Josh Wilson Algal bio-fuels Neg Page 1 of 4

Algal bio-fuels-Neg
INDEX:
Algal bio-fuels-Neg.............................................................................................................1
Inherency............................................................................................................................1
Pentagon is only months away from producing $3/Gallon algal fuel.....................................................1
The SQ if left alone will start producing Algal fuel at a competitive price to oil...................................1
Algal biofuels are already subsidized and will produce plenty in the SQ..............................................2
Solvency..............................................................................................................................2
There are currently no companies that can produce algal fuel on the necessary large scale for the
market......................................................................................................................................................2
Disadvantages.....................................................................................................................2
Immoral/unconstitutional/stupid subsidies.............................................................................2
Wasted Water and energy and greater GHG emissions .......................................................3
Algal fuels has higher GHG emissions, wastes more water, and is wastes more energy than corn
ethanol and other biofuels ......................................................................................................................3
Environmental degradation from fertilizers...........................................................................3
Algal fuels require much more fertilizer and petroleum energy input....................................................3
Wasted energy and greater dependence on fossil fuels..........................................................4
You have to burn extra fossil fuels to get the extra co2 required to turn the algal materials to fuel......4
Algal fuel production takes a ton of energy............................................................................................4

Inherency
Pentagon is only months away from producing $3/Gallon algal fuel
Wired news February 19, 2010 “Pentagon Researcher Promises Cheap Biofuel for Jets”
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/02/pentagon-researcher-promises-cheap-biofuel-for-jets/
Pentagon officials have been talking for years about weaning their jets off of fossil fuels.
Now they say they’re only months away from producing a cheap fuel made from algae —
for less than $3 a gallon

The SQ if left alone will start producing Algal fuel at a competitive price to oil
Wired news February 19, 2010 “Pentagon Researcher Promises Cheap Biofuel for Jets”
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/02/pentagon-researcher-promises-cheap-biofuel-for-jets/
Barbara McQuiston of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Darpa) told
The Guardian, research projects have already produced fuel from algae at a cost of $2 a
gallon. She said a large scale production operation would come on line in 2011. The
facility would be able to produce 50 million gallons a year, and the costs would be
competitive with traditional, petroleum based fuels.

Impact: Why subsidize something that’s competitive? This links to a DA on subsidies as

wrong.

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Algal biofuels are already subsidized and will produce plenty in the SQ
The Houston Chronicle December 5, 2009 “Federal money set to flow to renewable fuel projects”
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/business/6754306.html
Algenol Biofuels is slated to get $25 million for its 24-acre pilot-scale biorefinery in
Freeport, which will use algae to make ethanol from carbon dioxide and sea water.
In collaboration with Dow Chemical Co., the Georgia Institute of Technology and other
groups, the facility is expected to be able to produce 100,000 gallons of fuel-grade
ethanol annually
(Note: Don’t run this with the former inherency argument)

Solvency
There are currently no companies that can produce algal fuel on the necessary large
scale for the market
Wired news February 19, 2010 “Pentagon Researcher Promises Cheap Biofuel for Jets”
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2010/02/pentagon-researcher-promises-cheap-biofuel-for-jets/
The Pentagon has big plans for biofuels — including a green strike group, with bio-powered F/A-
18s flying off of the aircraft carrier’s deck. But right now, there’s no company that can produce
the stuff cheaply enough or in great enough quantities.

(Note: Don’t run this with the inherency argument)

Disadvantages
Immoral/unconstitutional/stupid subsidies
Use this DA if you are going to run the first or second inherency card, the argument
would go:
Link) Algal biofuels already sustainable
Internal link) AFF subsidizes them anyway
Impact) Subsidies are unconstitutional/harm human rights/distort markets/fail etc. (Use
all your subsidies=evilness/epic failure cards here, I’ve already got good ones from
source books that I’m not at liberty to trade so I’m not going to bother reproducing other
cards here.

If the aff challenges uniqueness you could argue it as a Kritik or just say less of a bad
thing is a good thing.

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Wasted Water and energy and greater GHG emissions

Algal fuels has higher GHG emissions, wastes more water, and is wastes more
energy than corn ethanol and other biofuels
The Scientific American (The best magazine source I’ve seen yet, plus it’s quoting a credible study.
Here’s some excerpts from their about us: Scientific American, the oldest continuously published magazine
in the U.S., has been bringing its readers unique insights about developments in science and technology for
more than 160 years. In an era of rapid innovation, Scientific American founded the first branch of the
U.S. Patent Agency, in 1850, to provide technical help and legal advice to inventors. A Washington, D.C.,
branch was added in 1859. By 1900 more than 100,000 inventions had been patented thanks to Scientific
American. More than 140 Nobel laureates have written for Scientific American, most of whom wrote about
their prize-winning works years before being recognized by the Nobel Committee. In addition to the likes of
Albert Einstein, Francis Crick, Jonas Salk and Linus Pauling, Scientific American continues to attract
esteemed authors from many fields: Today, the magazine continues to be the world's premier source for
advances in science and technology and how they shape our world. A science journalist for more than 20
years, DiChristina first came to Scientific American in 2001 as its executive editor, a position she held
until her current appointment. She is also the president (2009 and 2010) of the National Association of
Science Writers and has been an adjunct professor at the Science, Health and Environmental Reporting
Program of New York University. Scientific American is a truly global enterprise. Scientific American
publishes 15 Editions Worldwide, read in more than 30 countries, with a worldwide audience of more than
5.3 million people.) January 22, 2010 “Is Algae Worse than Corn for Biofuels?”
http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=algae-biofuel-growth-environmental-impact
"What we found was sort of surprising," said Andres Clarens, a civil and environmental
engineering professor at the University of Virginia and lead author of the paper. "We
started doing this with as much optimism as everybody else."
Algae production consumes more energy, has higher greenhouse gas emissions and uses
more water than other biofuel sources, like corn, switch grass and canola, Clarens and his
colleagues found by using a statistical model to compare growth data of algae with
conventional crops. "From a life-cycle standpoint, algae are not nearly as desirable as you would think
they are," Clarens said. "And that was surprising to us."

Environmental degradation from fertilizers

Algal fuels require much more fertilizer and petroleum energy input
The Scientific American (Cool newspaper, see above creds.) January 22, 2010 “Is Algae Worse than
Corn for Biofuels?” http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=algae-biofuel-growth-
environmental-impact
The culprit, the researchers say, is fertilizer. Growing algae in open ponds is akin to
producing them in a shallow swimming pool, Clarens [Andres Clarens, a civil and
environmental engineering professor at the University of Virginia and lead author of the paper] said, so
all of the nutrients -- nitrogen and phosphorus -- needed to keep them alive and boost
their production come from outside sources. And that fertilizer has an environmental
impact because it's often made from petroleum feedstocks, Clarens said.
"If you grow corn, you rotate the field with soybeans so you get nitrogen fixation,"
Clarens said. "You still have to fertilize a lot, but if you're growing algae ... all that
fertilizer has to come from you, and the fertilizing demands are much higher."

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Wasted energy and greater dependence on fossil fuels

You have to burn extra fossil fuels to get the extra co2 required to turn the algal
materials to fuel
The Scientific American (Cool newspaper, see above creds.) January 22, 2010 “Is Algae Worse than
Corn for Biofuels?” http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=algae-biofuel-growth-
environmental-impact
Carbon dioxide also contributes to algae's environmental footprint. Algae use sunlight
and water to convert carbon dioxide into materials that can be easily converted into fuel.
But that CO2 has to come from somewhere, Clarens [Andres Clarens, a civil and environmental
engineering professor at the University of Virginia and lead author of the paper] said. And until it's
economical to pull it out of coal-fired power plant smokestacks or other industrial
sources, it comes from petroleum-based sources, as well.

Algal fuel production takes a ton of energy

The Scientific American (Cool newspaper, see above creds.) January 22, 2010 “Is Algae Worse than
Corn for Biofuels?” http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=algae-biofuel-growth-
environmental-impact
Algae production has some other negative environmental impacts, Clarens [Andres Clarens,
a civil and environmental engineering professor at the University of Virginia and lead author of the paper]
said. For one, to convert algae into fuel, producers centrifuge the algae-laden water to
separate the two, and that takes "a fair amount of energy," Clarens said.