HUGE BREAKTHROUGH IN BIOFUELS VS FOOD DEBATE!
From your local hometown paper, Construction permits granted for proposed biofuel plant in Hampton .
I knew this was in the works (even got a friend who plans (planned?) on capitalizing on a new farming opportunity), but still, my first thought was, "oh great, more focus on replacing food and feed cropland with fuel cropland...when will people catch on?" (via Ted Williams)
Fine, I realize that Washington County is not what it once was when it comes to agriculture...sure it's still prevalent, but it has been in significant decline over the past decades. That's about when I got to this part;
"The crops would be grown in the spring and fall seasons so vegetables for human and animal consumption wouldn’t have to compete for space, he said."
Alright...I'm no farmer, granted, but I'm pretty sure that's not how it works. Since when do we have 3 growing seasons in Upstate New York and Vermont? If somebody can set me straight on this, please do. Of course, you can tell there is no leap in logic there from his next sentence;
"'This addresses that food versus fuel debate,' Fox said."
Oh, ok, as long as you put it that way, I'm satisfied.
Hey, I'm not saying one way or another on whether this plant will be a good thing (for the area or in general), I can't; I haven't done the research and I just don't know. I don't even have a problem with bio-fuels per se, but sooner or later the people making the big decisions have to realize that, even if there is some magic, fantastical silver bullett somewhere to solve (or even slightly improve) our energy and emissions problems simultaneously, bio-fuels are most decidedly not it. I'm just saying the way the bio-fuels vs. food debate was "addressed" had me in stitches.
I knew this was in the works (even got a friend who plans (planned?) on capitalizing on a new farming opportunity), but still, my first thought was, "oh great, more focus on replacing food and feed cropland with fuel cropland...when will people catch on?" (via Ted Williams)
Fine, I realize that Washington County is not what it once was when it comes to agriculture...sure it's still prevalent, but it has been in significant decline over the past decades. That's about when I got to this part;
"The crops would be grown in the spring and fall seasons so vegetables for human and animal consumption wouldn’t have to compete for space, he said."
Alright...I'm no farmer, granted, but I'm pretty sure that's not how it works. Since when do we have 3 growing seasons in Upstate New York and Vermont? If somebody can set me straight on this, please do. Of course, you can tell there is no leap in logic there from his next sentence;
"'This addresses that food versus fuel debate,' Fox said."
Oh, ok, as long as you put it that way, I'm satisfied.
Hey, I'm not saying one way or another on whether this plant will be a good thing (for the area or in general), I can't; I haven't done the research and I just don't know. I don't even have a problem with bio-fuels per se, but sooner or later the people making the big decisions have to realize that, even if there is some magic, fantastical silver bullett somewhere to solve (or even slightly improve) our energy and emissions problems simultaneously, bio-fuels are most decidedly not it. I'm just saying the way the bio-fuels vs. food debate was "addressed" had me in stitches.
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