May 1, 2006

I write this week with words of encouragement for all of our hard working families faced with higher fuel costs in our state.

These prices impact nearly every segment of our state. From producers who rely on tractors and combines to plant and harvest crops, to companies that transport products to markets across the country, families planning a summer outing, or individuals commuting to work, there’s no doubt that we are all having to cope.

Yet because of Nebraska’s commitment to alternative fuels like ethanol and biodiesel, states like ours are positioned to offer some relief in the near future.

While federal policy has been slow to set a new course for America’s energy independence, it has been encouraging to see a greater emphasis being placed on the value and untapped potential of our nation’s alternative fuels industry. This industry has grown thanks to investments from both the public and private sector.

Here at home, Nebraska is now a national leader in ethanol production, with new investments planned for the production of biodiesel. This is certainly good news for the producers and communities in our state whose local economies are based on agriculture.

One of the nation’s first ethanol plants began production in 1985 in Hastings, producing less than 10 million gallons of ethanol a year. Twenty years after Nebraska’s first ethanol plant opened, our state has a dozen plants up and running that have achieved record-setting production levels in recent years.

Of these 12 plants, four are undergoing expansions that will more than double their current production. Some eight new ethanol plants are under construction, including plants in Ord and Madrid, along with a plant in Mead using a new closed-loop model that will dramatically reduce the amount of energy needed for ethanol production.

Our state stands to benefit greatly from increased production over the next couple of years as these plants complete construction, going from 550 million to 1.5 billion gallons of ethanol produced each year.

With other plants is in the works for communities like St. Paul, Atkinson and several other small towns, interest in alternative fuel production continues to grow in our state thanks in part to the successes seen in communities across the state. Each plant has strengthened economic development by helping spur additional job growth and business investment in and around local communities, so it’s little wonder that with rising prices and greater demand for more fuel-flexible vehicles communities are choosing to invest in the future of alternative fuels.

However, investment in ethanol is just one part of the larger picture when in comes to clean energy produced here at home. Opportunities for development of other alternative fuels and renewable energy resources include biodiesel made from soybeans, construction of methane digesters that produce electricity and greatly reduce odors from livestock waste, wind and solar power, and the ability to develop ethanol from other sources. Each of these options offer promise for increased energy production here in our state.

Locally-produced fuels like ethanol and biodiesel have a key role to play in making fuel more affordable in the U.S. Nebraska has proven to be fertile ground when it comes to expansion of the biofuels industry, and I look forward to continued growth that will help set our state and nation on the path towards greater energy independence.