Connections, and Solutions. Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Mittal, Anu. 2010. Energy-Water Nexus: Many Uncertainties Remain about National and Regional Effects of Increased Biofuel Production on Water Resources. Pennsylvania: DIANE Publishing. Schillinger, William.F. and Soil Science Society of America. 2010. Soil and Water Conservation Advances in the United States. San Antonio: ASA-CSSA-SSSA.

Shaffer, Brenda. 2009. Energy Politics. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Discusses the clash between ecopolitics and energy politics. Soetaert, Wim and Vandamme, Erick.J. 2009. Biofuels. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons. World Book, Inc. 2002. The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 4. Michigan: The University of Michigan. World Water Assessment Programme (United Nations), Unesco. 2009. Water in a Changing World. Paris: UNESCO. Annotated bibliography DeFries, Ruth.S, Asner, Gregory.

P, and Houghton, Richard.A. 2004. Ecosystems and Land Use Change. Washington DC: American Geophysical Union. Explains how different ecosystems respond to land use change, hydrological changes, etc. Elmendorf, Douglas.W. 2009. Impact of Ethanol Use on Food Prices and Greenhouse- Gas Emissions. Pennsylvania: DIANE Publishing. Discusses how the changing land use and crop pattern caused by increase in corn cultivation has a negative impact on food prices and global warming. Guptha, Ram.B. And Demirbas, Ayhan. 2010. Gasoline, Diesel and Ethanol Biofuels from Grasses and Plants.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Examines how first generation bio-fuels which puts pressure on land and water resources can be replaced by second generation bio-fuels which puts less pressure on such resources. Johansen, Bruce Elliott. 2008. The Global Warming Combat Manual: Solutions for a Sustainable World. Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing Group. Provides valuable information on how to individually reduce one's carbon footprinting and how to link such attempts with the wider social atmosphere.

Keeney, D and M.Muller. 2006. Water Use by Ethanol Plants: Potential Challenges. Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. Minneapolis, MN. Provides information on the impact of ethanol plant cultivation on water and land. Malcolm, Scott A. 2010. Ethanol and a Changing Agricultural Landscape. Pennsylvania: DIANE Publishing. Analyses the impact of The Energy Independence and Security Act on agricultural production and environment. Miller, G.Tyler and Spoolman, Scott. 2008. Living in the Environment: Principles, Connections, and Solutions.

Connecticut: Cengage Learning. Discusses corn cultivation in the backdrop of sustainability. Mittal, Anu. 2010. Energy-Water Nexus: Many Uncertainties Remain about National and Regional Effects of Increased Biofuel Production on Water Resources. Pennsylvania: DIANE Publishing. Explores the pros and cons of using bio-fuels in connection with water use. Schillinger, William.F. and Soil Science Society of America. 2010. Soil and Water Conservation Advances in the United States. San Antonio: ASA-CSSA-SSSA.

Discusses the advances that United States has made in soil and water conservation and addresses the issues ahead. Schubert, R. 2009. Future Bioenergy and Sustainable Land Use. London: Earthscan. Provides information on how to tackle the sustainability issue in land usage for bio- energy production and in this way, how to protect the environmental-friendly bio- energy production. Shaffer, Brenda. 2009. Energy Politics. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. Discusses the clash between ecopolitics and energy politics.

Sitler, Robert. 2010. The Living Maya: Ancient Wisdom in the Era of 2012. California: North Atlantic Books. Provides information on how the biodiversity of Midwest United States was destroyed when it shifted to mono-cropping of corn. Soetaert, Wim and Vandamme, Erick.J. 2009. Biofuels. New Jersey: John Wiley and Sons. Discusses technical and socio-economic aspects of biofuels. World Book, Inc. 2002. The World Book Encyclopedia, Volume 4. Michigan: The University of Michigan. Is an encyclopedia for students.

World Water Assessment Programme (United Nations), Unesco. 2009. Water in a Changing World. Paris: UNESCO. Explores the present and future of water use, water security and water conflicts.