Ethanol Get High Ranking - National Climate Change Table

NATIONAL CLIMATE CHANGE TABLE
Ethanol Gets High Ranking
By Ellen Klupfel, Public Information Coordinator, Canadian Renewable Fuels Association

Under the Kyoto Protocol, Canada has agreed to reduce its total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by six per cent from 1990 levels during the five-year period from 2008-2012. If the protocol is ratified, this presents an enormous challenge for Canadians...and a very real opportunity for renewable fuels from biomass.

The federal, provincial, and territorial ministers of transportation established the Transportation Climate Change Table in response to the Kyoto Protocol as part of a national process to develop a climate change strategy. Transportation accounted for 25 per cent of GHG’s in Canada in 1997, the single largest source. If trends continue, GHG emissions from transportation are expected to exceed 1990 levels by 32 per cent in 2010 and 53 per cent in 2020. The transportation table’s analysis will be integrated with that of 14 other issue tables (including agriculture) to assess the most effective options across the economy.

In the battle against global warming, ethanol has been acknowledged as a promising tool for reducing GHG emissions from transportation. The transportation table’s options paper was released November 30, 1999, and identifies high capacity expansion of ethanol production for 10 per cent blends with gasoline as the most cost-effective measure for reducing GHG’s from road vehicles and fuels. The initial focus is on grain-based ethanol, adding cellulose-derived ethanol as the technology becomes commercialized. The assessment of the cost-effectiveness of the various measures does not yet include improvements in air quality, such as reductions in smog-forming emissions. Once this issue is taken into consideration, the benefits of ethanol should become even more evident. Another important assessment of the transportation table includes maintaining the existing tax exemptions for ethanol blends and adjusting them based on GHG reductions once cellulosic ethanol becomes available.

Low-level ethanol blends present an easy way for the public to contribute to GHG reductions. The blends are available at 1,000 retail stations across Canada. They can be used in existing vehicles without modifications. Raising awareness of ethanol’s benefits is especially important now that its ability to reduce GHG’s has been endorsed by the transportation table as part of the national strategy on climate change.

A study on ethanol and greenhouse gases (separate from the transportation table’s activities) was commissioned by Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and conducted by Levelton Engineering Ltd. and (S&T)² Consulting Inc. It was found that 10 per cent ethanol-blended gasoline reduces GHG’s by 230,000 tonnes per year under current conditions. If the industry expanded to produce one billion litres of ethanol per year by 2010, the total GHG reductions will be 1.47 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalents annually. This represents about one per cent of the total GHG reduction required to meet Canada’s commitment under the Kyoto Protocol. It also represents up to 7.5 per cent of agriculture’s share, or up to four per cent of the transportation sector’s share of GHG reductions.

There is very little known about the impact of emissions from off-road vehicles and equipment, such as those used in agriculture and mining, snowmobiles, personal watercraft and lawn and garden equipment. That means few reduction measures could be thoroughly evaluated by the transportation table. However, it appears an opportunity exists for ethanol, under the area of public awareness, which includes promoting environmentally friendly products with an environmental label. Environment Canada’s EcoLogo is a designation already given to licensed ethanol retailers.

It was disappointing that the potential for flex-fuelled vehicles, operating on E85, was not thoroughly evaluated. No consideration was given to the potential for fuel cells using ethanol as the primary feedstock. Biodiesel, another renewable fuel, was given only minor attention, but it was at least considered in the area of medium and heavy-duty vehicles. The role of biodiesel in curbing global warming should be re-evaluated once it is in commercial production in Canada, and when more information becomes available on off-road vehicles and equipment.

It’s encouraging that low-level ethanol blends have received such significant support from the transportation table. As the use of ethanol in various markets increases, so does the opportunities for GHG reductions. The hope is that newer developments, such as E-85-driven flex-fuelled vehicles, using ethanol as a feedstock for fuel cells, and ethanol’s use as an aviation fuel will also be taken into consideration as these technologies become more widespread.