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You don't really know California do you? I grew up there. It does not have "unlimited farmland".

Sorry, I was misusing "farmland". Algae can be grown in the ocean which is practically unlimited. With 70% of Earth's sun absorbing surface being saltwater, bioengineered algae is the most obvious biofuel long term. We shouldn't use our freshwater and real farmland for fuel growing since I agree with you 100%, they are very limited. Algae can also use used to create alcohol and under certain conditions can by made to emit hydrogen gas instead of pure oxygen. Algae is extremely efficient at converting solar energy and CO2 into carbohydrates and oils. It is genetically simple enough it is possibly within our current capabilities to genetically engineer special fuel algae. Unlike most other fuels this would create a closed loop system so we could use unlimited amounts without a net change in the atmosphere. If this was world war time we would be spending many billions of dollars researching it. We really should invest in it now without needing to be forced by war.

Have you ever spent any time out in the Pacific ocean?

How are you going to keep your giant algael-mats from breaking up and blowing ashore when a big storm comes and you have to deal with 60 knot winds and 40 foot breaking waves?

What happens to the ecologicaly sensitive inter-tidal zone when your algae blows ashore? This could be almost as damaging as an oil-spill.

Maybe you think of growing the algae inland? What happens then when your salt water leaches into the ground water? As has been mentioned, fresh water in California is already precious.

This algae technology looks to be a long way off, if it ever turns out to be feasable at all.

BTW if it were a world war we'd have quite a time defending your algae from the enemy out in the ocean.

"If this was world war time we would be spending many billions of dollars researching it. We really should invest in it now without needing to be forced by war."

If it is actually economically viable, it should not require government funded R&D.