The Renewable Fuels Association is refuting research showing ethanol is likely 24-percent more carbon-intensive than gasoline. The study funded in part by the National Wildlife Federation and the U.S. Department of Energy shows ethanol has higher emissions than oil resulting from land use changes to grow corn, along with processing and combustion. However, RFA’s Chief Economist Scott Richman points to other life-cycle research that debunks this claim.
He says their study is erroneous and uses worst case assumptions and cherry-picked data. It doesn’t take into consideration higher corn production over the time the Renewable Fuels Standard has been in place, or the higher corn to ethanol conversion rates.
He says it’s obvious the petroleum industry is just trying to sway EPA to undermine the RFS.
Under the RFS, Congress set blending requirements through 2022, but not beyond, giving the EPA authority to impose reforms. EPA plans to propose 2023 requirements in May.
The lead author of the study Dr. Tyler Lark, assistant scientist at University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment, says corn ethanol is not a climate-friendly fuel.
