(April 4, 2011) Washington - The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) and Centralina Clean Fuels Coalition (CCFC) will be hosting an Ethanol Safety Seminar in Charlotte, NC on April 6, 2011 at the Charlotte Police and Fire Training Academy, 9:00am-2:00pm and 5:30pm-10:00pm. These seminars are free. While primarily targeting first responders, hazmat teams, safety managers, and local emergency planning committees, they are also open to the general public.

Safety is a top priority for the ethanol industry. It is important that those responsible for safety in their communities are well prepared and trained for responding to ethanol related emergencies. In order to accommodate schedules and reach as many participants as possible, the day will feature both a morning and evening session. Certificates will be distributed following the completion of the Ethanol Safety Seminar for participants to receive credit for training within their fire departments. Continuing education credit may be granted for the following North Carolina EMS credential levels: Medical Responder, EMT-Basic, EMT-Intermediate and EMT-Paramedic.

“With the continued popularity and growth of domestically produced fuels, it is imperative that we have training designed specifically to reduce the risks taken by our first responders when they arrive at an incident involving alternative fuel vehicles, including the millions of flex-fuel vehicles on the road using ethanol today,” said Emily Parker, Co-Coordinator of the Centralina Clean Fuels Coalition. “We are proud to be part of this training in Charlotte that will bring important information to our front line emergency personnel.”

The Ethanol Safety Seminars focus on numerous important areas of ethanol safety including an introduction to ethanol and ethanol blended fuels, chemical and physical characteristics of ethanol and hydrocarbon fuels, transportation of ethanol blended fuels, storage and dispensing locations, firefighting foam principles and ethanol, ethanol blended fuel emergencies, and incidents at tank farm and bulk storage locations.

“America is nearing a 100 percent saturation point with E10 in our nation’s fuel supply,” said RFA Market Development Director, Robert White. “As ethanol continues to flow across the country through railways and trucks into fuel retail stations, it is important for first responders in these areas to be well prepared and trained for ethanol related emergencies.”

The goal of these seminars is for attendees to gain a full ethanol emergency response training experience that they can put to use immediately in the field, as well as pass along to other first response teams. A majority of this training is based on the Complete Training Guide to Ethanol Emergency Response, a training package created by the Ethanol Emergency Response Coalition (EERC) that has been distributed throughout the United States and to several countries worldwide.

For more information and to register, visit www.rfa.traincaster.com.

About the RFA: The Renewable Fuels Association is the leading trade association for America’s ethanol industry. Its mission is to advance the development, production, and use of ethanol fuel by strengthening America’s ethanol industry and raising awareness about the benefits of renewable fuels. RFA’s 200 members are working to help America become cleaner, safer, more energy independent and economically secure. Visit www.EthanolRFA.org.

Clean Cities Program: Clean Cities was formed in 1993 in response to the Energy Policy Act of 1992. They are a government-industry partnership sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Vehicle Technologies Program. They have nearly 100 coalitions nationwide and more than 8,400 stakeholders, Clean Cities' mission is to reduce petroleum consumption in the transportation sector. For more information, visit www1.eere.energy.gov/cleancities/.