Improvements in Ethanol Process Result in Lower GHG Emissions
America is home to the most innovative, productive and efficient ethanol and grain producers in the world. This increasing productivity and efficiency contributes directly to ethanol’s ability to lower greenhouse gas emissions from gasoline on a lifecycle basis. American farmers and ethanol producers are consciously investing in technology that dramatically lowers their carbon footprint while producing more fuel, feed, and food than ever before.
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment
From farm to biorefinery: Ethanol production efficiency improves
In the second part of RFA’s series on the improving efficiencies of corn ethanol production, the focus will be specifically on input use—both on the farm and at the biorefinery.
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Production, Water
Ethanol is helping form the backbone of a new rural economy
America's commitment to ethanol and renewable fuels has been a unparalleled success for rural America. It has created jobs, spurred economic activity, and even given some rural residents a reason and the opportunity to move back home. Yet, critics of ethanol would lead you to believe that ethanol is the scourage of rural America. A new paper from an anti-ethanol group, Food and Water Watch, goes so far as to compare domestic ethanol production to the illegal methamphetamine plague impacting rural areas. Like much of the rhetoric from those opposing ethanol, this paper is not based on the facts and takes poetic license to irresponsible levels.
Posted in Agriculture, Ethanol, Environment, Food, Fuel, Jobs, Oil, Production, Renewable Fuels
2011 State of the Industry Address
This morning at the 16th Annunal National Ethanol Conference, I will be giving the State of the Industry Address, dicussing the successes the ethanol industry has had and challenges that are in front of us.
Posted in Congress, E15, Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Exports, Fuel, Land Use, National Ethanol Conference, Production
NPR: Lop-sided and Outdated. Where’s Big Oil?
As NPR is still reeling from the November congressional and public outcry to bar local public radio stations from using taxpayer dollars to purchase NPR programing as a result of perceived bias in “reporting”, it is very surprising that NPR would then turn around and run a lop-sided and at times miserably outdated series on ethanol as produced by Harvest Public Media. After listening and reading the past two days’ “reports”, a number of items need to be addressed.
Posted in Agriculture, Ethanol, Environment, Jobs, Oil, Production
If a Tree Doesn’t Fall in the Forest, Will ENGOs and Regulators Notice?
Environmental lawyer Timothy Searchinger’s ILUC hypothesis, already reeling, took another crippling blow today when Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva announced that deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon has fallen to its lowest rate since the government began collecting data in 1988. Data from the Brazilian government clearly show that Amazon deforestation rates in Brazil have been plunging for the last seven years, and the 2010 rate is less than one-quarter of the rate experienced in 2004 when deforestation reached more than 10,700 square miles. All of this has occurred while U.S. biofuels production has increased dramatically (nearly 300% since 2004), proving once again that there is no correlation between U.S. ethanol output and deforestation. Will the ENGOs and regulators notice?
Posted in Brazil, Ethanol, Environment, Land Use, Production
RFA President Speaks at Cellulosic Biofuels Summit
Today I will be speaking at the Cellulosic Biofuels & Biorefineries Summit this morning in Washington, DC. I plan to talk about key issues within the cellulosic community including the U.S.Department of Agriculture's Loan Guarantee program, investment into cellulosic ethanol and indirect land use and carbon accounting. Read my full remarks by clicking the link above.
Posted in Ethanol, Environment, Fuel, Land Use, Production, Renewable Fuels Standard, USDA
You can have your opinion, but not your own facts
Lots of editorial boards have come out in support of and against ethanol. They are welcome to their opinions. What they are not welcome to is their own facts. In attacking ethanol as the Houston Chronicle did in its editorial “Food versus fuel: Rising grain costs show folly of continuing federal ethanol subsidies,” the editorial board propagated misinformation and, at some points, simply made up facts to support their predetermined opinion.
Posted in Ethanol, Environment, Exports, Fuel, Production, Research
Making Mountains Out of Molehills
Last week, NRDC’s Nathanael Greene noted my frustration with his organization’s hasty dismissal of new Department of Energy research that shows “…minimal to zero indirect land use change was induced by use of corn for ethanol over the last decade.” NRDC immediately attempted to trash the DOE work, which was conducted by seasoned scientists at the agency’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Nathanael went so far as to suggest it “tells us nothing about ILUC.” It’s interesting that NRDC could reach such a conclusion without actually ever having seen the study (it hasn’t been published yet), without ever having laid eyes on the raw data underlying the analysis, or without ever having experimented with the methodology that ORNL used.
Posted in Ethanol, Environment, Land Use, Research, U.S Dept. of Energy
Hypocrisy in the name of the planet
Environmentalists were among the early supporters of ethanol as they sought to mitigate the damage done by man’s overly heavy dependence on petroleum. Now that ethanol is trying to go mainstream, environmentalists are turning on ethanol production in an oil-fueled haze. But it wasn’t that long ago the leading environmentalists were urging more ethanol use.
Posted in Ethanol, Environment, Renewable Fuels, Renewable Fuels Standard
Secretary Vilsack Addresses Administration Biofuel Policy
Following this morning's remarks by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack regarding Obama Administration biofuel policy, Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement: "The Obama Administration has shown strong leadership on the issue of domestic biofuels, putting forward a vision that recognizes the importance of the existing industry and the potential of new technologies. Domestic ethanol production is one of the few bright spots in a gloomy economic forecast, providing tens of thousands of jobs in hundreds of rural communities all across the country. By expanding the scope of American ethanol production to include new feedstocks from grasses to wood waste to algae, the industry can extend the benefits seen in rural America to every corner of the country".....
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Fuel, Renewable Fuels, Renewable Fuels Standard, USDA
ILUC: Real World Results Vs. Economic Theory
Since a polemic paper from environmental attorney Tim Searchinger was released in February 2008, a false notion that American ethanol production from grain was leading to Brazilian rainforest destruction has permeated discussions around ethanol's environmental contributions. Now, a team of researchers from the Department of Energy have analyzed real world data from the period of greatest American ethanol expansion and found this notion to be without merit.
Posted in Agriculture, Brazil, Ethanol, Environment, Land Use, Renewable Fuels, Research, U.S Dept. of Energy
White House Underscores Ethanol Support at RFA Annual Meeting
Deputy Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Policy Heather Zichal reiterated the commitment of the Obama Administration to the entire ethanol industry regardless of technology or feedstock at RFA's Annual Membership Meeting this week. Specifically, Zichal highlighted the Administration's support of existing ethanol policy, including the tax incentive in its current form, as well as its commitment to ethanol technologies of every kind.
Posted in Agriculture, E15, Ethanol, EPA, Environment, Renewable Fuels, Renewable Fuels Standard, VEETC
3 Questions DOE and Congress Must Answer About the Renewable Energy Loan Guarantee Program
Since its creation, the Department of Energy’s Renewable Energy Loan Guarantee Program (as established by the 2005 energy bill) has been defined by inaction and obstruction and is largely seen as a complete failure to date in terms of bringing next generation biofuel technologies to the marketplace. Additionally, the loan guarantee program has been raided time and again to pay for other federal programs with little if anything to do with renewable energy. Despite repeated promises to restore funding, money stolen from the program is still MIA. At the Senate hearing this Thursday, DOE officials and members of Congress have some explaining to do.
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Fuel, Renewable Fuels, U.S Dept. of Energy
Membership Spotlight: East Kansas Agri-Energy Turns Five!!
This October, RFA Member East Kansas Agri-Energy, LLC (EKAE) will be celebrating their 5th year anniversary of ethanol production and helping fuel America. A short five years ago, EKAE accepted their first load of corn, produced and shipped their first gallon of ethanol and delivered their first shipment of distillers grains. Throughout these past five years, EKAE has exceeded expectations, now producing ethanol past nameplate capacity and receiving numerous safety awards and energy efficiency recognition.
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Exports, Fuel, Production, Water
No Surprise Here - More Problems Emerge with RFS Greenhouse Gas Calculations
Despite the fact that real-world data and events have disputed the ILUC theory at every turn (e.g., grain and oilseed exports haven’t fallen off, soybean acreage hasn’t decreased, livestock feed use remains steady, Amazon deforestation is decreasing, etc., etc.), EPA’s final rule for the RFS2 institutes a severe ILUC penalty against corn ethanol and other biofuels. But there’s a major problem with how EPA derived its ILUC penalties: the agency based the penalties on modeling scenarios where each individual biofuel was isolated and volumes of that biofuel were increased while other biofuel volumes were held constant. Of course, that’s not how the RFS2 works—the regulation requires simultaneous increases of several types of biofuels. When EPA modeled a scenario in which all biofuels volumes were increased simultaneously in accordance with RFS2 requirements, the amount of land use change was half of what it was in the cases where EPA isolated individual biofuels. If EPA had used this modeling case to develop its LUC penalties, the hit to corn ethanol would have been 10.8 g CO2e/MJ, rather than EPA’s estimate of 28.4 g/MJ. Such a reduction in LUC emissions means overall lifecycle GHG emissions for 2022 average corn ethanol would be 38% less than baseline gasoline emissions, rather than the 21% estimate finalized by EPA.
Posted in Ethanol, EPA, Environment, Land Use, Renewable Fuels Standard, Research
Environmentalist Expose Big Oil’s Record of Destruction…Finally
Many people, including me, have been puzzled by the silence, or at least perceived silence, of the environmental community over the oil spill in the Gulf. As millions of gallons of oil kill ocean life and ruin coastlines, many in the environmental community seem oddly muted in their protest. Finally, the National Wildlife Federation is exposing the record of spills, accidents and other incidences that have released countless gallons of oil into the environment all across the country since 2000…all while a new oil spill in Michigan highlights the risk of oil to all parts of the country.
Posted in Agriculture, E-Xchange, Ethanol, Energy, Environment
Corn Commentary Takes on the Gray Lady
East Coast media has long had disdain for agriculture, and by extension, ethanol. Much of this dislike stems from a fundamental lack of understanding about the industries and issues important to rural America. While the Wall Street Journal has long been the standard bearer for such vitriol, when it comes to ethanol, the New York Times doesn't fall too far behind. The Times' latest anti-ethanol effort is disguised as a choice between good and bad energy subsidies. The Times argues that subsidies for wind and solar are critical to those industries' survival and our nation's goal of reduced oil consumption (we don't use oil to produce electricity, by the way). The Times then says investments in ethanol, which does replace oil directly in American gas tanks, is unworthy. To be clear, we should be increasing investments in all renewable energies, not picking and choosing winners. Supporting its position, the Times relies on many of the canards offered by ethanol critics about environmental concerns and land usage. My friends over at the Corn Commentary take exception with the Gray Lady's portrayal and perception of ethanol, and offer a rebuttal. Worth a read.
Posted in Agriculture, Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Fuel, Land Use, Media, VEETC
Protecting Our Addiction to Oil Comes at a Cost
For years now, we have heard environmentalists and some in the government tell us that gasoline production and oil use don't have indirect greenhouse gas emissions. It is only biofuels like ethanol, we have been told, that must suffer penalties for these so-called indirect emissions. According the a new groundbreaking report to be published in Environmental Science, requiring our military to protect the free flow of oil comes with environmental consequences. And those impacts are potentially HUGE.
Posted in Ethanol, EPA, Environment, Land Use, Renewable Fuels, Research
TGIF!
After a frenetic week in Washington for America's ethanol industry, all i have to say is Thank Goodness It's Friday!
Posted in Ethanol, Energy, Environment, Renewable Fuels Standard, Tariff , VEETC
