When you really think about it, any type of ethanol or Biofuel which you might consume for energy still requires burning carbon and releasing carbon dioxide – greenhouse gases, into the atmosphere. It’s a little more sustainable because Biofuel can be produced by growing corn, plants, or algae, whereas Fossil Fuels can’t be renewed quickly. Biofuels have advantages as a fuel type and also disadvantages to other more sustainable forms of energy production, i.e. Solar.
“First tops, then flops. That is one way of summing up the history of biofuels so far. A new study led by Empa gives an up-to-date picture of the ecobalance of various biofuels and their production processes. Only a few are overall more environmentally friendly than petrol.”
Source: EMPA Press Release:
http://www.empa.ch/plugin/template/empa/3/125597/—/l=2
http://www.empa.ch/plugin/template/empa/*/125606
Primary Source: http://www.empa.ch/plugin/template/empa/*/125527