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How We Can Get Out Of The Middle East And Put Billions Back Into America

Oil prices are through the roof and it's costing us dearly. We empty our pockets in order to line those of the oil barons in the Middle East and elsewhere. Our dependence on their crude oil continues to deepen at an alarming rate due to our consumption habits.

However, America has the technology and the natural resources to break this reliance on the Middle East. What's more, by buying American fuel we would stimulate the economy and keep our US dollars in our US pockets.

As a nation we might predominantly use gasoline-engine vehicles for personal use, but our freight and shipping industry is wholly diesel based. Factor in the diesel needed to power many generators and construction equipment in the country, and it becomes clear that we use a substantial amount of diesel per year. Alternative fuels and energy specialist Dr. Richard Craven believes this market is crucial in our breaking free of Middle Eastern oil dependence.

"Diesel fuel accounts for around 36 billion gallons of petroleum consumed in the US each year - and that figure is for highway transportation use alone," says Dr. Craven. "That is over 100 billion dollars a year, and there is absolutely no reason why we should be paying that sum to a Middle Eastern company for fuel, when it is readily available from companies here in America."

With 20 years of his career spent in the chemical research and development with emphasis in the past decade on environmentally friendly fuels and alternative energy, Dr. Craven is now the spokesperson for Universal Bioenergy, a Mississippi based biodiesel manufacturer. While he acknowledges that an increased usage of biodiesel benefits Universal Bioenergy, he is quick to point out that the benefits for other companies and industries far outstrip those of the biofuel manufacturers.

Because biodiesel is manufactured from vegetable oils - American farmers' crops - and animal fats/greases, so too the US agricultural industry and its associated service sectors see increased revenues. This in turn creates more jobs, equating to more consumers with disposable incomes to spend. Increased consumer demand stimulates the manufacturing industries that freight their goods across the nation using … that's right, more American biodiesel, thus perpetuating the boom-cycle.

As if the economic boom and independence from the Middle East weren't good news enough, the positive environmental impact would be massive. "The benefits to the environment are substantial," Dr. Craven explains. "We've all seen a truck pull away from the lights in a huge black cloud of smoke, but with biodiesel that is greatly reduced. It essentially contains no sulfur, so there is reduced acid rain caused by sulfur containing diesel exhaust emissions. Also, biodiesel produces far smaller carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide, and other hydrocarbon emissions. Of course because you're growing more plants from which to manufacture the fuel, there is more vegetation to consume these carbon emissions anyway. It's a closed-loop."

This 'green' side to biodiesel also has positive financial factors for the US. Some of the plants used for producing biodiesel feedstocks can grow in areas not suitable for 'edible foodstock' plants, therefore farmers and co-operatives can utilize formerly unused land to generate increased revenues. Additionally, many of these alternative feedstock crops available for biodiesel production can produce more than twice the yield of edible foodstock crops as biodiesel feedstock, which again leads to increased productivity and increased profit.

Perhaps biodiesel's ace in the hole is that it is a 100% renewable fuel. "Crude oil is running out, and when anything goes into short supply, its price increases," observes Dr. Craven. "As this happens, biodiesel will be more cost-effective for users. There are already tax breaks for green fuel companies and they usually pass on their savings to the consumers via price cuts. As productivity increases, this trend will increase also."

It is such an elegant and simple solution - certainly not rocket science. Although, with the advances in technology that Dr. Craven and his peers are spearheading, perhaps biodiesel will be used as the rocket fuel of the future! But wherever it leads, the chance to decrease our spending in the Middle East and increase our economy at home should be embraced.

About Dr. Richard Craven

Mississippi based Universal Bioenergy is a biofuel manufacturer at the forefront of the green technologies revolution. Biodiesel is made from vegetable oil, or animal fat; it is biodegradable, non-toxic, and typically produces up to 78% less net carbon emissions than petroleum-based diesel fuel. Biodiesel is used to power cars, buses, trucks, construction equipment, locomotives, boats, generators, and is also used as heating oil. Universal Bioenergy's refinery is one of the most economical, efficient, and compactly designed plants in the United States, with a smaller footprint than typical plants for the same production capacity. Universal's unique manufacturing process requires less time and less energy to yield a fuel of high quality and effectiveness. Universal Bioenergy's website can be found at www.universalbioenergy.com.