2013 EPA RFS: The road to starvation

The EPA has finished finalizing the 2013 Renewable Fuel Standards(RFS). The biggest of those changes is to increase Ethanol content in gasoline. The current standard  requires all gasoline have at least 10% Ethanol. The new standard will raise this to 15%, and will now also include diesels.

Under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007, the RFS program was expanded in several key ways:

• EISA expanded the RFS program to include diesel, in addition to gasoline;
• EISA increased the volume of renewable fuel required to be blended into transportation fuel from 9 billion gallons in 2008 to 36 billion gallons by 2022;
• EISA established new categories of renewable fuel, and set separate volume requirements for each one.
• EISA required EPA to apply lifecycle greenhouse gas performance threshold standards to ensure that each category of renewable fuel emits fewer greenhouse gases than the petroleum fuel it replaces.
  

The source for most of this Ethanol is soybean and corn—two main staples of our food supply. Each of those can be found in many of the processed foods we eat. Because of the USA's abundance of accessible fertile lands we produce much of the world's supply of food.

The USA has only so much workable farm land. More land can be cleared for farming, but then we run into increased deforestation. The country must maintain a balance between forest lands, natural preserves, and farming.

These standards also increase the market value of corn and soybean. For this reason many farmers abandon other crops and pasture lands to grow more valuable products. Because food is a global market, this effects prices around the world. Many people who were living on the edge will be pushed off the cliff into malnutrition.

We are expected to experience the following annual price increases: 

• Beef 7.5%
• Chicken 7.7%
• Pork 15%
• Eggs 11.2%
• Potatoes 13%
• Corn products 26%³
  

Since 2005 food prices have increased 25% while the rate of inflation was only 16%. Add this on top of inflation created by Quantitative Easing(electronic creation of US dollars) and the consequences get even more dire for families around the world.

The sad part is this is all done in the name of global warming when all reputable scientists are predicting cooling—possible ice age—for the next 30 – 250 years. Cold temperatures will reduce the growing season and possibly eliminate some farm lands from production. This will further increase food prices.

Because the future holds so many unknowns we cannot gamble with the world's food supply when the USA has become the Saudi Arabia of natural gas. We can convert natural gas to methanol. The USA is rich in coal that can also be converted to methanol. Wood byproducts can be converted to methanol. Methanol can replace ethanol in gasoline without any effect on the food supply. Even the Green group Environmental Defense (ED) has voiced opposition to RFS and ethanol in general. We must also remember natural gas is also used expansively in making fertilizer for growing soybean and corn. Even if natural fertilizers are used, the methane release negates some of the benefits of using ethanol.

Government is like an aircraft carrier, it is slow to change course. Once the political tide is headed in one direction, it rarely reverses course. The only way to change course quickly is with the election of officials that will take a strong stance on such issues. We must also keep in mind the EPA has the same power as Congress—they can pass a law with the stroke of a pen. This is another power that must be reined in.

Below is a summary of the RFS from the EPA website.

Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS)

EPA is responsible for developing and implementing regulations to ensure that transportation fuel sold in the United States contains a minimum volume of renewable fuel. The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program regulations were developed in collaboration with refiners, renewable fuel producers, and many other stakeholders.
The RFS program was created under the Energy Policy Act (EPAct) of 2005, and established the first renewable fuel volume mandate in the United States. As required under EPAct, the original RFS program (RFS1) required 7.5 billion gallons of renewable- fuel to be blended into gasoline by 2012.
Under the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007, the RFS program was expanded in several key ways:

• EISA expanded the RFS program to include diesel, in addition to gasoline;
• EISA increased the volume of renewable fuel required to be blended into transportation fuel from 9 billion gallons in 2008 to 36 billion gallons by 2022;
• EISA established new categories of renewable fuel, and set separate volume requirements for each one.
• EISA required EPA to apply lifecycle greenhouse gas performance threshold standards to ensure that each category of renewable fuel emits fewer greenhouse gases than the petroleum fuel it replaces.
  

RFS2 lays the foundation for achieving significant reductions of greenhouse gas emissions from the use of renewable fuels, for reducing imported petroleum, and encouraging the development and expansion of our nation's renewable fuels sector.
For information on 15 % volume of ethanol in gasoline (E15), please visit the E15 webpage. For all 40 CFR Part 79 waiver notices including those related to E15, please visit the Fuels and Fuel Additives Registration Notices page.
For information on new fuel pathway determinations under the RFS (i.e. petitions for new fuel types, production processes, or feedstocks), please visit the Guidance on New Fuel Pathway Approval Process page.
To learn more, click on the tabs above.

This artiucle can also be found on America Chooses