Urbanna High School Environmental Science Classes Share Insights about Biofuels

by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA) Education encompasses a core part of Advanced Biofuels USA's mission. We meet this is many ways. Attending conferences, meeting with Congressional staff, exhibiting at a variety of events from the Keystone Farm Show to university science symposiums to Extension Field Days to local environmental expos to industry conferences. We also speak for civic groups and university and K-12 classes. Each affords us the opportunity to educate; and each also enables us to learn.

Thanks to Elizabeth McCook for the most recent invitation to spend a day teaching and learning with her Environmental Science classes at Urbana High School in Frederick County, Maryland.

We covered a lot of ground, using the first session slides from the PowerPoint in our Biofuels Basics/Public Presentations page. We discussed what are biofuels; how are they used; how are they made; and discussed some of the reasons that hinder their wider use. The subject matter was perfectly timed as the students were transitioning from learning about fossil fuels and nuclear energy to discussing renewables.

Thoughtful questions during the classes and insightful discussions during small group conversations around assigned sustainability issues left me with some clear take-aways, as well.

Economic, environmental and social issues were raised in the assigned small group discussions:

One student suggested giving samples. She and others in the group elaborated that maybe giving test drives to people in vehicles using biofuels would help. Then people would have the experience of biofuels. The group was in agreement that somehow giving samples was something that would help people better understand biofuels.

My take-away was that these students probably represented thoughts and feelings of many people in the eastern part of the US.

Frederick County is a mix of suburbia, colonial era towns and rural farmland and forests. Biofuels are not a part of everyday life. There's only one gas station that sells E85 in the entire country of about 250,000, which stretches from Pennsylvania to Virginia. Biofuels are strange stuff that most have never experienced. Most people aren't really conscious of the 10% ethanol in regular fuel.

Therefore, I think the insights these girls shared are valuable for thinking about expanding the adoption of renewable fuels beyond the Midwest. I told them about the $.85 promotions for E85 and such. They thought those were OK, but seemed to want something even more enticing, something that would even reach those who didn't own cars yet.

Now that's something to think about. Elizabeth McCook, the teacher, said that she was told by her dealership that she should not use E85 in her flex fuel vehicle. Maybe a promotion that gets dealerships to provide new FFVs full of E85 would address both of these issues. A free sample; and educating the dealership employees.

Another group was very interested in discussing the relationships among the price of oil, natural gas, gasoline and biofuels. And in following the value chain back from the fuels we use to their feedstock sources, contemplating how everyone in the value chain must at least make a living; and how transportation also impacts carbon footprint (depending on how renewable the transportation fuel is).

We also talked about how much a gallon of fuel costs compared to a gallon of milk or a bottle of water, or a loaf of bread. They seemed quite astonished that we can power a car with 4 people in it 30 miles or more for less than what a loaf of bread might cost.

At the beginning of my presentations, I ask the audience what the word "biofuel" means to each of them. I'm glad that recently "corn ethanol" is not the first or most popular response. In this class, however, I heard one of the best descriptions. It went something like this: Biofuels come from sources of power that will last as long as we need them.

All in all, it invigorates me to spend a day every so often in a classroom, to plant seeds of thoughts and to reap insights and good questions. I could not do what teachers do every day. I also learn how exhausting it is, the energy demanded, the impossibility of giving daily 40, 50 or 60 students the attention each deserves. And to cover such a wide range of topics...

My hat's off to teachers, and best wishes to science teachers who tackle the complexities of renewable energy. Anything I can do to help.... That's what Advanced Biofuels USA is here for.