Biofuels: The Growing Solution to Energy Dependence and Global Warming

To grapple in a meaningful way with global warming and our dependency on oil, America will need all of the ingenuity it took to be the first to send a man to the moon. We need more efficient vehicles. And we need a clean and renewable alternative to oil. Biofuels produced and used responsibly can be a component of a strategy to beat back global warming. This index collects NRDC studies, analyses and other policy materials that answer some of the most pressing questions about these fuels.

Putting Biofuels on the Right Track: Renewable Fuels Standard Safeguards Protect Wildlife and the Environment, April 2008

The verdict is in: Do biofuels right, or they will cause more harm than good. Fortunately, the 2007 Energy Bill (the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, or EISA) puts biofuels on the right track. These RFS safeguards are the best way to ensure that biofuels don't become just another dirty fuel.

Getting Biofuels Right: Eight Steps for Reaping Real Environmental Benefits from Biofuels, June 2007

Liquid motor vehicle fuels made from plant matter, such as ethanol, butanol and biodiesel, can be a large and important tool for ending our dependence on oil and stopping global warming -- but only if we get them right.

Ethanol: Energy Well Spent, February 2006

America's oil dependence threatens our security, economy, and environment. In the face of these concerns, ethanol is earning increasing attention as a cleaner, renewable and domestically produced alternative to fossil fuels for transportation. This February 2006 literature review of existing research on ethanol production concludes that ethanol does successfully capture and deliver renewable energy and can indeed help us reduce our dangerous addiction to fossil fuels.