Industrial Hemp for Clean Sustainable Fuel

1. Q. How are the answers to our environmental,
farming and energy crises connected?
$
A. Farming environmentally sustainable biomass fuels can
tap the energy of plant life to replace the burning of fossil
fuels which lead to extinction.
We can be energy independent charcoal has nearly the same heating val-
without nuclear power ue in BTU as coal, with virtually no sul-
Biomass is the term to describe all biolog- fur. Charcoal can be transported by rail to to scrutiny: Hemp grown for biomass will
ically produced matter. World production power plants generating electricity. not make you high if you smoke it. The
20 to 40 million Americans who smoke
of biomass is estimated at 146 bi llion Clean energy for America:
metric tons per year, mostly as wild plant pot would loath to smoke such hemp, so
When we use sulfur free charcoal instead
growth. Biomass conversion to fuel has the crop is worthless as an intoxicant. In
of coal, the problems of acid rain will be-
proven economically feasible in laborato- the former Soviet Union, where farmers
gin to disappear. And when the energy
ry tests and continuous operation of pilot are free to grow hemp, they tell of stu-
crop is growing it takes in CO2 from the
plants since 1973. It has a heating value dents who sneak into the fields to steal
air, and releases oxygen, so when it is
of 5000-8000 BTU/lb, with virtually no some hemp branches. “But they never
burned the CO2 released creates a bal-
ash or sulfur produced by combustion. come back for more.”
anced system. Global greenhouse warm-
There is one farm crop that can fill all Only certain strains of hemp, grown
ing and adverse climactic change will au-
our energy needs . He mp i s the only under s pecial conditions can produce
tomatically diminish.
biom ass resource capable of m aking ‘marijuana.’ There is virtually THC-free
America energy independent. Farms—a natural resource: hemp to be grown, but even t hat is
Both Thomas Jefferson and George Farmers must be allowed to grow an en- blocked.
Washington grew hemp. But, under pres- ergy crop that produces at least 10 tons During World War II, our supply of
sure from the oil and timber industries, per acre in 90-120 days, and grows in all hemp for industrial feedstock was cut off
our government outlawed it in 1938. climactic zones in America. Hemp is by the Japanese. The federal government
About 6% of contiguous U.S. land area drought resistant, making it an ideal crop solved that emergency by sus pending
cultivated for biomass could supply all in the dry western regions of the country. marijuana prohibition. Patriotic American
our current demand for oil and gas. This Hemp is the number one biomass pro- farmers were encouraged to apply for li-
is the basis of the emerging concept of ducer on earth: 10 tons per acre in ap- censes to cultivate hemp, and responded
“energy farming,” wherein farmers grow proximately four months. enthusiastically. Hundreds of thousands
and harvest crops for biomass conversion Hemp is self-fertilizing, pest resistant of acres of hemp were grown, without
to fuels. and can be grown in rotation with food any problems—just benefits.
crops or on marginal land,. where food It is time for our leaders to end our na-
Hemp biomass technology can tional energy/economic emergency as
production is not profitable. This energy
meet our energy needs. crop can be harvested with equipment they once st opped Hitler: Perm it our
Pyrolysis is the technique of applying readily available. It can be “cubed” by farmers to grow hemp, so America can
high heat to organic matter (lignocellu- modified hay cubing equipment, and the once again become energy independent
losic materials) in the absence of air or in cubes are ready for conversion with no and smog free.
reduced air to produce charcoal, condens- further treatment.
able organic liquids (pyrolytic fuel oil), For more information:
non-condensable gasses, acetic acid, ace- Real National Security: On hemp or current efforts t o restore
tone and methanol. By the year 2000, America will have ex- hemp to America, send $1 + a large Self-
It can be adjusted to favor charcoal, hausted 80% of her petroleum reserves. Addressed Stamped Envelope to:
methanol, pyrolytic oil or gasoline, at Will we go to war with the Arabs for the BACH / Business A lliance
95.5% fuel-to-feed efficiency. It uses the privilege of driving our cars? Will we
stripmine our land for coal, and poison for Com merce in Hemp
same technology now us ed to process
P.O. Box 1716, El Cerrito CA 94530
crude fossil fuel oil and coal. our air so we can drive our autos an extra
Pyrolytic fuel oil has similar properties 100 years? Will we raze our forests to (510) 215-8326. # HF-0101
to #2 and #6 fuel oil and can be transport- make fuel? Suggested readin g: Hemp: Lifeline to the
ed economically by trucking, creating Or will reason prevail? The main argu- F u t u re by C hr is C onr ad, a nd E n e rg y
even more jobs for Americans. Pyrolysis ment against using hemp does not hold up Farming in America, by Lynn Osburn.