One of the pillars supporting the argument for ethanol is being yanked out. Ethanol plants in the Midwest are shifting towards coal because it's cheaper than natural gas, according to Alternet.
If capitalism and energy independence is the motivation, then producing some soot is a small price to pay for making ethanol more cost-competitive with gasoline produced outside of our borders. However, if air quality is a consideration, then dirtying the air is not smart.
Yes, there is "clean coal" technology, but that can be more expensive than natural gas, so it's a moot argument.
As the article points out, in the future agricultural waste will be used both to power ethanol plants as well as the fuel itself, so this dirty trend could be short-lived.
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