Sustainable Bioenergy, Farms, and Forests - September 9, 2016

CAFE Standards: What’s Biomass Got to Do with It?

On July 18, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released their Draft Technical Assessment Report (TAR), providing a midterm evaluation of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for passenger vehicles through 2025. As the deadline for providing comments to EPA approaches, we take a look at the often overlooked role that biofuels can play in improving fuel efficiency.

Many more efficient engines require higher octane fuels. The rise in engine efficiency has led auto manufacturers to recommend premium gasoline in an increasing number of new cars, due to the need forhigher octane content. But higher blends of biofuels, like ethanol, can provide the same octane benefits. This relationship is not addressed in EPA’s Draft TAR, and is something that EESI intends to recommend in our submitted comments.

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Headlines

1. U.S. Forests Are So Full of Dead Trees That Some Scientists Want to Burn Them Instead of Coal  

2. Wayne Makes All Its North American Fuel Dispensers E25 Compatible 

3. US Food Versus Fuel: A Debate Losing its Rage 

4. Airlines Urge Governments to Sign Up for Global Aviation Emission Deal  

5. Biofuels & Carbon Study Continues to be Debunked  

 

Upcoming Events: 

1. 2016 NASEO Annual Meeting

September 11-14, 2016

Providence Biltmore

Providence, Rhode Island

The 2016 Annual Meeting marks NASEO’s 30th anniversary as an organization. Over the past three decades, the State and Territory Energy Offices have worked together and with partners at the national, state, and local levels to advance practical, cost-effective, and impactful policies and programs. This meeting will celebrate their past successes and convene decision makers around today’s pressing energy issues. Register today to reserve your spot in the dynamic discussions and intimate networking opportunities that will help shape the future of state energy cooperation and policy innovation. EESI is a supporting sponsor of the 2016 NASEO Annual Meeting.

 

2. EPA Biogenic Carbon Emissions Panel - Public Teleconference

The U.S. EPA’s Scientific Advisory Board staff office has announced plans to hold a public teleconference of the SAB biogenic carbon emissions panel on Oct. 12 as part of its continuing review of the framework for biogenic CO2 emissions from stationary sources first released in November 2014 and updated this February.

 

 

 

To Contact the Editor: Rebecca Chillrud at biomass@eesi.org

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