Washington, April 11: A new study has suggested that the production of bioethanol may use up to three times as much water as previously thought, thus threatening water supplies.
According to the study, a gallon of ethanol may require up to more than 2,100 gallons of water from farm to fuel pump, depending on the regional irrigation practice in growing corn.
But, the water usage isn’t quite so high everywhere.
A dozen states in the Corn Belt in the US consume less than 100 gallons of water per gallon of ethanol, making them better suited for ethanol production, the study found.