Energy points open to question, but state position seems clear

Is our love affair with the big sport utility vehicle over?

Are the light bulbs Edison invented going to go the way of the buggy whip?

And, are all those new ethanol plants about to become a second-class technology?

Those changes and more seem to be the aim of the new energy bill sent to the White House late Tuesday, but we're not convinced they'll be successful.

The law, which Bush was expected to sign this morning, requires automakers to build vehicles, including SUVs and small trucks, that average 35 miles per gallon by 2020.

That's about 10 mpg better than they get today.

But we don't expect to see many vehicles like the tiny Smart cars depicted in the Nintendo Wii commercials rolling through the Loess Hills of Southwest Nebraska.

If the fuel standards turn out like they have in the past, automakers will market small, fuel efficient cars at a loss so they can sell more big cars at a bigger profit. Not many cornfed Nebraskans feel comfortable challenging diesel semi's and jacked up 4x4s on Interstate 80 while wedged into a tiny tin can.

We're all for compact fluorescent light bulbs, which use a fraction of the wattage required by standard filament bulbs, but we've yet to be convinced they put out an equivalent amount of light. Use more than one of them to replace one old bulb, and you're soon back to wasting electricity. And, since they each contain a small amount of mercury, each is a potential mini-environmental disaster.

And, while we do advocate exploring cellulosic ethanol production, it's far from proven to be profitable. The bill mandates increasing America's current 7 billion gallons of corn-based ethanol to be increased to 15 billion gallons by 2022, plus adding 21 billion gallons from ethanol made from things like switchgrass, cornstalks and wood.

That, plus transportation expenses associated with fuel alcohol, is a question that will have to be answered before the mandated goals can be met.

Nebraska has 21 ethanol plants in operation and six under construction, but Cornhuskers could use 100 million gallons a year at best, according to Todd Sneller of the state ethanol board.

With an annual corn ethanol production of 1.35 billion gallons, and that expected to jump to 2.3 billion gallons from corn by 2009, Nebraska is assured to play an important part in the national energy market for years to come.