From the Farm Futures website: Transportation Industry Trying to Keep Up With Biofuel
Biofuel plants require transportation of both input and output. The
transportation system must support a supply of raw materials into
plants as well as a flow of fuel out of the plants. To ease shipping
costs of raw materials, the bulk of ethanol and biodiesel plants are
situated in the Midwest
"There is a challenge and there will be a challenge as both of these products begin to get more use outside of the middle section of the country," says president of the Iowa Motor Truck Association Scott Weiser. "Several members of our congressional delegation have indicated there needs to be a focus on those issues of infrastructure and transportation if and when we are going to serve the rest of the nation."
Currently, railroads move about 75% of U.S.
Iowa Soybean Association spokesman Grant Kimberley says the nation's rail system will need to improve to adequately take on an increasing role in biofuel transportation.
"It already is a challenge with just transporting the normal products the railroads transport," he says. "We'll have to be moving more and more renewable fuels that way unless we figure out ways to send this stuff through petroleum pipelines."
Exactly. Bring some technology and value into this part of the biofuel equation and I think you have a winner.
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