Iowa Funds Another Year of Blender Pump Program

Cindy Zimmerman

The Iowa legislature has funded another year of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Infrastructure Program (RFIP).

Commonly referred to as the state’s blender pump program, RFIP provides cost-share grants to Iowa retailers wishing to upgrade fueling infrastructure to offer E15, E85 and/or biodiesel blends. The program has led to millions of dollars of private economic investment and hundreds of new stations offering biofuels at the pump.

The program’s funding of $3 million for FY2020 was passed by the Iowa legislature this week.

“RFIP has accomplished exactly what it was designed to do, increase consumer fuel choice and promote private economic investment,” said Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Managing Director Lucy Norton. “Another year of funding will ensure that more Iowa retailers can continue to build off of this success and driver access to Iowa’s clean-burning biofuels will grow.”

To date, RFIP has funded 782 projects for blender pumps, storage tanks, and other fuel infrastructure. Reimbursement can be up to 70 percent of the installation costs, up to a maximum of $50,000 per project, with a five-year commitment to sell E15, E85 or biodiesel blends.

blends, Ethanol, Ethanol News

Ethanol Report on EPA Proposals and Deadlines

Cindy Zimmerman

The EPA proposal to allow year-round sales of E15, as well as reform the market for Renewable Identification Numbers (RINS), was just announced March 12 – but the accelerated timeline for the rule means the comment period will be over on Monday April 29.

In this edition of “The Ethanol Report,” Renewable Fuels Association Senior Strategic Advisor Bob Dinneen talks about the upcoming deadline, and explains another rule EPA has proposed that would publish the names of companies that seek and are granted small refinery exemptions (SREs). He also provides an update on the number of SREs pending at EPA and how the industry is pressing the agency to stop granting them.

Ethanol Report on EPA proposals and deadlines

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Audio, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Ethanol Report

Senator Says Trade is Top Concern in Iowa

Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) joined Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, the Association of Equipment Manufacturers (AEM) and Kinze Manufacturing, for a town hall meeting in Williamsburg, IA Wednesday. The meeting was attended by Iowa equipment manufacturers, farmers, small business owners, and others impacted by tariffs.

The conversation included the impact of steel and aluminum tariffs on Iowa businesses and the state’s economy, as well as the impact of tariffs on China and retaliatory tariffs that have been levied on almost all U.S. agricultural food exports. “The best thing that we can do right now is simply just make sure that we’re getting these trade deals done, make sure those tariffs are coming off, that is the best way to keep our farmers in business,” said Sen. Ernst.

Listen to the Senator’s comments at the event here:
Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst at AEM town hall

AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Audio

2019 Can-Am Defender Ag Sales Event

chuck zimmerman

Hey farmers and ranchers, Can-Am is offering approved ag businesses a rebate worth up to $1,500 on select 2019 Can-Am Defender models. The program runs from now until June 30, 2019. Here’s some more information.

Built for a hard day’s work, the Can-Am Defender lineup includes a wide range of packages and engine options to fit the unique needs of workers everywhere. Defender side-by-side vehicles can tow up to 2,500 lbs. They can also handle up to 1,000 lbs in the innovative cargo box, which features cut-outs in the bed for five-gallon buckets to stay in place while driving, anchor points, and a large, easy to use, tailgate.

Farmers and ranchers can make work easier and more comfortable with the wide range of accessories available straight from the factory. Accessories offered by Can-Am include windshields, heaters, bed toolbox, tool holders, additional lighting, snow plows, track kits, and a variety of racks for more organized storage.

Click here to learn more about the U.S.A. Ag Sales Event.

For more information on all Can-Am vehicles, visit www.can-am.brp.com.

Having used these vehicles I can personally attest to their ruggedness and value in the situations you might need them for. I have had the opportunity to test drive them for deer hunting the last two seasons.

Agribusiness, AgWired Animal, AgWired Energy, AgWired Precision, Farming

Passing of Dale Tolifson

Cindy Zimmerman

Minnesota farmer and Chippewa Valley Ethanol Company (CVEC) board member Dale Tolifson passed away April 23. He was 73 years old.

Tolifson was a founding member of CVEC and had served on the board since 1996. He was chairman of the board from 1997 until 2009. Dale also served on the board of directors for Minnesota Corn Growers and the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE). Last year he was presented with the ACE annual Grassroots Leadership Award for his efforts to cultivate interest in higher ethanol blends in both their community and throughout the country.

“In his quiet and humble way, Dale Tolifson has made an everlasting mark on the U.S. ethanol industry,” said ACE CEO Brian Jennings. “During the 1980s farm crisis, Dale helped lead the effort for farmers to band together and form the Chippewa Valley Ethanol Cooperative. He was an original board member of CVEC when they began grinding corn in the mid-1990s. Never one to complain, Dale has suffered more than his fair share of health setbacks, but he was also a fighter. He fought to make life better for farmers, and by virtue of the fact that CVEC’s original shareholders have received more than 10 times their investment, he succeeded in fighting for farmers. About the time CVEC began operating, Dale lost both of his kidneys, but he successfully received a transplant and was able to live a long, happy and meaningful life. He was a true grassroots pioneer for farmers and U.S. ethanol. I’ll always have fond memories of working alongside Dale when he was a leader with CVEC, the Minnesota Corn Growers Association, and of course, during his time as a board member with ACE. My heart aches for his wife Sandy and Dale’s family, but I also have the comfort of knowing that Dale is at peace.”

Listen to an interview with Tolifson when he received that award at the 2018 Annual ACE Conference –
ACE18 Interview with Dale Tolifson, CVEC

ACE, Audio, Ethanol, Ethanol News

NFU Concerned E15 Waiver Will Impact Higher Blends

Cindy Zimmerman

National Farmers Union (NFU) is concerned EPA’s proposed rule allowing year-round use of E15 gasoline will make it harder for retailers to sell higher level blends of ethanol.

In a letter to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, NFU President Roger Johnson urged EPA to rewrite a provision contained within the rule that could amount to a cap on ethanol. It is viewed within the farm community as yet another barrier to family farmers and ranchers being able to sell farm products for biofuel production.

“Farmers Union is eager for EPA to follow through on its promises to get an E15 waiver out of the door by June 1,” said NFU President Roger Johnson. “But we are concerned that certain provisions within EPA’s rulemaking unnecessarily work against expanded use of higher level blends of ethanol.”

NFU’s concerns stem from EPA’s interpretation of the “substantially similar” clause of the Clean Air Act, which prohibits the sale of any fuel or fuel additive that is “not substantially similar” to fuels or fuel additives used in the certification of new vehicles. EPA has limited its “substantially similar” interpretation to only an E15 blend, making the prospects of using higher level blends of ethanol harder to achieve. “For that reason, we respectfully request that EPA clarify that the Clean Air Act’s “substantially similar” provisions for gasoline do not cap ethanol at 15 percent,” said Johnson.

E15, EPA, Ethanol, Ethanol News, NFU

Teaching Biofuels in Schools

Cindy Zimmerman

Growth Energy, in partnership with the National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE), has just released a new curriculum aimed at educating high school students about biofuels. The curriculum is the first industry-supported biofuels curriculum that provides students a guided in-classroom experience and will offer ag educators the tools needed to provide students with an array of technical skills and historical knowledge in biofuels.

“Our one-of-a-kind curriculum offers students a glimpse into the innovative world of biofuels,” said Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor. “Every day, the biofuels industry is working alongside the ag community to provide cleaner fuels and products for American drivers and consumers. We are excited for high school students to experience first-hand the role STEM education plays in our nation’s agriculture and energy and learn through our curriculum how the next generation of biofuels are moving rural America into the future. We are proud to offer this curriculum to our nation’s ag educators and help to foster a new generation of biofuels advocates among the leaders of tomorrow.”

Dr. Wm. Jay Jackman, NAAE executive director, said, “NAAE’s Curriculum for Agricultural Science Education (CASE) team was pleased to partner with Growth Energy to develop these instructional resources to teach students, and teachers, the important role of biofuels in meeting energy demands for the twenty-first century.”

The curriculum offers agricultural educators a two-week long course with six activities that allow students to produce their own biofuel and measure its energy content and emissions, and help them understand why science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) activities and biofuels are so important to agricultural innovation.

The curriculum is available for download on Growth Energy’s website.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Education, Energy, Ethanol

Iowa Says No to More SREs

Cindy Zimmerman

Iowa Agriculture Secretary Mike Naig and Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Executive Director Monte Shaw held a press conference Wednesday to discuss how EPA granting more pending small-refinery exemptions (SRE) would irreversibly undermine the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS).

Speaking at Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy near Council Bluffs, Shaw pointed out that in recent weeks refineries could have complied with their obligation by purchasing compliance credits, known as RINs, for as little as eight cents.

“Given the current circumstances, granting any of the 2018 small-refinery exemptions would fundamentally undermine the RFS and break President Trump’s promise to protect the 15-billion-gallon RFS,” Shaw said. “At a time when you can avoid blending a $1.30 gallon of ethanol by instead buying a RIN for eight cents – a price even Texas Senator Ted Cruz found acceptable – how can there be disproportionate economic harm?”

SREs granted under the Trump Administration have already accounted for over 2.5 billion gallons of RFS demand destruction.

Ethanol, Ethanol News

39 Reasons for EPA to Just Say No to More SREs

Cindy Zimmerman

With the Environmental Protection Agency considering 39 pending petitions for 2018 Small Refinery Exemptions (SREs), the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) has helpfully provided the agency with 39 reasons to turn them all down.

The list starts with 53 – The number of refinery waivers EPA granted for the 2016 and 2017 compliance years since early 2018, and ends with 1 – The number of days it takes EPA to reverse course and stop granting waivers.

Read them all here.

corn, EPA, Ethanol, NCGA

SW Iowa Renewable Energy Sows Seeds for Monarchs

Cindy Zimmerman

Southwest Iowa Renewable Energy (SIRE) is one step closer to providing monarch butterflies with a new place to fill up on their cross-country journey. The ethanol plant seeded their Monarch Fueling Station this week with the help of local farmer Rick Frost.

Habitat Establishment Coordinator Kevin Reynolds helped SIRE established the Monarch Fueling Station last year. “The first year there are a few species of plants that will sprout rapidly,” he said. “However, the majority will spend this first growing season developing strong roots.”

“This is an exciting next step for our Monarch Fueling Station,” said SIRE CEO Mike Jerke. “We can’t wait to see green sprouts in this field and watch it flourish over time to provide much-needed habitat for Iowa’s monarch butterflies.”

The Monarch Fueling Station Project was established by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) in partnership with the Iowa Monarch Conservation Consortium in December 2017.

Biodiesel, biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Iowa RFA