End of the Ethanol Era?

MCCASKILL: KEEP NUCLEAR OPTION OPEN

From the president on down to the governor, we've all heard about the big benefits from ethanol: it reduces our dependence on foreign oil; it's good for our farmers; the tax incentives for producing it are plentiful. But there was some talk at Springfield’s energy conference that the age of ethanol may be just a passing phase.

You can watch my KY3 News @ 10 report HERE.

"There's a real issue with conventional biofuels as to say, corn-based ethanol. It's kind of a first phase of biofuels and one that I think that will be phased out in the next couple of years,” said Mike Chiles, president of Watts-Radiant and a member of the Springfield Board of Public Utilities, which oversees City Utilities of Springfield.

U.S. Sen. Claire McCaskill still calls ethanol a net positive but notes the state needs to catch up on other alternatives, like soy and biomass technologies. “We've got to make sure we have that balance because, if we don't, we will have every inch of Missouri in corn and our food is going to be way too expensive,” said McCaskill.

“Even if, in the short run, we're not saving as much emissions as we should, in the long run, the technology will develop and we will get cleaner, and we'll get more efficient with the production of these alternative fuels,” the senator said.

McCaskill also said the option of nuclear power needs to remain on the table, but only if "we are able to deal effectively with the waste and safety issues." "We shouldn't take anything off the table in terms of exploring," McCaskill said.