GoodFuels

CA proposed fuel standard “threatens national security”

Yesterday, 66 retired members of the U.S. armed forces and intelligence community wrote to California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to encourage him to fix the proposed Low-Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS).

Numerous renewable fuel advocates have questioned the current LCFS proposal in California. The letter covers six specific areas that the co-signers believe the LCFS will negatively impact, if adopted in its current form. Specifically, the co-signers are concerned that applying the LCFS in its current state would penalize renewable fuels to the benefit of petroleum and other fossil fuels thereby failing to capture the potential environmental and energy security benefits such an effort holds.

As the ARB approaches a final set of rules and regulations, we would like to comment on the deep connection between our reliance on carbon based fuels and our national security. We applaud California’s leadership for being on the cutting edge of promoting cleaner fuel use, which we see as a critical component of bolstering American security. We are concerned, however, that the indirect land use change (iLUC) penalty for biofuels will have an adverse effect on our ability to develop alternative fuels. This in turn will prolong the United States’ reliance on fossil fuels and deepen the damage caused by both our reliance on oil and by climate change.

The letter concludes by saying that biofuels can and will play an important role in furthering our energy secutiry.

Having served in uniform ourselves, there is nothing we take more seriously than the safety and well-being of our country. We are calling on the state of California to lend us a hand in keeping America safe by enacting a fuel regulation that is unbiased and does not enforce indirect carbon effects against only one type of fuel. There is no silver bullet to the energy and security challenges we face, but biofuels have a crucial role to play. We hope California will continue to be a national leader in energy issues and allow biofuels to play that role.

To read the whole letter, click here.