Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit attendees sign letter to EPA Administrator asking EPA to follow DOE recommendations on refinery exemptions

Contact: Cassidy Walter
515-252-6249

JOHNSTON, IOWA – Attendees of the 2020 Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit have a message for EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler: follow U.S. Department of Energy recommendations for small refinery exemptions (SREs) and uphold Renewable Fuel Standard levels.

Today the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association sent a letter to Administrator Wheeler, signed by attendees of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit urging EPA to begin restoring integrity to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) blend levels.

The letter, in part, reads: “In order to uphold President Trump’s promise to ensure RFS levels will not be undermined, the EPA must follow through on its commitment to abide by Department of Energy recommendations for SREs. Doing so in the months ahead will be the first step to ensure 15 billion gallons means 15 billion gallons…”

The letter also emphasized the importance of EPA following through on the commitment to follow DOE recommendations as a way to restore trust in EPA, concluding: “It’s time for you to rebuild rural America’s trust in EPA’s handling of the RFS. We urge you to start that process now.”

The full text of the letter is below. A copy of the letter, and a photo of the signed poster was sent to Wheeler’s office earlier today.

January 16, 2020

Dear Administrator Wheeler:

While we’re disappointed in how EPA’s 2020 RFS rule addressed small refinery exemptions (SREs), the rules going forward are now set. In order to uphold President Trump’s promise to ensure RFS levels will not be undermined, the EPA must follow through on its commitment to abide by Department of Energy recommendations for SREs. Doing so in the months ahead will be the first step to ensure 15 billion gallons means 15 billion gallons, while also helping to boost the struggling agriculture economy. It’s time for you to rebuild rural America’s trust in EPA’s handling of the RFS. We urge you to start that process now.

Sincerely,

Iowa Renewable Fuels Association Policy Director Nathan Hohnstein with the letter Iowa Renewable Fuels Summit attendees signed. 

 

The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association represents the state’s liquid renewable fuels industry and works to foster its growth. Iowa is the nation’s leader in renewable fuels production with 43 ethanol refineries capable of producing over 4.5 billion gallons annually – including 34 million gallons of annual cellulosic ethanol production capacity – and 11 biodiesel facilities with the capacity to produce nearly 400 million gallons annually. For more information, visit the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association website at: www.IowaRFA.org.

 

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