The biofuels industry on Monday urged President Obama to resist
persistent calls from governors and lawmakers to relax the renewable
fuel standard (RFS), claiming dropping support for it would do little to
combat high corn prices.
The Biofuels Producers Coordinating Council, a recently formed group meant to organize the biofuels industry’s messaging, sent a letter to Obama refuting arguments that waiving the RFS would provide relief for drought-stricken farmers. The letter comes shortly after industry groups lauded GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney for supporting the RFS in an energy plan he announced Thursday.
“With so many Americans in distress from the 2012 drought, it may be difficult to accept that the flexibility provisions built into the RFS and the market itself are working to minimize the consumer impact of lower grain yields,” the letter to Obama said. “But that is exactly what is happening.”
The RFS requires refiners to blend 13.2 billion gallons of corn ethanol into traditional transportation fuel this year. Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack have consistently touted the RFS, though White House Spokesman Jay Carney said earlier this month that the administration is "looking" at the policy.
Biofuels groups said in the letter that meeting this year's blend target will not be a problem because of a backlog of credits from previous years of overproduction. They also said waiving the RFS would have a cooling effect on investment in renewable fuels.
Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/245743-biofuels-industry-presses-obama-to-stay-course-on-fuel-rule
The Biofuels Producers Coordinating Council, a recently formed group meant to organize the biofuels industry’s messaging, sent a letter to Obama refuting arguments that waiving the RFS would provide relief for drought-stricken farmers. The letter comes shortly after industry groups lauded GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney for supporting the RFS in an energy plan he announced Thursday.
“With so many Americans in distress from the 2012 drought, it may be difficult to accept that the flexibility provisions built into the RFS and the market itself are working to minimize the consumer impact of lower grain yields,” the letter to Obama said. “But that is exactly what is happening.”
The RFS requires refiners to blend 13.2 billion gallons of corn ethanol into traditional transportation fuel this year. Obama and Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack have consistently touted the RFS, though White House Spokesman Jay Carney said earlier this month that the administration is "looking" at the policy.
Biofuels groups said in the letter that meeting this year's blend target will not be a problem because of a backlog of credits from previous years of overproduction. They also said waiving the RFS would have a cooling effect on investment in renewable fuels.
Read more: http://thehill.com/blogs/e2-wire/e2-wire/245743-biofuels-industry-presses-obama-to-stay-course-on-fuel-rule
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