Biomass and Doing One Thing

The problem is that one can never do "just one thing."
A biomass plant proposed for Torrance County does some other things (the details don't matter here) and has been rejected by State Environment Department Secretary Ron Curry. Syndicated columnist Sherry Robinson, in her column this week, says "Curry ignored the favorable recommendation of his own hearing officer and denied the permit because the plant would use natural gas once a year to start up after maintenance." Other proposed alternative energy projects are watching for the outcome of the Torrance County situation. Robinson's column runs in eight newspapers around New Mexico..
Ethanol made from corn comes to mind. Ethanol is touted as a supplement to gasoline. But diverting corn to fuel feedstock creates more demand than farmers have been able to deliver. The result: higher food prices.
One other example: A water bureaucracy dispute in northwest metro Albuquerque becomes major factor in the significant delay of a large real estate project.