Debate rages over what is the best short-term solution to reduce CO2 emissions from the vehicles we drive. Fiat is heading one way with natural gas powered vehicles, while Ford and General Motors - with its Opel, Saab and Chevrolet brands - are pioneering the biofuels route.
Both alternatives offer reduced CO2 emissions, but it is bio-fuels rather than natural gas that are becoming widely accepted in northern Europe and, increasingly, in Ireland. However, the viability of bio-fuels as anything other than a short-term stopgap solution is in question. Critics say the need for substantial tracts of land to be turned over to fuel-crop production may see land needed for food crops eventually being used to grow the organic matter for bio-fuels instead.
Even Maxol, Ireland's only distributor of bio-ethanol at present, knows the writing is already on the wall for the fuel. "Ethanol will never be the final answer, because there is simply not enough land," says Maxol director, Noel McMullen.
Biofuel cars, which run on any combination of E85 bioethanol and unleaded petrol, have gained popularity since Ford introduced Ireland's first biofuel car - the Focus FFV (flexi-fuel vehicle) - at the end of 2005. Much of the popularity stems from the Government's decision to offer a 50 per cent VRT rebate on new biofuel cars. But even with Ford, Volvo and Saab selling biofuel cars here, the number on the roads stands at just 338, which in a fleet of 1.6 million cars is a drop in the ocean.
Meanwhile, sales of E85 fuel so far this year are already above the total for all of 2006. The only places in Ireland to fill up on E85 - a blend of 85 per cent bio-ethanol and 15 per cent unleaded petrol - are Maxol stations. The company is committed to distributing the green fuel, which is made by the Carbery Group in Co Cork from a bi-product of milk whey. Use of this indigenous fuel can cut a vehicle's CO2 emissions by as much as 80 per cent.
But E85 cars also have a downside, in that they consume up to 30 per cent more fuel than a car running on unleaded petrol only. This is because ethanol, which has a higher octane rating, burns faster, which relates to an increase in power but also a parallel drop in fuel economy.
Modern petrol engines can run without any damage on a blend of 90 per cent unleaded fuel and 10 per cent bio-ethanol. This fuel - known as E10 - will be sold following a change to the European regulations within an expected 18 months.
However, it is sales of E85 that will really make a difference to vehicle emissions in the future. This fuel is available at 16 Maxol stations nationwide. Concerns over where we will source biofuels from as demand increases are played down by Maxol.
Meanwhile, Ireland is set to become a centre of bio-diesel production after a new plant in New Ross, Co Wexford, was given the green light. Planning permission for the plant, which will produce more than 34 million litres of the fuel, has been granted to Green Biofuels Ireland Ltd.
Production is expected to begin later this year, using a mixture of organic ingredients including rapeseed oil, used cooking oil and animal fats. This new Irish bio-diesel facility and the continuing production of bio-ethanol by Carbery means Ireland can sustain demand for bio-fuels for several years. But as demand outstrips supply and fuel costs rise, will Irish farmers switch from food to fuel?