Groups push for higher ethanol blends

Several ethanol groups and 51 ethanol plants filed a waiver request with the Environmental Protection Agency today. The groups are petitioning EPA to approve the use of up to 15 percent ethanol in gasoline for motor vehicles.

Some of those that signed onto the waiver include the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), Growth Energy, the Renewable Fuels Association, the National Ethanol Vehicle Coalition and several cellulosic ethanol companies

Growth Energy noted that by increasing the blend of ethanol in gasoline just five percent, it would boost the economy by creating American jobs, increase our energy independence, enhance our car performance and green our environment.

For details on job creation, check out this report (.pdf) from Growth Energy.

Growth Energy has launched a special E15 section of its website.
Here is Growth Energy's news release.
Here’s the announcement from ACE.
To listen to General Wesley Clark at today's announcement at the National Press Club, click here.

The National Corn Growers Association has also released a statement on moving beyond the 10 percent blend wall. You can find that statement here.

Here are bullet points from Growth Energy outlining reasons why the waiver request was filed:

• The science overwhelmingly supports the use of E15. In fact, the science supporting a shift to E15 is even stronger than the science supporting our initial shift to E10 back in the 1970s. Learn more about supporting science.
• We recognize the need for green-collar job creation, increased energy independence, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions immediately. The Obama Administration agrees that job creation is a top priority, and with E15, we can create 136,000 new jobs according to recent studies. Learn more about jobs that could be created in your state.
• Reducing our dependence on foreign sources of energy is critical. Based on 2007 U.S. gasoline consumption, increasing the blend level from E10 to E15 will avoid the importation of another 7 billion gallons of gasoline.
• E15 is better for the environment because ethanol offers a substantial reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to conventional gasoline. The latest research from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln shows that ethanol produced from corn can reduce GHG emissions by as much as 59 percent relative to gasoline.
• Commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol will be produced in the next two years, and high-tech efficiency improvements continue for the corn-to-ethanol process. But that advanced technology will never materialize if the ethanol industry is not allowed access to the fuel market.