EPA finalizes 2011 Renewable Fuel Standards
30 November 2010
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized the 2011 percentage standards for the four categories of fuel—cellulosic, biomass-based diesel, advanced biofuel, and total renewable fuels—under the agency’s renewable fuel standard program, known as RFS2. This regulatory action finalizes these annual standards that apply to all gasoline and diesel produced or imported in year 2011. EPA had proposed percentages earlier in the year. (Earlier post.)
Determining the applicable standards under RFS2 requires EPA to conduct an in-depth evaluation of the volume of qualifying cellulosic biofuel that can be made available the following year. If the projected available volume of cellulosic biofuel is less than the required volume specified in the statute, EPA must lower the required volume used to set the annual cellulosic biofuel percentage standard to the projected available volume. EPA must also determine whether the advanced biofuel and/or total renewable fuel volumes should be reduced by the same or a lesser amount. The final 2011 overall volume and standards are:
- Cellulosic biofuel: 6.6 million gallons; 0.003%. Based on an analysis of expected market availability, EPA is finalizing a much lower 2011 cellulosic volume than the statutory target (originally 250 million gallons for 2011). Overall, EPA remains optimistic that the commercial availability of cellulosic biofuel will continue to grow in the years ahead.
- Biomass-based diesel: 800 million gallons; 0.69%
- Advanced biofuel: 1.35 billion gallons; 0.78%
- Renewable fuel: 13.95 billion gallons; 8.01%
The final rule also presents two changes to the RFS2 regulations. The first modifies the provision for “delayed RINs” to make it more broadly applicable to any biofuel production pathway so long as the biofuel was in commercial production on 1 July 2010, EPA receives a petition pursuant to Section 80.1416 of Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) by January 31, 2011, and EPA determines that the fuel pathway provides appropriate greenhouse gas reductions as required by EISA.
The second regulatory provision being finalized in this rulemaking establishes criteria for EPA to use in determining whether to approve petitions for foreign-grown feedstocks so that they may use an aggregate approach to comply with the renewable biomass verification provisions, akin to that applicable to producers using crops and crop residue grown in the United States.
The final rule also presents two administrative announcements. First, EPA is announcing the price for cellulosic biofuel waiver credits. Second, EPA is announcing the results of its annual assessment of the aggregate compliance approach for US crops and crop residue.
The Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) amended the Clean Air Act to greatly increase the total required volume of renewable fuels each year, reaching a level of 36 billion gallons in 2022. To achieve these volumes, each November the EPA calculates percentage-based standards for the following year. Based on the standards, each producer and importer of gasoline and diesel determines the minimum volume of renewable fuel that it must ensure is used in its transportation fuel.
Well, 8.01% renewable fuels is not bad. With annual escalation to 2022, combined with liquid fuel reductions due to electrification - this looks to be a reasonable curve.
Posted by: Reel$$ | 30 November 2010 at 09:07 AM
Yes, but at that rate it will take another 144 years before USA becomes oil independent?
Posted by: HarveyD | 30 November 2010 at 09:30 AM
Energy independent is one goal, eliminating OPEC oil imports is another.
Posted by: SJC | 30 November 2010 at 10:53 AM
Well, Canada could triple its export to USA and that would meet your second goal. It could happen sooner than we think.
Posted by: HarveyD | 30 November 2010 at 01:58 PM
You are still burning the fossil fuel "savings account", it is better to use renewable and save the fossil fuels.
Posted by: SJC | 01 December 2010 at 12:02 PM
There is not enough land area in the US to produce the amount of fuel required for the replacement of the petroleum now used there even if none were used for the production of food. But let the US people and the people of the world continue to believe in magic and have high officials sit on the shores of the oceans and forbid the tide to come in and decree impossible quantities of "renewable" fuels. These public officials belong to the false magic faith of the deluded followers of CANUTE, who may be called canutians, who try to appease and decieve themselves and the public that there is sufficient plant growth in any country for "sustainable" or "renewable" fuels that have "carbon neutral" effects. These Canutians deceive the public to falsely obtain votes for a continued government position.
In no case should any country of the world be allowed to import fuels derived from plant growth in any other part of the world where, for the most part, new commercial plantations are destroying the natural environment especially the rain forests. Old plantations already destroyed natural environments including rain forests.
But the people of the US and elsewhere should now continue to destroy every last tree or plant of any kind in any local or remote area of their own country, just to test the religeous Canutian tenet of "renewable" energy.
I will personally dedicate the last living large Redwood tree of the US to its ultimate religeously justified sacrificial demise to be made into the holy elixer of the Canutians "Cellulostic Ethanol" to be burned in the Hummer of the, soon to be former, High Priest of the central enclave of Canutians, California. There is found the large air-conditioned homes with multi-automobile garages that pay the ultimate homage to "sustainability" by the use of massive amounts of hydropower in addition to a great deal of coal power, mostly from out of state, for cooling of their vast but never half vast interiors. ..HG..
Posted by: Henry Gibson | 05 December 2010 at 06:47 AM
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"Yes, but at that rate it will take another 144 years before USA becomes oil independent?"
Right on track with the 110,000 employees, 33+ years, and $30 billion annual budget that the Department of Energy has had with its original charter to get the US off of oil dependency! I love it when a government plan comes together so well! If we only had more of this... **sigh**
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Posted by: The Goracle | 09 December 2010 at 07:52 AM