Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies Essay (Article)

Exclusively available on Available only on IvyPanda® Made by Human No AI

High prices for oil and gasoline have resulted in increased interest in finding alternative fuels to replace petroleum fuel used in the transport sector. This coupled with the need to reduce greenhouse gas emission have led to the promotion of ethanol as a viable fuel for use in automobiles. The promotion of fuel ethanol has been one of the main goals of the United States Energy Policy. Various significant incentives and policies have been developed by the federal government to promote the ethanol industry.

The fuel Ethanol market depends heavily on federal regulations and incentives. To encourage the production of ethanol, the government has introduced a tax credit of 51 cents per gallon of ethanol produced. This incentive is aimed at making it possible for ethanol to compete with gasoline. Small-scale ethanol producers qualify for production credit in addition to the tax credit.

Renewable fuel standard (RFS) was established through the Energy Policy Act of 2005, the act was further expanded by the Energy Independence Act of 2007. The act requires the United States to use 9 billion gallons of renewable energy in 2008, with usage increasing each year to 36 billion gallons by 2022. Ethanol is expected to take a higher portion in meeting this requirement.

In South America, the production of ethanol is relatively low compared to the United States. To take advantage of this situation, the federal government has come up with incentives that will reduce tariffs on imported ethanol to 2.5% with an added duty of $0.5 per gallon. This incentive is part of a wider policy to reduce the barrier to the importation of ethanol.

Under various state and federal incentives and laws, the production and consumption of ethanol have increased. 6.8 billion gallons of ethanol was consumed in 2007 compared to 1.8 billion consumed in 2001. At the beginning of 2008, over 8 billion gallons of ethanol were produced, with domestic production expected to grow by 13 billion gallons per year.

One barrier to large-scale fuel ethanol consumption is the cost compared to that of gasoline. The fuel ethanol is more expensive than gasoline per gallon, even with tax incentives on ethanol production and importation. Another setback is the fact that ethanol has lower energy per gallon compared to gasoline, this means that a lot of fuel ethanol is required to travel the same distance using gasoline. With the continued rise in gasoline prices, these setbacks are becoming less significant and ethanol is seen as the best alternative fuel to gasoline.

Currently, Congress is in the process of reauthorizing all existing farm programs to pave way for the 2008 Farm Bill. The bill seeks to extend and expand many provisions in the 2002 energy farm bill. When passed, the bill will pave way for increased funding to ethanol production and create new tax incentives for ethanol producers. Besides the 2008 Farm Bill, there is ongoing research that will facilitate shifting the production of fuel from corn-based starch to cellulose. When fully implemented, all these plans and incentives will see a significant increase in the use of renewable energy for transportation in the United States.

Reference

Energy Security for the 21st Century, 2008. Web.

Ethanol Grows as Gas Alternative, 2008. Web.

Fuel Ethanol; Background and Public Policy Issues, 2008. Web.

Wilfred Kohl (1990) Methanol as an Alternative Fuel Choice, United States, International Energy Press.

More related papers Related Essay Examples
Cite This paper
You're welcome to use this sample in your assignment. Be sure to cite it correctly

Reference

IvyPanda. (2021, October 25). Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies. https://ivypanda.com/essays/political-science-alternative-gas-policies/

Work Cited

"Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies." IvyPanda, 25 Oct. 2021, ivypanda.com/essays/political-science-alternative-gas-policies/.

References

IvyPanda. (2021) 'Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies'. 25 October.

References

IvyPanda. 2021. "Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/political-science-alternative-gas-policies/.

1. IvyPanda. "Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/political-science-alternative-gas-policies/.


Bibliography


IvyPanda. "Political Science. Alternative Gas Policies." October 25, 2021. https://ivypanda.com/essays/political-science-alternative-gas-policies/.

If, for any reason, you believe that this content should not be published on our website, please request its removal.
Updated:
This academic paper example has been carefully picked, checked and refined by our editorial team.
No AI was involved: only quilified experts contributed.
You are free to use it for the following purposes:
  • To find inspiration for your paper and overcome writer’s block
  • As a source of information (ensure proper referencing)
  • As a template for you assignment
Privacy Settings

IvyPanda uses cookies and similar technologies to enhance your experience, enabling functionalities such as:

  • Basic site functions
  • Ensuring secure, safe transactions
  • Secure account login
  • Remembering account, browser, and regional preferences
  • Remembering privacy and security settings
  • Analyzing site traffic and usage
  • Personalized search, content, and recommendations
  • Displaying relevant, targeted ads on and off IvyPanda

Please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy for detailed information.

Required Cookies & Technologies
Always active

Certain technologies we use are essential for critical functions such as security and site integrity, account authentication, security and privacy preferences, internal site usage and maintenance data, and ensuring the site operates correctly for browsing and transactions.

Site Customization

Cookies and similar technologies are used to enhance your experience by:

  • Remembering general and regional preferences
  • Personalizing content, search, recommendations, and offers

Some functions, such as personalized recommendations, account preferences, or localization, may not work correctly without these technologies. For more details, please refer to IvyPanda's Cookies Policy.

Personalized Advertising

To enable personalized advertising (such as interest-based ads), we may share your data with our marketing and advertising partners using cookies and other technologies. These partners may have their own information collected about you. Turning off the personalized advertising setting won't stop you from seeing IvyPanda ads, but it may make the ads you see less relevant or more repetitive.

Personalized advertising may be considered a "sale" or "sharing" of the information under California and other state privacy laws, and you may have the right to opt out. Turning off personalized advertising allows you to exercise your right to opt out. Learn more in IvyPanda's Cookies Policy and Privacy Policy.

1 / 1