GoodFuels

Why EPA Decided Against Waiver

The words from Environmental Protection Agency Stephen Johnson Thursday were music to the ears of ethanol producers.

“Today, EPA has denied a request submitted by the state of Texas to reduce the nationwide Renewable Fuels Standard,” Johnson said. “As a result, the required total volume of renewable fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, mandated by law to be blended into the fuel supply will remain at nine billion gallons in 2008 and 11.1 billion gallons in 2009.”

According to EPA’s justification for the decision, “implementation of the RFS would have no significant impact in the relevant time frame (the 2008/2009 corn season), and the most likely result is that a waiver would have no impact on ethanol production volumes in the relevant time frame, and therefore no impact on corn, food, or fuel prices.”

Read the basis for the EPA decision here.

Listen to Johnson’s statement on the decision here: