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[] ** Where Does the Author work, what else has s/he written about, an what are his/her credentials? **  John Schoen has written about different finical and economic topics for 25 years. He began his career as a newspaper reporter in Connecticut. He then moved to different radio stations, there he continued his reporting on financial issues with stories on insider trading and the financial crisis of 1987. He has won several awards for his finical reporting, most recently in 2005 he won the Gerald Loeb Awards for Distinguished Business and Finial Journalism. ** What is the main topic of the text? **  The Bush administration had already passed laws that increased the subsidies for ethanol, and made mandates for yearly production, in 2007 these goals were surpassed with a new set of laws. These new laws will put stress on the farming industry and natural environment of the country. form increased use of crop land to increase commodity prices. There is also a land issue, currently there is not enough farm land to provide the additional 15 billion gallons a year that are required, where does the land come from. ** Describe at least three ways that the main topic is fleshed out. **  There is concern about what land is to be used to meet the new ethanol production demands. There may not be enough farm land available in the country to provide for the fuel needs. Also how does increase production have an effect on food prices and fuel prices? With more ethanol the food commodity prices will increase dramatically. Also because of increased fossil fuel prices the price of ethanol has increased. The fuel used to distill the ethanol has gotten more expensive, also the fuel used to transport and fertilize it has gotten more expensive. All these increases in price have made it less attractive to build a new ethanol plant, previously they had a return of about 35% on the investment, now (2008) that is about 13% on the investment. ** What three quotes capture the critical importance of the text? **   “We think there is also another 20 to 30 million acres that could be put into production that would provide enough corn for another 15 billion gallons” Don Enders, VeraSun Energy “Producing 35 billion gallons of ethanol a year would require putting an additional 129,000 square miles of farmland — an area the size of Kansas and Iowa” Philip Clapp, national environmental trust ” Bush conceded Wednesday that the aggressive targets could put a strain on U.S. corn production. ”   ** Explain how the argument and evidence in the text support you research focus. **   Corn base ethanol is not the long term solution, currently it is having a measurable effect on the prices of food commodity’s around the world when only a small fraction of the U.S. fuel is made from corn ethanol. It should only be a stepping stone to a new energy future. There is not enough land to supply a significant about of the fuel for this country. Even with large government support it has been difficult for the industry to have sustained growth with profitability. This could possible mean the need for different technologies that are more affective.
 * Full Citation: ** MSNBC.com, “Is There Enough Land for Bush Ethanol Plans” John Schoen, January 2007