SCOTUS biofuel waiver decision – What it means, the good news, reactions, why it isn’t over yet

Some other good news

Another hopeful sign was the Senate’s passage of the Growing Climate Solutions Act, legislation that would break down barriers for farmers and foresters interested in participating in carbon markets.

Growth Energy CEO Emily Skor applauded that news and said, “Farmers have already been making big investments in new technology to reduce their carbon emissions. As reducing greenhouse gas emissions is top of mind for the biofuels industry, we are working with our ag partners to use sustainable farming practices to reduce emissions throughout the entire production lifecycle. The Growing Climate Solutions Act will rightly reward farmers nationwide for their efforts to reduce emissions.”

“Our industry truly is from nature and for nature. We thank Senators Stabenow (D-MI) and Braun (R-IN) for their leadership in passing this legislation.”

Former Sens. Saxby Chambliss (R) and Heidi Heitkamp (D), co-chairs of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Farm and Forest Climate Solutions Task Force, hailed Senate passage of the Growing Climate Solutions Act of 2021.

“The bill provides USDA with clear bipartisan direction to help producers and forest landowners implement practices that capture carbon, reduce emissions, improve soil health, and make their operations more sustainable,” noted former Sen. Heitkamp.

The Growing Climate Solutions Act creates a certification program at USDA to bolster technical assistance and help address challenges that can prevent farmer and forest landowners from fully participating in voluntary environmental credit markets.

“America’s farmers, ranchers, and forest landowners can play a pivotal role in capturing carbon while creating another income stream for their operations. The 92-8 vote in the Senate indicates the strong support for helping producers access new carbon market opportunities,” former Sen. Chambliss said.

And hey, Oregon approved E15 for customers too! Governor Kate Brown signed into law an important measure that will help clean Oregon’s air and reduce their carbon footprint immediately while saving motorists money at the pump. The new law, HB 3051, revises state law to clarify that gasoline sold in Oregon must contain at least 10 percent ethanol and gives retailers the ability to offer higher ethanol blends, like E15, across the state benefitting consumers and the environment.

“We applaud the state of Oregon and Gov. Brown on clarifying that E15 is approved for sale and giving drivers across the state access to a more affordable, better for the environment option at the pump,” said Skor. “Oregon’s approval of E15 comes just weeks after recent news from neighboring Nevada, who enacted legislation to approve E15. We look forward to working with West Coast retailers to offer drivers an engine smart, earth kind fuel.”

The United States House of Representatives doesn’t want to be left out of the good news too! Also on Friday, they voted to utilize the Congressional Review Act to reinstate regulations preventing unnecessary methane leaks in the oil and gas industry, which were rolled back by the Trump administration.

BlueGreen Alliance’s Executive Director Jason Walsh said of the news, “Preventing unnecessary methane leaks is a no brainer; it’s good for workers, communities, the environment, and the economy. Nobody benefited from rolling back this regulation. Reinstating it is the right move. We know that full deployment of existing practices and technologies at new and modified oil and gas facilities will reduce methane emissions in the United States and could create 50,000 jobs over the next ten years. As our nation works to build back from the COVID-19 pandemic, throwing away tens of thousands of good-paying jobs manufacturing and installing the technology needed to stop leaks that are wasteful and unnecessary would be senseless.”

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