Researchers refute hit piece on ethanol's environmental impacts
By Renewable Fuels Association
March 22, 2022
An important new assessment published by experts from Argonne National Laboratory, Purdue University, and the University of Illinois system found major flaws in a recent paper that made unfounded allegations about the GHG benefits of ethanol.
Brazil's Ministry of Economy on March 21 announced that the country will waive its import tariff on several products, including ethanol, through the end of 2022. The ethanol tariff was previously set at 18 percent.
The U.S. EPA has released updated renewable identification number (RIN) generation data, reporting that nearly 1.54 billion RINs were generated under the RFS in February, up from 1.26 billion generated during the same month of last year.
Reps. Angie Craig, D-Minn.; Randy Feenstra, R-Iowa; Cheri Bustos, D-Ill.; and Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, on March 21 introduced the Home Front Energy Independence Act, a bill that aims to expand access to biofuels and ban Russian oil.
With most predicting a future dominated by electric vehicles, the biofuel industry will live or die by its ability to maintain a sustainable business model that can win over the environmental community and deepen alliances with automakers.
The USGC has been working on expanding U.S. DDGS exports to Korea through two strategies – increasing DDGS inclusion rates in animal feeds and providing business-to-business interactions between U.S. suppliers and Korean buyers.
More than 1,000 farmers, workers in the ethanol industry, and other biofuel supporters sent a clear message to Biden on March 17: The solution to record-high gas prices is to immediately allow broader use of lower-cost ethanol blends like E15.
The EPA on March 16 published a notice of proposed settlement agreement that alters the number of RINs that Genscape must retire to comply with a final determination issued by the agency in May 2019 that revoked its registration as a QAP auditor.
The U.S. EPA released updated SRE data on March 17, reporting for the second consecutive month that no new SRE petitions were filed under the RFS. The agency did not act on any of the 69 SRE petitions that have been pending since mid-January.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki on March 15 confirmed that a move to year-round sales of E15 is “in the menu of options� the Biden administration is evaluating to bring down fuel prices as the summer driving season approaches.
The quickest way to lower gas prices would be to restore the ability of retailers to sell E15 year-round and allow them to do it through existing equipment. The Biden administration could make that happen with little more than the stroke of a pen.
NACS and SIGMA sent a letter to the U.S. EPA urging the agency to authorize the year-round sale of gasoline blended with up to 15 percent ethanol (E15) to reduce the U.S.'s reliance on foreign energy sources.
Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor is urging Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm to address the most recent inaccurate and misleading study by Tyler Lark and others that claims to have been partially funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
Summit Carbon Solutions announced a plan to build the world's largest carbon capture pipeline last year. The project will connect ethanol biorefineries across five states in the Upper Midwest—Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota.
With three CO2 pipelines in development, carbon capture and sequestration is poised to become a transformative force in ethanol production. The industry's quest for net-zero emissions, in part, depends on it.
The USDA on March 11 announced it is extending the deadlines to apply for its Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities funding opportunity. The agency opened the $1 billion funding opportunity in February.
Ethanol Producer Magazine has announced the preliminary agenda for the 2022 International Fuel Ethanol Workshop & Expo (FEW) and co-located events taking place June 13-15, 2022, at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
ePURE is speaking out to confirm ethanol produced by its members can help meet the goals of the European Commission's RePowerEU propsoal, which aims to boost EU energy security and reduce dependence on imported crude oil.
Growth Energy has submitted supplemental comments to the U.S. EPA further supporting EPA's proposal to deny 65 pending SREs before the agency and pushing back on erroneous comments challenging EPA's interpretation of its authority for the denials.
The U.S. EPA on March 10 issued a notice to all obligated parties under the RFS that the agency will disclose certain confidential business information (CBI) related to SRE petitions to the U.S. Government Accountability Office on March 28.
A bipartisan group of 16 senators, led by Sens. John Tune, R-S.D., and Dick Durbin, D-Ill., sent a letter to President Biden on March 9 urging him to help curb rising domestic energy costs by enabling year-round sales of E15.
On March 8, following President Joe Biden's embargo of Russian oil and gas, the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association called on the administration to take immediate action to increase consumer access to E15 and relieve high gas prices.
Sens. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., on March 9 introduced the Home Front Energy Independence Act, a bill that aims to put into a law a ban on Russian oil and includes provisions to increase the use of ethanol and other biofuels.
Iowa's congressional delegation is urging the Biden administration to expand the production and potential export of ethanol and biodiesel to meet global energy needs as the U.S. and its allies look to decrease reliance on Russian oil.
As part of ongoing market development efforts in Chile, Guatemala and Mexico, and to increase ethanol use in Colombia, the U.S. Grains Council hosted a delegation comprised of key government and industry representatives in late February.
Growth Energy has submitted supplemental comments to the U.S. EPA responding to erroneous comments from others on the environmental, economic, and compliance impacts of EPA's proposed 2020, 2021, and 2022 RVOs under the RFS.
A report released by the DOE in February found that the development of CCS technology poses no significant supply chain risk and will support U.S. net-zero goals. In addition, CCS deployment could produce up to 1.8 million good-paying jobs.
To provide relief at the pump in response to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis while simultaneously reducing carbon emissions from the transportation sector, six ag and biofuel groups are urging Biden to allow year-round sales of E15.
The Indiana Senate on March 3 voted to uphold Gov. Eric Holcomb's April 2021 veto of a bill that would have implemented additional labeling requirements for fuel pumps located within the state that sell E15.
ACE's Ron Lamberty puts current electric vehicle sales into perspective. Despite a 80 percent increase in electric vehicicle sales last year, those sales accounted for only 435,000 vehicles in a 15.5 million vehicle market, he explains.
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