Environmental groups reiterate 'whoa' on ethanol; industry worried about EPA carbon footprint rule

As the Obama administration considers expanding the use of ethanol in gasoline, or whether corn-based ethanol's carbon footprint is so big that it should no longer meet the Renewable Fuels Standard, a coalition of environmental groups called today for a policy reversal that would move toward other biofuels and away from corn ethanol.

The coalition, made up of the Environmental Working Group, Friends of the Earth, Newtork for New Energy Choices and the Clean Air Task Force, has been working closely for the past year with food manufacturers. It argues that the effects of corn ethanol production on the environment make it an unstable source of renewable energy. In an earlier post, we comment on a research study with initial findings supporting this claim. Jonathan Lewis of the Clean Air Task Force said, “From a climate perspective, burning gasoline is better than increasing the production of corn ethanol” for the next five to 10 years.

The Renewable Fuels Association, a voice for the ethanol industry, blasted the coalition's latest effort, arguing that the coalition is interested more in demonizing ethanol production than engaging in talks with renewable-energy industries. RFA Communications Director Matt Hartwig says, "This is nothing more than a repackaging of tired and unsubstantiated rhetoric."

The biofuels platform proposed by the coalition includes measures to decrease greenhouse gas emissions, tie biofuel tax cuts to performance and rebalance the U.S. renewable energy investment portfolio. "We are at a critical juncture," Lewis says. "If new policies for promoting biofuels incorporate the same flawed assumptions that plague Washington's previous efforts, we will be stuck with another generation of biofuels that undermine public health and harm the environment." Read the biofuel platform here, RFA's response here.

The Environmental Protection Agency is upgrading the Renewable Fuels Standard, which mandates and regulates the use of such fuels. The new standard includes indirect effects on land use, and "Some ethanol proponents are concerned that if the EPA gives too much credence to the possible effects of U.S. ethanol production on Brazilian rain forests, the industry won’t meet the low carbon fuel standard," reports Ken Anderson of Brownfield Network. Geoff Cooper of RFA told Anderson that EPA sent its analysis to the White House's Office of Management and Budget last fall, and that OMB could issue a proposed rule for comment at any time. (Read more)

"The low carbon fuel standard requires that, starting this year, grain-based ethanol must have a 20 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to gasoline," explains Dan Looker of Agriculture Online. "Several studies show that the industry could easily meet that, unless it has to account for carbon dioxide released when forests and grasses are put into crop production because of ethanol."

"We will continue a dialogue on precisely what the congressional intent was when that was crafted," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack told Looker. "I think there are obviously some concerns about modeling land use outside of the United States because sometimes it's difficult to verify." Looker notes, "The law doesn't say whether EPA has to consider so-called indirect land use in just the U.S., or globally, Vilsack says ... even if satellite images are used." (Read more)