June 23, 2010
Senators ask White House to speed up E15 approval
Published in E & E
A group of prominent Republicans yesterday asked President Obama to speed up approval of higher blends of ethanol in gasoline. The lawmakers said the ethanol waiver should be a priority for the administration given Obama's push to lessen dependence on fossil fuels in response to the oil spilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
Sens. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), John Thune (R-S.D.), Mike Johanns (R-Neb.) and Kit Bond (R-Mo.) criticized the delay of a waiver for ethanol in a letter to Obama yesterday.
"While your commitments in support of biofuels are encouraging, they are not matched by the actions of your administration, specifically by the Environmental Protection Agency," the letter states. "The fact is, simple steps could be taken in the very near term that would have a real impact on our dependence on foreign oil. Inexcusably, the EPA continues to delay and obstruct those efforts."
The lawmakers -- all from states with a heavy economic interest in ethanol -- are angry over the recent announcement that EPA's decision on whether to approve the higher ethanol blends would come at least several months later than expected.
Facing market saturation at the current blending level, ethanol producers are pressing EPA to allow gas stations to mix more ethanol into petroleum fuels. Regulations now restrict ethanol in gasoline to no more than 10 percent.
Biofuels trade group Growth Energy petitioned EPA for the waiver in March 2009. The agency officially had 270 days to decide, but EPA officials said in December the decision would have to wait until this summer in order to complete more tests.
The lawmakers called that first delay "unnecessary and unfortunate" in their letter but said they are more concerned about news late last week that EPA will not make a decision until later this fall.
This second delay should "not be tolerated," the lawmakers said. The letter asks Obama to "take all action necessary" to expedite the waiver petition and immediately consider an interim blend of 12 percent ethanol.
EPA said last December that cars from 2001 or newer can accommodate the 15 percent blends, also known as E15, but said there are questions about whether older engines can handle the 15 percent mix.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told reporters yesterday that he is "confident" EPA will approve the waiver.
The Agriculture Department is releasing a roadmap today for the federal government to ramp up its support of biofuels in a bid to help the United States meet ambitious 2022 biofuel goals.
Calling support for renewable fuels a top priority for his agency, Vilsack is aiming to put more "flex fuel" vehicles on the road, adding blender pumps to fuel stations and encouraging construction of regional biorefineries to support an array of feedstocks.
Biofuels industry groups last night said those efforts would help but the key action they need from the federal government is for EPA to lift the "blend wall."
