A new study by Stanford University claims 200 more respiratory deaths will occur a year if all cars switched from gasoline to ethanol. The study claims ethanol use in vehicles will cause ozone levels to raise, ozone (Health Effects of Ozone)is an irritant and damages the lungs. The study also claims the burning of ethanol also produces two carcinogens, Formaldehyde and Acetaldehyde.

Ethanol May Cause More Smog, More Deaths
WASHINGTON - Switching from gasoline to ethanol — touted as a green alternative at the pump — may create dirtier air, causing slightly more smog-related deaths, a new study says.

Nearly 200 more people would die yearly from respiratory problems if all vehicles in the United States ran on a mostly ethanol fuel blend by 2020, the research concludes.



Each year, about 4,700 people, according to the study’s author, die from respiratory problems from ozone, the unseen component of smog along with small particles. Ethanol would raise ozone levels, particularly in certain regions of the country, including the Northeast and Los Angeles.



Switch to Ethanol as Fuel May Harm Health
WEDNESDAY, April 18 (HealthDay News) -- While ethanol is promoted as an eco-friendly, clean-burning fuel for cars, its widespread use could pose a threat to human health, according to a Stanford University study.



The study is in the April 18 online edition of the journal Environmental Science & Technology.



E85 is a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. E85 vehicles are vehicles modified to use E85 as its fuel.
"We found that E85 vehicles reduce atmospheric levels of two carcinogens, benzene and butadiene, but increase two others -- formaldehyde and acetaldehyde," Jacobson said in a prepared statement. "As a result, cancer rates for E85 are likely to be similar to those for gasoline. However, in some parts of the country, E85 significantly increased ozone, a prime ingredient of smog."



The study also found that E85 would likely increase the number of asthma-related emergency room visits in the United States by 770 a year and the number of respiratory-related hospitalizations by 990 a year.



I thought ethanol would be the perfect and safest renewable, eco friendly replacement for gasoline.

Up until now, I guess long term use of it was never researched. I'm sure there will be a lot of other research projects now to confirm or deny that this is true.

I sure hope they do enough research to be sure any alternative fuel is safe before switching to it as a preferred fuel source only to find out it's as harmful as using gasoline.

[edit on 22/4/07 by Keyhole]