The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a rule establishing the required renewable fuel volumes under the Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS) program for 2018 and biomass-based diesel for 2019.
"Maintaining the renewable fuel standard at current levels ensures stability in the marketplace and follows through with my commitment to meet the statutory deadlines and lead the agency by upholding the rule of law," said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt.
The Clean Air Act requires EPA to set the RFS volume requirements annually and to finalize the standards by Nov. 30 for the following year. The final standards for 2018, and for biomass-based diesel for 2019, are only slightly changed from the proposed standards EPA issued earlier in 2017.
In response to EPA's release of the 2018 RFS renewable volume obligations (RVOs), American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM) President and CEO Chet Thompson said, "Unfortunately, it appears that EPA did exactly what Sen. Grassley demanded: bowing the knee to King Corn. We think this action is bad for U.S. manufacturing and American consumers and encourages Congress to finally fix the RFS."
"Many people are saying the RFS numbers released, while disappointing, were expected," stated Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) Executive Director Monte Shaw. "We do thank President Trump for keeping his promise to uphold the RFS for ethanol. By rejecting structural changes to the RFS and finalizing a 15-billion-gallon conventional biofuels level, there is some certainty for rural America as it struggles with commodity surpluses.
"Moving forward, IRFA will continue to work with EPA and the White House to press the point that with tight margins, every single market is just as important to traditional ethanol producers as it is to biodiesel and advanced ethanol producers."
"By abandoning its ⦠reliance on general waiver authority as a basis for departing from statutory biofuels volumes requirements, EPA has sent a strong signal that it will support the biofuels industry and grow advanced and cellulosic biofuel production," said Brent Erickson, executive vice president of Biotechnology Innovation Organization's (BIO's) Industrial & Environmental section. "We greatly appreciate EPA's efforts to issue a timely rule, to understand BIO's comments and legal policy points, and to ensure that the U.S. transportation fuels market will use all available biofuels."
"We are pleased that the final rule maintains the statutory 15-billion-gallon requirement for conventional renewable fuels like corn ethanol," said Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) President and CEO Bob Dinneen. "Under the RFS, ethanol has helped to lower prices at the pump, reduce greenhouse emissions, reduce crude oil imports and boost local economies.
"The RFS should be implemented in a manner that drives investment and innovation to maximize the energy security, environmental and consumer benefits that are derived from U.S.-produced biofuels."
The RFS program was created under the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and expanded by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. EPA implements the program in consultation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Department of Energy. The RFS program is a national policy that requires a certain volume of renewable fuel to replace or reduce the quantity of petroleum-based transportation fuel, heating oil or jet fuel.
EPA is required to conduct periodic reviews of certain aspects of the RFS program under the Clean Air Act. "Periodic Reviews for the Renewable Fuels Standard Program," the document describing EPA's interpretation of the statutory requirement to conduct periodic reviews, as well as prior actions EPA has taken to fulfill its obligations to conduct such reviews, is now available on EPA's website.
For more information, visit www.epa.gov, www.afpm.org or www.eth anolrfa.org.
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