Nebraska Ethanol Board and Gov. Ricketts submit comments on EPA’s proposed Renewable Volume Obligations for ethanol

Source: By Amber Rucker, Nebraska Ethanol Board • Posted: Wednesday, September 4, 2019

LINCOLN, Neb. — In July, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued their proposed volume standards for 2020 under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. They opened the public comment period through Aug. 30.

The Nebraska Ethanol Board and office of Governor Pete Ricketts each submitted separate comments that called on the EPA to adjust the Renewable Volume Obligations (RVOs) and bolster the ethanol market.

“Both the ethanol industry and agriculture in Nebraska are hurting due to the actions of the Trump administration and more specifically, Andrew Wheeler’s Environmental Protection Agency,” said Roger Berry, Nebraska Ethanol Board administrator. “In our comments to EPA, we strongly urged Mr. Wheeler to approve pathways for corn kernel fiber cellulosic ethanol that have been held up for far too long simply due to political meandering.”

“We also urged the EPA to redistribute the more than four billion gallons of ethanol that have been stripped out of the Renewable Fuel Standard due to Small Refiner Exemptions over the last three years,” Berry said. “The only way to right the wrongs of the past and make the ethanol industry whole again is for the EPA to seriously consider the suggestions of the Nebraska Ethanol Board, and a multitude of other ethanol interests that have submitted comments. If the EPA would right the wrongs, it will preserve the ethanol industry that is fighting an uphill battle with those opposed to ethanol, and will continue to contribute to a lower priced fuel for Nebraskans’ cars and cleaner air for all.”

View Nebraska Ethanol Board’s submitted comments here.

To read Gov. Ricketts’ press release and submitted public comments, visit here.

 

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