Energy Accounting: The Case of Farm Machinery in Maryland

Farm machinery energy accounting has taken basically three approaches. The first approach is concerned with the energy embodied in farm machinery on a national basis. Two studies have attempted to show the aggregate amount of energy embodied in the manufacture of farm machinery. Using input-output analysis, Bullard et al. provide estimates of the energy costs of goods and services for 1967. Measured in BTUs per dollar of final product, the energy cost of farm machinery at 1967 price levels is given as: coal, 34,478 BTUs; natural gas, 24,794 BTUs; refined oil, 12,541 BTUs; and electricity, 5,396 BTUs.