In a significant step, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has established the regulation for country’s first comprehensive Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program.
The RFS program, under the Energy Policy Act of 2005, proposes that at least 7.5 billion gallons of renewable fuel be blended into motor vehicle fuel by 2012.
Under the new regulation, American refiners and importers will have to use a minimum amount of renewable fuel each year between 2007 and 2012 and the minimum level would keep increasing every year. For the current year, 4.02% of the fuel sold to US motorists should come from renewable sources.
Renewable Fuels Association, the demand of fuel ethanol has been on the rise and at present, 115 ethanol biorefineries in the US can produce 5.7 billion gallons every year. With 79 new biorefineries on the anvil and seven expansion programme underway, the prductivity woulf further rise, it said.
There is also an Alternative Fuel Standard (AFS) proposal which seeks to substitute 15% of the projected annual gasoline use in 2017 with alternative fuels like corn ethanol, cellulosic ethanol, biodiesel, methanol, butanol and hydrogen.
The AFS is actually part of the ’20 in 10′ plan announce by President George W Bush last year, which aims to reduce 20% gasolin consumption in 10 years.
Nicole Nason, Administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said,
While we must look at increasing the availability of renewable and alternative fuels, we must also continue to improve the fuel efficiency of our passenger cars and light trucks.
As a part of the President’s ’20 in 10′ energy security plan, we need Congress to give the Secretary of Transportation the authority to reform the current passenger car fuel economy standard.
