With the current drive towards production of alternative fuels from plant material, enzymes which can break down this material into useable compounds are required in industrial quantities and at a low cost. One group of scientists from Texas A&M University have come up with a solution: using plants to make the enzymes.

University of Maryland research that started with bacteria from the Chesapeake Bay has led to a process that may be able to convert large volumes of all kinds of plant products, from leftover brewer's mash to paper trash, into ethanol and other biofuel alternatives to gasoline.

Scientific studies on climate change, energy and alternative fuels are among the 30 projects awarded more than 145 million processing hours on supercomputers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory through the Department of Energy's Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment (INCITE) program.

Ford Thailand supports Government policies to promote the use of alternative fuels All Ford Focus petrol models are E20 capable and already available in Ford showrooms nationwide

Some alternative vehicle fuels such as liquid coal can cause more harmful greenhouse gas emissions than polluters such as petrol or diesel, scientists warned in a US study.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has selected Ford Motor Company to conduct research that will focus on improving flexible-fuel engines capable of running on E85 and clean combustion diesel engines.

As oil becomes scarce, the world needs new transportation fuels. As new fuel options develop we need means of assessing which are most effective at replacing petroleum. So far many scientists have used a measure called ‘net energy’.

The governor of the southern U.S. state of Florida has signed some of the nation's toughest laws aimed at reducing greenhouse gases. In Miami, VOA's Brian Wagner reports that environmentalists are urging Florida and other states to craft their own environmental policies because they say federal officials have been slow to act.

Toyota is introducing cars that run on ethanol and gasoline in Brazil at a time when such flexible-fuel vehicles are growing in popularity there. Toyota's Brazil unit said in a release Wednesday it will start selling two new flex-fuel Corolla models that surpass the performance of the gas-fueled Corollas now on the market in the country.

President Bush has ordered major government agencies to start work on drafting new regulations to cut dangerous auto emissions. The president is coming under increasing pressure to tackle America's energy woes.

The ethanol craze squeezes corn supplies and causes food prices to rise. Mexicans took to the streets last year to protest increased tortilla prices. The cost of chicken and beef in the United States ticked up because feed is more expensive. That's where biotechnology comes in.

ConocoPhillips, the fifth largest oil company in the world, is taking steps to address the problem of global warming, the first major US oil company to do so. As VOA's Greg Flakus reports from Houston, the company is implementing programs to develop alternative fuels and to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases.