Forget the XL Keystone pipeline, grow HEMP!

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   road2hellposted 12 years ago

   Gee, the easiest solution to our energy crisis and dependency of foreign oil, is to grow our own oil!  Hemp oil can run our vehicles, you can make plastics out it, and you can make flour, breads and our nutritious foods.  And it won't effect our food crops like biofuels do, causing large increase in food prices.
   
   You can grow three crops in one year, it doesn't need fertilizers or pestcides. Very eco-friendly and doesn't contribute to global warming.
   
   So what are we waiting for!

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      Evan G Rogersposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      In order to make a hemp-oil running car, you would have to re-engineer the entire fleet of cars to be able to run off of hemp. Also, I'm sure it explodes with less energy than Oil, and thus you would need more oil/mile than gas/mile.
      
      Also, Think of the insane amount of farm land that would need to be dedicated to hemp to be able to fuel the economy.
      
      It isn't impossible, but it's probably a horrible idea.
      
      Either way, I'm all for legalizing everything.

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         kerrygposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Hemp seeds are used to produce biodiesel, which can be used to run any diesel engine, and hemp stalks are used to produce ethanol. Most cars in the US today can already run on ethanol blends, and some can run on 100% ethanol.
         
         Speaking of insane amounts of farm land, we currently use about 40% of our corn crop, or about 37 million acres of farmland, to produce ethanol. Unlike corn, hemp is essentially a weed, so it grows well in poor soils and requires much less water, fertilizer, and pesticides. We could easily turn marginal lands over to hemp production, or grow it in rotation with food crops, with less disruption to global food prices than corn ethanol causes. Hemp is also a food and fiber crop, so you could grow the stalks for ethanol and use the seeds for food, or use the seeds for biodiesel and the stalks for clothing, paper, and other fiber products.

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            geordmcposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I have been saying this for a while now. More than 22,000 products can be made with this one plant. How many others can do that? However, some fools believe what the government has been lying about for more than 70 years. Too bad for us so many foolish people run this country. It won't be until almost everyone is out of work before they will do anything about it, if even then it will be a fight. Unfortunately, stupidity reigns in D.C.

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               Evan G Rogersposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               It isn't stupidity, it's simply sinister.
               
               If we legalized weed (hemp, whatever), then the drug cartels would collapse, and we'd have to lay off half of our police department.
               
               This is normally considered a good thing, because the people who are doing bad work will have to get work that helps society in a real way.
               
               But politicians realize there is a lot of money in "declaring something evil" and then "taking a hard stance against it." They gain the police vote, and the "hard stance against evil" vote by doing so.
               
               However, it must be pointed out that by making something illegal, that thing immediately begins to actually appear evil because the suppliers of that thing suddenly have to turn dangerous to protect their property.

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            Evan G Rogersposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I agree with you.
            
            But allow me to point out that the only reason ethanol is being used, and the only reason why corn -- food -- is being turned into fuel is because of government laws.

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               geordmcposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               Laws CAN be changed but it's NOT easy. If gov't chould be shown how legalizing could be brought in by putting people back to work thus expanding the tax base to levels where goals can be achieved.

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   habeeposted 12 years ago

   Sounds good to me!

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   LookingForWaldenposted 12 years ago

   You forgot its most important use...

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      kerrygposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      From what I hear, you'd have to smoke an entire field of industrial hemp to get high. The THC levels are supposed to be extremely low.

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         livelongerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

         Yes, and this is why Canada changed its laws to allow hemp growing about a decade ago.
         
         Oddly, you have no problem getting hemp products here in the US, but you just can't get a commercial license to grow it...

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            kerrygposted 12 years agoin reply to this

            I guess the cotton lobby wasn't able to convince enough lawmakers that people would be ripping up their hemp yoga pants to roll joints.

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               livelongerposted 12 years agoin reply to this

               

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   2uesdayposted 12 years ago

   Using this for plant for fibers for clothes is a good idea as it needs less pesticides and chemicals than cotton to produce it and less watering. Bamboo is another good fiber for clothing as it grows so quickly and is very soft and comfortable to wear.
   
   If it could be used for fueling cars it might be a better option than the biofuel  from - palm oil as the effects this is having does not look good.
      
   
   http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2 … .indonesia

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   road2hellposted 12 years ago

   Oh, by the way, I am a Canadian.  But i don't believe we should be exploiting the tarsands to fuel our economy.  There is a better alternative and it could be implemented more rapidly than solar power and wind turbines.  I would like to see the American economy to change its protocol to get away from using fossil fuels.  We are running out of both oil and natural gas.  The tar sands are ridicuously energy intensie, using a lot of water and producing some the world's largest toxic lakes (tailing ponds).  Economically, it could be the job creating answer you Americans are looking for. It involves farmers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers, and even oil companies providing the infrastructure to make everything possible.
   
   All you need is people power and a passion to make it happen.

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