corn ethanol

Energy Use

Study Promotes 'Better Biofuels' by Focusing on Waste Sources

There are many environmental benefits to bioenergy, particularly when the feedstock comes from waste, as opposed to agricultural products that could be used for food. A new study applies life cycle analysis to four types of waste matter.

August 27, 2019 - Daily Energy Insider

Agriculture

Land Use the Subject of Latest IPCC Report

Not urban land use, but in the literal sense: land used to produce food, graze livestock, supply drinking water, grow trees, and sequester carbon. As the climate warms and the population grows, crop yields will decrease and land will be degraded.

August 12, 2019 - The Washington Post

corn field in polk county iowa

Summertime Ethanol Restriction Lifted to Help Corn Farmers—But at What Cost?

President Trump made good on his promise last October to lift the E15 ban in time for the summer driving season. Not mentioned by the Des Moines Register are the downsides to allowing the higher ethanol blend to be sold during the summer, e.g., smog.

June 14, 2019 - Los Angeles Times

Sierra Nevada Drought

U.S. Appeals Court: Climate Crisis Justifies California Clean Fuels Rule

California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which requires fuel producers to reduce the carbon intensity of transportation fuels by at least 10 percent by 2020, has been opposed by corn ethanol producers and the oil industry since its inception in 2011.

January 28, 2019 - Transport Topics

Pumping Gas

Trump Announcement Unites Big Oil and Environmentalists

President Trump announced at a campaign rally in Iowa that he would lift the ban on summertime sales of a 15 percent blend of ethanol, expected to increase smog levels. Both environmentalists and the oil industry oppose the action.

October 14, 2018 - PBS NewsHour

New Facility Captures Atmospheric Carbon and Stores it Underground

On April 7, the illinois Industrial Carbon Capture and Storage commenced operations, taking carbon that corn sequestered from the atmosphere and storing it safely almost a mile and a half underground in a sandstone formation.

April 17, 2017 - The Washington Post

Iowa Caucus Results: Cruz wins, Ethanol Mandate Loses

The only major candidate, Democrat or Republican, to call for an end to the contentious ethanol mandate won the Republican caucus, clearly beating Donald Trump. That could doom what many even in Iowa, among even some farmers, call a boondoggle.

February 3, 2016 - The New York Times - Politics

What's Wrong With the Ethanol Mandate?

A former EPA official makes the case in a New York Times op-ed that the ethanol mandate, a major issue in Monday's presidential caucus in Iowa, the nation's top corn producer, is implemented so poorly that it is not benefiting the environment.

February 2, 2016 - The New York Times - The Opinion Pages

Oil Bonanza In Western Hemisphere

New technology is allowing massive investment in oil drilling in North and South America, from Canada to Argentina. This article centers on the investment in the region's two largest economies, U.S. and Brazil, and its effect on energy geopolitics.

September 27, 2011 - The New York Times - Americas

Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools

This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.

Planning for Universal Design

Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.

Top Books

An annual review of books related to planning.

Top Schools

The definitive ranking of graduate planning programs.

100 Most Influential Urbanists

The who's who of urbanism, according to Planetizen readers.

Urban Planning Creators You Should Know

A short list of voices on social, video, and podcasting platforms.