Sources of Alternative Energy

The article on energy alternatives mentioned that energy from biomass is not yet practical.

It was on its way to becoming practical in the 1930s when Henry Ford was growing cannabis plants (hemp; marijuana) and powering his autos with processed methanol from those unique plants. At about the same time, new machinery was making the harvest and breakdown of these prolific biomass creators fast and efficient.

The Times article mentioned ethanol production from corn, a plant that produces biomass at a fraction of the amount that hemp can provide per acre, even on marginal land. Hemp grown for biomass makes poor-grade smoking product. Numerous other sub products can be processed from the hemp plant, including paper and textile products, and high protein food stuffs from the hemp seed.

It might be supposed that a large portion of Americans would be aghast at considering the deregulation of hemp as a commercial product. But considering that we already pay taxes to subsidize the cultivation of tobacco and grains for alcohol, items useless except for their ability to intoxicate and addict people, should it not be time for us to seriously consider the reintroduction of hemp in American agriculture and energy alternative research?

JOHN SCHNEIDER

American Hemp Council

El Monte