Rise in corn prices and the demand for Ethanol

I was watching the local news last night, and saw the lineup of trucks dumping their tons of corn into huge awaiting silos across the Midwest.
Coming from Indiana of course this became a keen interest for me. What shocked me was the newcaster's announcement that 25% of corn is dumped in the oceans each year. 1.) What does this do to the fragile ecosystem of the oceanic environment 2.) I am quite sure that corn could have been used SOMEwhere...........
The price of corn has not fallen. You would think that the laws of supply and demand, basic principle's of economics would dictate the price decreasing. No....with the demand for ethanol on the rise this has created quite the opposite:

Despite the cold temperatures, corn prices could be on the rise thanks to the demand for Ethanol fuel. It could mean big profits for farmers this fall, but they could pay the price further down the road. Northwest Ohio corn farmers like Joe Box are getting ready to seed.
"We can get as good as corn as anybody in the country in this area."
The sandy soil is perfect for growing corn. You may think Box would be excited; Ethanol could drive his crop prices higher.

Anytime you get more money for your product it's exciting, but we don't know what the after effects are going to be. With the costs of other products and consumer costs, that might happen with food the next couple of years."

Ethanol could cause a rise in seed. Right now, some bags could cost up to $190.

"When we go to buy corn, we are at the mercy of what they want to charge us. So we are in an unusual situation, we can't control our costs and we can control what we get paid for."
Ethanol could also drive prices higher for equipment and fertilizer, another Ethanol downside.
"It is not a cheap source because it takes a lot of energy to produce Ethanol."
One bushel of corn equals 2.8 gallons of Ethanol.

"We can't produce enough corn for all the Ethanol we need. I think we need to come up with different energy sources myself."
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Since this is true....WHY are we then dumping the excess corn into the ocean??? Please someone enlighten me!

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvg/story?section=local&id=5189640

http://www.futurepundit.com/archives/003611.html