RFA sends comment letters to USDA on ethanol, ag and rural policy recommendations

In Washington, D.C., in separate comment letters submitted to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Renewable Fuels Association explained how expanded ethanol production and use can support the administration’s “climate-smart” agriculture goals and encouraged USDA to use the Rural Energy Pilot Program to support research into the use of ethanol for low-carbon power generation.

In response to USDA’s request for information regarding the role for “climate-smart agriculture” and biofuels in combatting climate change, RFA offered the following recommendations, among others:

• As directed by Congress, USDA should actively coordinate and consult with EPA on implementation of the Renewable Fuel Standard, especially with regard to the analyses and studies required as part of the process to establish RFS volumes in 2023 and beyond.
• USDA should continue to look for opportunities to assist fuel retailers and marketers who wish to install infrastructure suitable for distributing higher biofuel blends.
• The Department should redouble efforts to ensure its fleet of vehicles, which includes a large number of flex-fuel vehicles, is consistently fueled with low-carbon ethanol blends.
• USDA should support technology- and feedstock-neutral policy approaches to reducing GHG emissions from the transportation sector.
• In consultation with DOE and EPA, USDA should take a leadership role in ensuring the administration has current data, appropriate modeling tools, and an accurate understanding of the lifecycle carbon impacts of producing and using biofuels.