Speak Out

We can all agree that we must do something about the high cost of fuel and the harm it's doing to our economy. The escalating cost of fuel is driving up the prices of goods in our economy from food to manufacturing.

A few weeks ago, I traveled with Gov. Bob Riley to South America for trade opportunities and to explore a potential solution to this energy problem. We visited Columbia, Argentina, Chile and Brazil. One possible solution, which has led to energy independence for Brazil, is to convert sugar cane to ethanol, biodiesel and jet fuel here in Alabama.

The U.S. military, the largest consumer of oil, is turning into an alternative-fuel pioneer. It currently consumes 340,000 barrels of oil a day, or 1.5 percent of all the oil used in this country, and has now developed a new synthetic fuel requirement. The Air Force, which consumes 2.6 billion gallons of jet fuel a year, has set a goal that domestically produced synthetic and/or alternative fuels will supply 50 percent of its jet fuel requirements by 2016, while simultaneously reducing its carbon footprint.

The use of coal and natural gas to create synthetic fuels in many cases creates a larger carbon footprint than the actual fuels we burn today. Riley and I, along with scientists from the Hudson Alpha Institute in Huntsville, met with the scientist of Amyris Technologies in Brazil, which is dedicated to improving the world by leveraging breakthroughs through the new field of synthetic biology.

Our state could partner with Amyris by bringing sugar-cane production to Alabama to create synthetic jet fuel for our military. This is a national security issue that will lessen our dependence on foreign oil from unstable countries in the Middle East and Venezuela. Furthermore, it will be a win for Alabama to convert agricultural land to grow sugar cane to fuel our nation's fighting men and women.

Currently, jet fuel produced on a limited basis from sugar cane has exceeded all Air Force standards. Subsequently, Riley met with the Air Force and received approval for the concept.

There are challenges to be overcome. Thousands of acres of current farm land must be converted into sugar-cane production. Auburn University, a leader in this area, completed a study identifying that land from Evergreen southward can produce the sugar cane with the energy content necessary to create the jet fuel.

The Amyris scientist will cooperate and partner with our own world-class biogenetic research facility in Huntsville, the Hudson Alpha Institute, on this project. It is anticipated that the first test plant will be built in Huntsville, not because sugar cane can be grown there, but rather to examine innovative ways to make the production better, faster and cheaper.

Amyris' partners in Brazil have agreed to export their technology and sugar-cane varieties to Alabama. They will continue to work with scientists at Hudson Alpha Institute, Auburn and our other land-grant universities, greatly enhancing the shared knowledge in this area.

Another difficulty in this biofuel production is the approximate 1.5 years of sugar-cane growth before harvest. However, with proper rain and/or irrigation, the crop does not have to be replanted for approximately five years; therefore, allowing the farmers to recover the initial cost of planting.

This could be a huge opportunity for Alabama, which would benefit from the construction of production facilities and the cultivation of hundreds of thousands of acres of farm land. Over a thousand high-tech jobs and several thousand farming and transportation jobs could be created. Farmers would again be putting their land into productive use while creating new jobs in selling, financing and insuring farming equipment.

I want to thank Gov. Riley for his leadership in this effort and for asking me to join with him in a bipartisan manner to make this dream a reality. I welcome the chance to help America get off its dependence on foreign oil while also producing jobs here in Alabama. Sugar cane is not the final answer to the overall national energy problem, but it can be a major help. To solve our energy crisis we must implement an efficient combination of coal, natural gas, wind, solar, nuclear, hydro and yes, sugar-cane production.

While this is just the first of many steps to make this dream a reality, I believe Alabama's bright minds and dedicated work force can accomplish this goal. For those who say this is too big a dream, remember that 10 years ago we produced no automobiles, but this year Alabama workers will produce 800,000 vehicles. Let's join together to make the concept of creating sugar cane into biodiesel and jet fuel a reality.

Roger Bedford, D-Russellville, is a member of the Alabama Senate.