News

EPA heard pros and cons at RFS hearing

The EPA heard a wide variety of opinions Tuesday at its RFS hearing in Washington.

Indiana farmer Dave Gottbrath, who testified on behalf of the Indiana Corn Growers Association, tells Brownfield a strong ethanol industry is vital to farmers in his state.

“We produced almost a billion bushels of corn last year and 47 percent of it went to ethanol production,” Gottbrath says. “So that makes it really important to Indiana farmers that the RFS continues to support ethanol throughout the industry.”

AUDIO: Dave Gottbrath

 

But Isaac Orr with The Heartland Institute, a “free-market think tank”, said the RFS is actually hurting small- to medium-sized farms because the ethanol mandate drives up the cost of producing corn.

“The RFS provided a temporary stimulus to rural America by diverting a large portion of the corn crop to fuel, temporarily raising prices,” Orr said. “However, rising corn prices were followed by rising costs to grow it. Thus the RFS effectively drove up the cost of doing business in farm country by increasing prices on land, seed, fertilizer and farm machinery.”

Orr called on EPA to phase out the RFS within the next five years.

AUDIO: Isaac Orr

Add Comment

Your email address will not be published.


 

Stay Up to Date

Subscribe for our newsletter today and receive relevant news straight to your inbox!