The Renewable Fuels Association today thanked Sen. Pete Ricketts (R-NE) and eight additional Senate colleagues for a resolution naming May as national Renewable Fuels Month, “to recognize the important role that renewable fuels play in reducing carbon impacts, lowering fuel prices for consumers, supporting rural communities, and lessening reliance on foreign adversaries.”
Joining Ricketts as resolution co-sponsors were Sens. Deb Fischer (R-NE), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Chuck Grassley, (R-IA), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Mike Rounds (R-SD), and John Thune (R-SD).
“We thank these renewable fuel supporters in the Senate for recognizing the important role that low-cost, low-carbon ethanol plays in improving both the economy and environment,” said RFA President and CEO Geoff Cooper. “Ethanol saves consumers money at the pump, helps clear the air, boosts national energy security, and supports jobs across the country. We are proud of the vital contribution the renewable fuels industry makes to our nation, and we are thrilled that, as a result of this resolution, ethanol and other biofuels will be celebrated every May.”
The resolution noted specifically, when it comes to ethanol:
- in 2022, more than 78,800 jobs in the United States were directly associated with the ethanol industry, with an additional 342,800 indirect and induced jobs supported across all sectors of the economy;
- the ethanol industry created $34.8 billion in household income and contributed more than $57 billion to the gross domestic product of the United States;
- ethanol and feed co-product production provides a valuable market for United States corn, as a typical dry mill ethanol plant adds nearly $2 of additional value to every bushel of corn processed;
- ethanol use reduces greenhouse gas emissions by between 44 and 52 percent compared to gasoline, and, by displacing hydrocarbon substances like aromatics in gasoline, ethanol also helps reduce emissions of air toxins, particulate matter, carbon monoxide, nitrous oxides, and exhaust hydrocarbons; and
- In 2022, ethanol also helped protect the energy independence of the United States by displacing more than 600 million barrels of crude oil.
