Minnesota Ag Connection - Smith Presses EPA to Make Up for Lost Ethanol Production

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Smith Presses EPA to Make Up for Lost Ethanol Production
Minnesota Ag Connection - 09/28/2020

U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-Minn.) pressed the head of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to not only stop waiving the legal requirements that oil refineries blend ethanol into the nation's fuel supply, but also pushed him to make up for the 4 billion gallons that have already been lost due to the waivers granted by the Trump Administration.

Smith, a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, said the lost ethanol production has harmed demand for farm products, leading to job losses across rural America and harming the already-struggling farm economy. She said the nation's Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) mandates that a minimum volume of renewable fuels made from farm products be blended into the U.S. fuel supply, but that the Trump Administration's EPA has dramatically increased waivers to this requirement, preventing 4 billion gallons of ethanol from being blended.

In a letter last week to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler, Sen. Smith said the continued abuse of the waivers has sacrificed the interests of Minnesota farmers to benefit the oil industry. She pressed him to provide a plan to replace the 4 billion gallons of ethanol blending lost to waivers during the Trump Administration as he finalizes the delayed 2021RFS blending requirements.

"The RFS has provided a vital market for farmers at a time when trade disruptions and the pandemic have reduced them. I urge the Administration to uphold the program by ending the small refinery waivers that prop up fossil fuel companies at the expense of Minnesota farmers," Smith wrote. "As you prepare to release RFS blending requirements for the upcoming year, I urge you to factor in the 4 billion gallons of demand lost to RFS small refinery waiver abuse."

Since coming to the Senate, Smith has pushed for a strong RFS, saying that renewable fuels made from farm products help the environment, cut reliance on foreign fuel, and increase farm income and demand for farm products.

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