Sustainability
Sustain And Gain
Badger State Ethanol produces 1.67 units of usable energy for every 1.0 unit of energy input. This ratio is becoming common in the industry as a whole and is especially true here at BSE where we have moved away from the traditional dry mill process by creating a new production method that results in an expanded variety of value-added co-products, including:
- Corn Oil
- Concentrated Protein
- Pelletted Distillers Grain
- Distillers Grains
With this technology in place, second generation cellulosic ethanol created from corn fiber is coming soon. You can see that while the production process at Badger State Ethanol results in a high conversion rate of starch to ethanol we are really much more than a fuel company.
The Falling Water Requirement
New technology is also reducing water requirements. The amount needed for the production of ethanol already compares favorably to that needed for the production of gasoline, and oil and other energy industries are actually seeing their water profiles worsen.
To put it in perspective perhaps closer to home, look at this comparison of water requirements:
It's also important to remember that nearly 97% of all corn used at ethanol biorefineries was not irrigated.
Planting For The Future
Corn has been referred to as quite possibly the most versatile crop in the world—being used as a food ingredient, a feedstock, a fuel, a fiber, and an ingredient in building materials and pharmaceuticals. It has also proven to be sustainable as U.S. corn growers take serious their responsibility for farm and industry meeting growing demand in a sustainable manner.
Yield increases and input decreases continually improve the sustainability of U.S. corn farming. Studies have shown that over the past 20 years that yields have risen 31.3 bushels per acre while at the same time the amount of land and the amount of energy needed to produce one bushel of corn have both decreased 37%.
- Since 1980, U.S. farmers are applying 41 percent less nitrogen and 53 percent less phosphate per bushel of corn produced
- According to a 2006 Conservation Tillage Information Council survey, 77 percent of farmers are engaged in crop residue management practices that conserve and enhance the soil
- The conservation tillage practices employed by 55 percent of farmers today reduce rainfall runoff by more than 60 percent and soil loss by more than 90 percent.
More information
The dead zone (hypoxia) in the Gulf of Mexico has recently been attributed to increased land use for producing ethanol. This is not true! The total number of acres of corn has not increased since the huge increase in ethanol production started. During the same time period (ethanol expansion) the dead zone has actually decreased in size.
Facts on Ethanol, Corn Production, and Hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico