Jatropha Curcas as a Bio Fuel?

A couple of years ago, I was on a plane reading an article about bio fuels. The article was trumpeting the benefits of a raggedy plant called Jatropha Curcas (pronounced JAT-ruff-uh cur-cuss). According to the article, the plant grew like a weed, but is more like a tree. It sounded like the perfect plant for bio diesel.

I assumed that I would be hearing about it in the news soon, but I never did. So, whatever became of Jatropha Curcas as a bio fuel? Why don’t we hear more about it?

By now, most of us realize the dangers of using corn as a bio fuel. It drives up food costs, it encourages the razing of forests, it injects nitrogen and pesticides in soils (nitrogen causes green house gases from soil microbiological processes), and it takes food needed for starving people and puts it in cars. I realize that oversimplifies the issue a bit, but the broad strokes are there for discussion.

I want to talk about the pros and cons of using Jatropha Curcas as a bio fuel. I'm not an expert in bio fuels, but I'd like to understand the issues.

In the original article I read, Jatropha Curcas, which is also called the "physic nut", was touted as being so easy to grow that it was planted along the railway tracks in India. It requires much less water and nitrogen than other bio-fuel plants, and it can grow in soil usually considered too infertile for food production- like beside a gravel-pocked railroad track.

Its leaves have a natural resistance to insects, so it does not need to be treated with pesticides. It cannot be eaten by animals, so raising it for fuel does not reduce supply of livestock feed, and, per hectare, it produces substantially more oil than corn.

The Cons: There are worries that- because Jatropha Curcas grows so easily, it will become an invasive species, overwhelming native ecologies and reduce biodiversity. Also, though bio fuels are more environmentally friendly, bio fuels extend the life of the combustion engine. Some would like to see it disappear completely, regardless of its projected eco-friendly nature with bio fuels. While they burn cleaner than petroleum products and do not produce sulfur emissions, bio-diesels continue to produce carbon dioxide emissions (C02). Of course, like most plants, Jatropha Curcas absorb C02. However, I do not understand how close the emissions and absorption balance each other out.

The following is a chart I created to compare pros and cons on several different levels for Jatropha Curcas.

Jatropha Curcas	Corn & other bio fuels
Jatropha Curcas can be grown in waste lands with poor soil and limited water	Corn/soy requires prime farm land with access to ample irrigation. Deforestation can result from the desire to produce more prime growing lands.
Jatropha Curcas is resistant to insect attack and does not need pesticides	Corn usually requires pesticide treatment, which can affect water table quality
Jatropha Curcas requires little to no fertilization	Corn usually requires nitrogen fertilization which releases nitrous oxide from the soil creating a green house gas
Jatropha Curcas does not require refrigeration or protection from rodents to transport. This increases the possibilities for interior communities to transport the product to locations of export.	Corn must be protected from vermin and will spoil if transported over hot terrain for long periods.
Jatropha Curcas is not edible. Therefore, it is not taking potential food from starving peoples. It is also not taking land needed for planting food crops, as it can grow in less desirable land.	Using corn as bio fuel increases food costs and potentially makes food less accessible to those with few resources.
Because Jatropha Curcas is not edible, crop losses due to wandering animals does not happen.	Corn and other bio fuel. foods are often eaten by native animals- often incurring substantial crop loss.
Jatropha Curcas produces some 500% more usable oil from its seeds than an equivalent amount of corn. Oil extraction from its seeds varies from 28% to 94% with 37% to 50% average.	Corn produces 1.55 pounds of oil per bushel
Methods for harvesting Jatropha Curcas seeds is currently underdeveloped (2008). The method most likely to be used is similar to coffee, in which the plant is shaken to force the seeds to drop.	Corn harvesting is well developed and automated.
Jatropha Curcas can survive drought. It can even be planted in the desert, clay or rocky terrains (5 - 6.5 PH). Flooded plains will not grow Jatropha Curcas. The land must have drainage.	Corn cannot survive drought without intervention. Soil must be fertile.
Jatropha Curcas crops do not need to be rotated to maintain soil.	Corn crops must be rotated to a different food crop to maintain soil - or, the soil can be supplemented with fertilizers.
There are fears that Jatropha Curcas could become an invasive species that might dominate non-indigenous locations. More study is needed.	There is no fear corn will become an invasive plant.
Jatropha Curcas can grow from cuttings or seeds, making it economical to plant.	Corn is grown from seed planting.
The oil from Jatropha Curcas would be primarily destined for use as bio-diesel. Eating it is considered poisonous.	Corn oil is used as bio fuel and in food preparation.
Jatropha Curcas has been successfully tested as a viable bio-diesel.	Corn has also been tested as a viable bio fuel.

The main downside I can see is that Jatropha Curcas may get out of control as a pest plant. However, it was introduced in parts of Africa as a wind break several years ago, and invasive monopoly of local ecology has not ensued.

So, why do we continue to talk about corn as a bio-fuel when other plants seem to do it so much better? I'm going to keeping looking.

Below is a video I found on Jatropha Curcas.

WATCH VIDEO