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NCGA testimony encourages EPA to reconsider 2020 volume reductions

The EPA is holding a virtual public hearing today on its proposed biofuel blending volumes.

National Corn Growers Association president Chris Edgington says he’s concerned with EPA’s proposal to retroactively reduce 2020 volumes. 

“They’re offsetting them in a way that doesn’t make a lot of sense to us because fuel consumption was down in 2020 because of COVID-19, so the formula automatically adjusts for that on what they need to blend,” he says. “You don’t need to give it additional information or help because it will automatically adjust based on fuel consumption.”

He says NCGA is hopeful adjustments will be made following the hearing.

“That’s why we’re presenting our case and our side of the discussion,” he says. “The formula has been in place and has worked now for over 15 years so why go back and do something you’ve never done before to adjust something that the formula automatically took care of,” he says. “That’s part of the argument—why go back and do something you’ve never done when the formula was designed to take care of the very issue you’re addressing.”

Edgington says NCGA is pleased with the proposed increase for 2022 volumes, which will help meet emission reduction commitments.   

“The ethanol industry is working really hard on helping to clean the environment with better air quality and water quality,” he says. “It’s such a great story and we need to continue to get traction on that story as we build for lower greenhouse gases in the U.S.”

EPA says it is proposing the 2020, 2021 and 2022 renewable fuel standards, several regulatory changes to the RFS program, and to address the remand of the 2016 standard-setting rulemaking.