Ethanol Less Green Than Gas, Study Funded by Biofuel
Critics Says
By
Allison Nicole Smith
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Corn ethanol’s carbon emissions
could be 24% higher than gas
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EPA will propose new biofuel
blending targets for this year
A
U.S. program requiring the use of corn-based ethanol in the nation’s
gasoline supply hasn’t curbed greenhouse gas emissions, according to a
study from the University of Wisconsin-Madison published Monday.
The
federal Renewable Fuel Standard has spurred American farmers to
escalate land use for corn plantings, leading to more pollution from
increased fertilizer use and degraded water quality, according to the
report. All of that contributes to carbon emissions from the biofuel
that are likely at least 24% higher than gasoline, the study said.
The
study was funded in part by the National
Wildlife Federation, a conservation nonprofit that has been
a vocal critic of the Renewable Fuel Standard.
The
Renewable Fuels Association, an industry trade group, disagreed with
the findings. Chief Executive Officer Geoff Cooper called its
methodology “fundamentally flawed,” citing the research team’s use of
satellite imaging. A U.S. Department of Agriculture report in
2019 said greenhouse gas emissions from corn-based ethanol were 39%
lower than gasoline over the entire life cycle, from initial
production of raw materials to eventual combustion in vehicles.
The
study comes amid a political debate between biofuel supporters on the
one hand and an unlikely alliance between oil refiners and some
environmentalists who support an overhaul of the federal standard on
the other.
The
Environmental Protection Agency is expected this year to propose new
biofuel targets for 2023 and beyond.
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