Consider This 4.16 Getting the Lead Out The United States completed the ban on leaded gasoline in 1996 as a result of the increased health risks associated with lead exposure. But sources of exposure other than leaded gasoline still exist. Identify the following: a. an occupational source of lead exposure. b. a hobby that is a source of lead exposure. c. a source of lead exposure that particularly affects children. Hint: The National Safety Council is a good place to start your investigation of lead and lead poisoning.

Consider This 4.18 RFGs in the USA Contamination of municipal water supplies is forcing gasoline producers to switch from MTBE to ethanol in reformulated gasoline. a. Which regions of the country produce the most MTBE and ethanol? b. Which regions require the most usage of RFGs? c. Comment on the possible implications caused by a transition from MTBE to ethanol in RFGs nationwide. Hint: The Renewable Fuels Association is a good place to begin your investigation.

Consider This 4.19 The Switch to Switch Grass More recently switch grass (prairie grass) and wood products (such as the cellulose that the corn stalks contain) are being fermented to produce ethanol. a. These newer sources of ethanol are less controversial than corn. Explain why. b. How does the energy required to produce one liter of ethanol from corn compare with that from switch grass. Why is it more difficult to produce ethanol from switch grass and other cellulose-based feedstocks than from corn? Hint: A good starting place for information about switch grass, corn and ethanol is provided by the first half of this rather lengthy Energy Information Administration article.

Consider This 4.22 Building a Waste-Burning Plant
Imagine you are the administrator of a city of a million residents charged with drafting a proposal to your city council outlining the pros and cons of a waste-burning plant. Use the Hennepin County facilities in Minnesota as a model to collect information and examples. The pros and cons might center on issues such as resource recovery, pollution, or other potential concerns of local residents.

Consider This 4.24  FutureGen As of the writing of this book, only potential sites for the first FutureGen plant had been established. Check the current status of Future Gen, courtesy of the Department of Energy.