It was ten years ago today that President George W. Bush signed into law the Energy Independence and Security Act, which greatly expanded the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) established in 2005 so it became known as RFS2.
In the decade since passage, significant progress has been made towards greater energy security, cleaner air and boosting local economies, according to a new analysis by the Renewable Fuels Association, “The RFS2: Then and Now.”
Among the highlights in the report:
The number of operational U.S. ethanol plants has nearly doubled from 110 in 2007 to 211 in 2017
U.S. ethanol production has grown 143% from 6.5 billion gallons in 2007 to 15.8 billion gallons in 2017
The production of advanced and cellulosic biofuel increased 469% from 490 million gallons in 2007 to 2.79 billion gallons in 2017
Jobs in the U.S. ethanol industry grew 42% to 339,176, with the value of the industry increasing 74% to $31 billion in 2017
U.S. corn production grew 12% from 13 billion bushels in 2007 to 14.6 billion bushels in 2017, while corn acres planted fell 3% to 90.4 million acres in and average corn yields increased 16% to 175.4 bushels
The greenhouse gas emissions avoided from using ethanol has increased 291% from 12.7 million tons CO2e in 2007 to 49.6 million tons CO2e in 2017.