Americans of all stripes agree: We want greater use of renewable fuels like ethanol.
According to a new national poll released today by the Renewable Fuels Now Coalition, 74 percent of Americans believe we should increase our use of domestically produced renewable fuels like ethanol.
In addition, 87 percent of Americans maintain the federal government should actively support the development of a renewable fuels industry in this country, and 77 percent think Congress should encourage oil refiners to blend more ethanol into their gasoline products.
“By overwhelming margins, Americans want renewable fuels like ethanol to play a larger role in our nation’s future,� said Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen, a member of the Renewable Fuels Now Coalition. “The consequences of continuing our dependence on foreign oil are unacceptable. Renewable fuels like ethanol offer our nation an opportunity to go in a new, more sustainable energy direction.�
The poll of 1,000 adults was conducted October 23-25 by the Mellman Group with a margin of error of +/- 3.1%.Â
See more on the results of the poll HERE or HERE.Â
We are kicking off the first “Ethanol Report” podcast with the release of new polling data from RFA that shows strong support for renewable fuels nationwide.
The report, commissioned by RFA and released today by the Renewable Fuels Now Coalition, found that 74 percent of Americans believe we should increase our use of domestically produced renewable fuels like ethanol and 87 percent say the federal government should actively support the development of a renewable fuels industry in this country.
But wait, there’s more … the poll also found that 46 percent of Americans believe rising oil prices is the number one cause of increasing food costs, followed by 15 percent citing increasing global demand. By contrast, just 7 percent of respondents believe increased ethanol production is the most important cause.
The first “Ethanol Report” podcast with RFA president Bob Dinneen talks about the new poll results, what they mean for the industry and he tells us about the new Renewable Fuels Now Coalition.
Listen to the podcast here: 
Ethanol Report 1 (8:00 MP3 file)
Stay tuned for information about how to subscribe to the podcast.
Our own “Reverend of Renewable Fuels,” Bob Dinneen has been chairing the Cellulosic Ethanol Summit. Bob welcomed everyone to the conference and has been emceeing the activities here.
I sat down with him for a chat to get his perspective on cellulosic production and energy legislation. Bob says that RFA is sponsoring this event because the companies that the organization represents are involved and that they’re looking at new developments like cellulose. He says RFA will represent ethanol and that the organization is feedstock neutral. He wants to remind people that “ethanol is ethanol is ethanol.” That there’s no good or bad ethanol.
Bob says that cellulosic is part of the present and the future of the ethanol industry. He wants people to take away from the conference that cellulosic ethanol is much closer to commercial reality than conventional wisdom would suggest. He also wants people to realize how much the oil industry is working against the development of ethanol regardless of what feedstock it’s made from. He’s also pretty confident we’ll have an energy bill by the end of the year.
You can listen to my interview with Bob here: Bob Dinneen Interview (9:00 MP3 file)
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