2021 marks the 10th anniversary of the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard being implemented with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the state’s transportation sector, while also lessening dependence on petroleum by using alternative fuels, like ethanol. A new Renewable Fuels Association white paper looks at how, for the past decade, ethanol has been the go-to fuel to …
RFA Comments on Oregon Clean Fuels Program
The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) is expressing some concerns related to a planned expansion of the Oregon Clean Fuels Program. The Oregon CFP currently requires a 10% reduction in the carbon intensity (CI) of transportation fuels by 2025, and the state intends to expand the reductions to 20% by 2030 and 25% by 2035. In anticipation of the expansion, Oregon’s …
EPA to Provide GAO With SRE Info
The Environmental Protection Agency announced this week it will provide requested information to the Government Accountability Office related to small refinery exemptions under the Renewable Fuel Standard. \ The EPA announcement published in the Federal Register says it will provide the GAO with “…all documents, information, and data related to all small refinery exemption petitions received by EPA from the …
Analysis Confirms Ethanol’s Low Carbon Benefits
A new analysis by scientists at the Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory has determined that the carbon footprint of corn ethanol improved by 23% between 2005 and 2019, and by 2019 was reducing lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by 44-52% compared to gasoline. The research, published in the academic journal Biofuels Bioproducts and Biorefining, also determined that “corn ethanol alone …
Export Exchange 2022 Dates Set
The biennial Export Exchange had to be cancelled last year, and again this year, due to the pandemic, but it will get back on its every even year schedule in 2022. The event, sponsored by the Renewable Fuels Association, U.S. Grains Council and Growth Energy, will be held next Oct. 12-14, 2022, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. “COVID dictated we cancel Export …
RFA’s Davis Reappointed to Commerce Advisory Committee
Renewable Fuels Association Vice President of Regulatory Affairs Kelly Davis has been re-appointed to the U.S. Department of Commerce Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Advisory Committee (REEEAC), which provides direction on issues related to the exportation of U.S. renewable energy and energy efficiency products and services. “I look forward to continuing the good work of the Renewable Energy and Energy …
EPA Asks Court to Vacate Last-Minute Refinery Waivers
The Environmental Protection Agency has filed a motion asking the the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit to vacate and remand three last-minute small refinery exemptions granted to Sinclair by the previous administration. The filing says the Trump administration’s EPA “…granted exemption extensions that EPA now believes are ‘outside the scope of the EPA’s statutory authority.’” Renewable Fuels …
Ethanol Groups Comment on USDA’s Climate Strategy
The ethanol industry responded this week to USDA’s request for information regarding the role for “climate-smart agriculture” and biofuels in combating climate change. The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) offered a number of recommendations, including: As directed by Congress, USDA should actively coordinate and consult with EPA on implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard, especially with regard to the analyses and …
Ethanol’s Day in the Supreme Court – Podcast
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments this week on the appeal of a case over the Small Refinery Exemption program under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The case was decided unanimously last year by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, which held that only small refineries that have remained continuously exempt from obligations under the RFS are …
SCOTUS Hears Arguments in Biofuels Coalition Case
The biofuels industry had its day in the Supreme Court April 27 to present oral arguments in the case of HollyFrontier Cheyenne Refining, LLC, et al. v. Renewable Fuels Association, et al over small refinery exemptions under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The case was decided unanimously last year by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, which …