Throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, energy policy has been a hotly debated topic. Governments around the world have struggled to respond to a changing energy market. Yet the policy-making process is often distorted by self-interest groups who are informed by narrow, technical research. The question addressed by this volume: how much longer can we rely on petroleum as a transportation fuel? This book, which includes a subset of papers commissioned for "Alternative Transportation Fuels of the 1990s and Beyond", July, 1988, addresses the issues of transportation-fuel policy in regard to energy security, growth and environmental quality. Presenters included executives and administrators from the Department of Energy and the motor vehicle and energy industries; federal, state and local governments; environmental groups as well as researchers in the fields of air quality analysis, motor vehicle technology and energy policy. In addition to an introduction and conclusion by Daniel Sperling, 17 papers are presented in this volume. Examined here are global fuel strategy, ethanol fuels in Brazil, alternative fuels as a solution to the air quality problems, Chevron's views of the future of oil and the role of government in promoting alternative transportation fuels. Methanol, compressed natural gas, and hydrogen-powered and electric vehicles are also discussed. In addition to the analytical papers, the volume also includes a short article representing the viewpoint of an environmentally-minded citizen.