Fuel or Folly? Ethanol and the Law of Unintended Consequences

My latest SFGate column looks at the unintended, and very destructive, consequences of the ethanol/biofuel craze:

In the pantheon of well-intentioned governmental policies gone awry, massive ethanol biofuel production may go down as one of the biggest blunders in history. An unholy alliance of environmentalists, agribusiness, biofuel corporations and politicians has been touting ethanol as the cure to all our environmental ills, when in fact it may be doing more harm than good. An array of unintended consequences is wreaking havoc on the economy, food production and, perhaps most ironically, the environment.

Continue reading "Fuel or Folly? Ethanol and the Law of Unintended Consequences"

Update (4/6): Proving that this is an issue that crosses all political lines, Bill Maher, writing for Huffington Post, questions "The Biofuel Boom."

Update (4/7): Kavanna provides a detailed look "Inside the Biofuels Craze," as well as some kind words for yours truly. Much appreciated.