When Bad Guys Go Green

Sounds like a great quote from a crunchy green company just taking root in the fertile soil of the Obama administration's energy initiative. But no! Bizarrely, a new initiative to research algae as an energy source comes from the granddaddy of all polluters, Exxon. In fact, Exxon is pouring $300 million into initial research, with the expectation of investing an additional $300 million into production.

And not only is Exxon seeking to develop a new, green energy source — it's also hoping that its product will actual reduce greenhouse gasses overall. According to an article in the New York Times algae "also has another benefit, which could eventually help cut greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming. Like any plant, it needs carbon dioxide to grow. But Exxon and Synthetic Genomics hope to genetically engineer new strains of algae that can absorb huge amounts of carbon dioxide — like that emitted by power plants, for example."

This new direction is heady stuff from the company that once referred to ethanol as "moonshine." And environmentalists aren't holding their breath while they wait for algae-based fuel to come to a pump near you.

As Kert Davies, research director at Greenpeace, said: “Research is great, but we need to see new products in the market… the question is whether companies are simply paying lip service to something or whether they are putting their weight and power behind it.”

Photo courtesy of StockXChange.