Response to “Recent Land Use Change in the Western
Corn Belt Threatens Grasslands and Wetlands”
http://www.ethanolrfa.org/exchange/entry/response-
to-recent-land-use-change-in-the-western-corn-
belt-threatens/
Geoff Cooper
Posted on: February 20, 2013 in Land Use
A recently published study by C.K. Wright & M.C.
Wimberly in the Proceedings of the National Academies
of Science suggests that native grasslands in Iowa,
Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota
have been converted to cropland to facilitate increased
corn and soybean plantings between 2006 and 2011.
[1] The study's findings stand in stark contrast to U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) acreage data, which
show increased corn and soybean acres in the region
have occurred via crop switching, not cropland
expansion.
Further, the extremely high rate of error associated
with the satellite imagery used by the authors renders
the study's conclusions highly questionable and
irrelevant to the biofuels policy debate.
Readers of the recent PNAS paper should give strong
consideration to the following points:
Current law strictly prohibits the conversion of
sensitive ecosystems to cropland. At least once a year,
farmers must certify that they are complying with the
highly erodible land conservation and wetland
conservation requirements (the so-called "sodbuster"
and "swampbuster" provisions) of the Farm Bill. Most
producers strictly adhere to conservation plans that
are often developed with technical assistance from the
Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Further, the provisions of the Energy Independence
and Security Act require that corn and other feedstocks
used to produce biofuels for the Renewable Fuel
Standard (RFS) may only be sourced from land that was
actively engaged in agricultural production in 2007,
the year of the bill's enactment. Feedstock from lands
converted to cropland after 2007 would not qualify for
the RFS, and thus the program strongly discourages
cropland expansion.
The study's authors themselves acknowledge that the
converted lands they classify as "native grasslands"
might actually have been land planted to hay, grass
pasture, or idled cropland enrolled in the CRP
program. They write, "One shortcoming of the present
study was our inability to...distinguish between
different types of grassland conversion, i.e. to separate
native prairie conversion from change involving CRP,
hay lands, or grass pasture." Thus, the authors'
conclusion that increased corn and soybean acres are
coming at the expense of "native prairie" is highly
suspect. In fact, USDA data shows decreased hay acres
in the region, strongly suggesting that much of the
increase in corn and soybean acres came on land
previously planted to hay. At the same time, CRP
enrollments in the region have declined slightly,
suggesting that farmers are bringing some idled
cropland back into production.
Data from USDA show that the increase in corn and
soybean acres in the five-state region was primarily
achieved via crop switching rather than cropland
expansion. That is, farmers increased corn/soybean
plantings on land previously planted to hay, wheat,
and other crops. Indeed, USDA shows total crop acres
in the five-state region actually declined 2.1% from
2006 to 2011.
In fact, total planted cropland in the five states in 2011
was the lowest since 1995. Total planted acres in 2011
for the five-state area were 3.6% below the 10-year
average (2001-2010).
While North Dakota planted 540,000 more acres to
corn in 2011 than in 2006, total acres planted to all
crops in the state actually fell 3.25 million acres (15%)
between 2006 and 2011. Total planted crop acres in
2011 were also lower in Minnesota. This strongly
suggests the expansion in corn area took place on
land previously planted to other crops.
While a useful tool for analyzing potential trends, the
USDA Cropland Data Layer (CDL) system utilized by the
authors to estimate land conversions has
demonstrated a high level or error in differentiating
between grasslands and land planted to hay and other
crops. USDA itself acknowledges that, "Unfortunately,
the grassland-related categories have traditionally had
very low classification accuracy in the CDL." For
example, USDA accuracy data shows the CDL tool
mischaracterized North Dakota acreage for alfalfa,
other hay, and idle/fallow cropland more than half the
time in 2012.
When the facts are on the table, it becomes clear that
readers of the new PNAS study should exercise great
caution and skepticism when interpreting the authors'
conclusions. After all, as eloquently stated by Meade
County (South Dakota) Farm Service Agency director
James R. Neill, "...farmers and ranchers are the best
conservationists in the world as they have a vested
interest in conserving the agricultural resources for
today and future generations."
[1] See
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/02/13/121
5404110.full.pdf html?with-ds=yes
Why consumers pay Less for Ethanol Blended Gas...
NOT MORE!
As Prices at the Pump Go Up, Up, Up American Ethanol
is the Motorist’s Friend
Bob Dinneen
Posted on: February 21, 2013 in Gas Prices
If you've been paying more at the pump for gasoline,
you aren't alone. And, if it weren't for U.S. ethanol,
you'd be paying even more.
All across America, as of February 19, gasoline prices
had been climbing for 32 days, reaching a four-month
high. In fact, since January 17, the national average
retail gasoline price had soared by 43 cents - or 13
percent - all the way up to $3.73 a gallon. According
to EIA, last week's national average was the highest on
record for the month of February.
From now through Memorial Day, which kicks off the
summer driving season, gasoline prices will likely keep
going up, up, up. Over the past five years, gasoline
prices have risen an average of $0.51 per gallon
between New Year's Day and the Memorial Day
weekend. That means we could be looking at prices
well above $4 per gallon as summer begins and
families hit the road for vacation.
Gas prices are skyrocketing despite an increase in
domestic oil production. Oil companies tell us more
domestic drilling and fracking will help keep oil prices
down and gas prices in check - well, guess not. The
fact is, the oil market is global in nature, and decisions
made half a world away still impact what we pay for
gasoline here in the U.S. Recently, oil prices have been
under pressure due in no small part to Middle East
tensions over Iran's nuclear program and OPEC's
decision not to increase oil output even as all signs
point to higher global demand. Many of these statistics
about the surge in gas prices come from - hold your
breath - the Automobile Association of America (AAA),
which just might reconsider some of its recent attacks
on American-made ethanol. After all, one of the few
factors exerting a downward pressure on gasoline
prices is ethanol, which makes up 10 percent of the
nation's gasoline pool.
Today, ethanol is about $0.75 per gallon cheaper than
gasoline at the wholesale level. Yet, the retail savings
resulting from increased ethanol use go far beyond
simple blending economics.
America's growing use of domestically-produced
ethanol reduced wholesale gasoline prices by an
average of $1.09 per gallon in 2011, the most recent
year for which complete statistics are available,
according to a recent study conducted by economics
professors at the University of Wisconsin and Iowa
State University for the Center for Agricultural
Research and Rural Development (CARD)."Growth in US
ethanol production has added significantly to the
volume of fuel available in the US," says Professor
Dermot Hayes, one of the study's authors. "It's as if the
U.S. oil refining industry had found a way to extract
10% more gasoline from every barrel of oil."
Since the average American household bought 1,124
gallons of gasoline in 2011, ethanol reduced average
annual household spending at the pump by more than
$1,200. One reason why American ethanol helps to
hold down gasoline prices is that it replaces foreign oil
which has become even more expensive because of
the unrest in the Middle East and speculation in
commodities markets. From 2005 through 2012,
American dependence on imported petroleum
products declined from 60 percent to 41 percent.
All of this is something Members of Congress need to
consider as they assess legislation promoted by the oil
industry to repeal or reform the Renewable Fuels
Standard (RFS). The RFS is working to expand
domestic energy supply, encourage investment in new
technologies, and reduce gasoline prices at the pump.
Don't mess with the RFS!
Corn Belt Threatens Grasslands and Wetlands”
http://www.ethanolrfa.org/exchange/entry/response-
to-recent-land-use-change-in-the-western-corn-
belt-threatens/
Geoff Cooper
Posted on: February 20, 2013 in Land Use
A recently published study by C.K. Wright & M.C.
Wimberly in the Proceedings of the National Academies
of Science suggests that native grasslands in Iowa,
Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota
have been converted to cropland to facilitate increased
corn and soybean plantings between 2006 and 2011.
[1] The study's findings stand in stark contrast to U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA) acreage data, which
show increased corn and soybean acres in the region
have occurred via crop switching, not cropland
expansion.
Further, the extremely high rate of error associated
with the satellite imagery used by the authors renders
the study's conclusions highly questionable and
irrelevant to the biofuels policy debate.
Readers of the recent PNAS paper should give strong
consideration to the following points:
Current law strictly prohibits the conversion of
sensitive ecosystems to cropland. At least once a year,
farmers must certify that they are complying with the
highly erodible land conservation and wetland
conservation requirements (the so-called "sodbuster"
and "swampbuster" provisions) of the Farm Bill. Most
producers strictly adhere to conservation plans that
are often developed with technical assistance from the
Natural Resources Conservation Service.
Further, the provisions of the Energy Independence
and Security Act require that corn and other feedstocks
used to produce biofuels for the Renewable Fuel
Standard (RFS) may only be sourced from land that was
actively engaged in agricultural production in 2007,
the year of the bill's enactment. Feedstock from lands
converted to cropland after 2007 would not qualify for
the RFS, and thus the program strongly discourages
cropland expansion.
The study's authors themselves acknowledge that the
converted lands they classify as "native grasslands"
might actually have been land planted to hay, grass
pasture, or idled cropland enrolled in the CRP
program. They write, "One shortcoming of the present
study was our inability to...distinguish between
different types of grassland conversion, i.e. to separate
native prairie conversion from change involving CRP,
hay lands, or grass pasture." Thus, the authors'
conclusion that increased corn and soybean acres are
coming at the expense of "native prairie" is highly
suspect. In fact, USDA data shows decreased hay acres
in the region, strongly suggesting that much of the
increase in corn and soybean acres came on land
previously planted to hay. At the same time, CRP
enrollments in the region have declined slightly,
suggesting that farmers are bringing some idled
cropland back into production.
Data from USDA show that the increase in corn and
soybean acres in the five-state region was primarily
achieved via crop switching rather than cropland
expansion. That is, farmers increased corn/soybean
plantings on land previously planted to hay, wheat,
and other crops. Indeed, USDA shows total crop acres
in the five-state region actually declined 2.1% from
2006 to 2011.
In fact, total planted cropland in the five states in 2011
was the lowest since 1995. Total planted acres in 2011
for the five-state area were 3.6% below the 10-year
average (2001-2010).
While North Dakota planted 540,000 more acres to
corn in 2011 than in 2006, total acres planted to all
crops in the state actually fell 3.25 million acres (15%)
between 2006 and 2011. Total planted crop acres in
2011 were also lower in Minnesota. This strongly
suggests the expansion in corn area took place on
land previously planted to other crops.
While a useful tool for analyzing potential trends, the
USDA Cropland Data Layer (CDL) system utilized by the
authors to estimate land conversions has
demonstrated a high level or error in differentiating
between grasslands and land planted to hay and other
crops. USDA itself acknowledges that, "Unfortunately,
the grassland-related categories have traditionally had
very low classification accuracy in the CDL." For
example, USDA accuracy data shows the CDL tool
mischaracterized North Dakota acreage for alfalfa,
other hay, and idle/fallow cropland more than half the
time in 2012.
When the facts are on the table, it becomes clear that
readers of the new PNAS study should exercise great
caution and skepticism when interpreting the authors'
conclusions. After all, as eloquently stated by Meade
County (South Dakota) Farm Service Agency director
James R. Neill, "...farmers and ranchers are the best
conservationists in the world as they have a vested
interest in conserving the agricultural resources for
today and future generations."
[1] See
http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/02/13/121
5404110.full.pdf html?with-ds=yes
Why consumers pay Less for Ethanol Blended Gas...
NOT MORE!
As Prices at the Pump Go Up, Up, Up American Ethanol
is the Motorist’s Friend
Bob Dinneen
Posted on: February 21, 2013 in Gas Prices
If you've been paying more at the pump for gasoline,
you aren't alone. And, if it weren't for U.S. ethanol,
you'd be paying even more.
All across America, as of February 19, gasoline prices
had been climbing for 32 days, reaching a four-month
high. In fact, since January 17, the national average
retail gasoline price had soared by 43 cents - or 13
percent - all the way up to $3.73 a gallon. According
to EIA, last week's national average was the highest on
record for the month of February.
From now through Memorial Day, which kicks off the
summer driving season, gasoline prices will likely keep
going up, up, up. Over the past five years, gasoline
prices have risen an average of $0.51 per gallon
between New Year's Day and the Memorial Day
weekend. That means we could be looking at prices
well above $4 per gallon as summer begins and
families hit the road for vacation.
Gas prices are skyrocketing despite an increase in
domestic oil production. Oil companies tell us more
domestic drilling and fracking will help keep oil prices
down and gas prices in check - well, guess not. The
fact is, the oil market is global in nature, and decisions
made half a world away still impact what we pay for
gasoline here in the U.S. Recently, oil prices have been
under pressure due in no small part to Middle East
tensions over Iran's nuclear program and OPEC's
decision not to increase oil output even as all signs
point to higher global demand. Many of these statistics
about the surge in gas prices come from - hold your
breath - the Automobile Association of America (AAA),
which just might reconsider some of its recent attacks
on American-made ethanol. After all, one of the few
factors exerting a downward pressure on gasoline
prices is ethanol, which makes up 10 percent of the
nation's gasoline pool.
Today, ethanol is about $0.75 per gallon cheaper than
gasoline at the wholesale level. Yet, the retail savings
resulting from increased ethanol use go far beyond
simple blending economics.
America's growing use of domestically-produced
ethanol reduced wholesale gasoline prices by an
average of $1.09 per gallon in 2011, the most recent
year for which complete statistics are available,
according to a recent study conducted by economics
professors at the University of Wisconsin and Iowa
State University for the Center for Agricultural
Research and Rural Development (CARD)."Growth in US
ethanol production has added significantly to the
volume of fuel available in the US," says Professor
Dermot Hayes, one of the study's authors. "It's as if the
U.S. oil refining industry had found a way to extract
10% more gasoline from every barrel of oil."
Since the average American household bought 1,124
gallons of gasoline in 2011, ethanol reduced average
annual household spending at the pump by more than
$1,200. One reason why American ethanol helps to
hold down gasoline prices is that it replaces foreign oil
which has become even more expensive because of
the unrest in the Middle East and speculation in
commodities markets. From 2005 through 2012,
American dependence on imported petroleum
products declined from 60 percent to 41 percent.
All of this is something Members of Congress need to
consider as they assess legislation promoted by the oil
industry to repeal or reform the Renewable Fuels
Standard (RFS). The RFS is working to expand
domestic energy supply, encourage investment in new
technologies, and reduce gasoline prices at the pump.
Don't mess with the RFS!
Comment