In Washington, the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) became the most recent EPA petitioner seeking a general waiver to reduce 2020 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) compliance obligations, the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers announced. NWF President and CEO Collin O’Mara wrote to EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler stressing the need for smaller biofuel mandates: “The RFS currently requires about 19 billion […]
In Washington, D.C., new research prepared by the University of California-Davis, Kansas State University, and University of Wisconsin provides the most detailed and comprehensive assessment to date of the direct connection between U.S. biofuels policy and specific economic and field-level environmental changes following passage of the Renewable Fuel Standard 10 years ago, according to the […]
In Washington, a recent study (Wright et al.) funded in part by the National Wildlife Federation (NWF) suggests that significant cropland expansion occurred in areas near ethanol plants between 2008 and 2012, purportedly replacing grassland and other wildlife habitat. The study’s findings are at odds with data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which […]
In Minnesota, millions of acres of wildlife habitat are being lost to crop production, according to a new peer-reviewed study published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, which found a strong link between the location of corn ethanol refineries and the conversion of wildlife habitat and other land types into crop production. In total, researchers […]
In Virginia, the National Wildlife Foundation has a new report out exploring the risk of using invasive species as feedstock for next generation biofuels. It looks at crops such as giant reed, Reed canarygrass and napiergrass, warning to not allow short-term economic benefits outweigh the environmental risks posed by including these species in bioenergy plans.
In Washington, the Agriculture Subcommittee of the House Committee on Appropriations is proposing to slash over a billion dollars from Farm Bill conservation and renewable energy programs. “These radical cuts could not come at a worse time,” said Aviva Glaser, agriculture policy coordinator for the National Wildlife Federation. “With increased pressures on working lands to […]
