The Nebraska Farm Bureau is pushing the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to keep its promise as it relates to protecting the integrity of the federal Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS).

“The amount of small refinery exemptions issued by EPA has skyrocketed since 2016, with EPA most recently announcing 31 waivers for the 2018 RFS compliance year alone. During that span, EPA exempted more than 4 billion gallons of renewable fuel obligations to the detriment of our farmers, renewable fuels partners, and consumers looking for a more affordable and environmentally friendly fuel alternative,” said Steve Nelson, Nebraska Farm Bureau president.

The EPA’s pending proposal does not change the proposed RFS blend volumes for 2020 or 2021, but instead proposes adjustments to the way annual renewable fuel percentages are calculated.

“This is a major point of contention, as there is often a disconnect between how many gallons are recommended by the Department of Energy to exempt through full or partial exemptions and what the actual exemptions end up being. Rather than simply making good on promises made by the president and the EPA that the RFS target of 15 billion gallons be met, it appears the EPA moved the goal post again, with this proposal leading the RFS to backslide to just 14.4 billion gallons of biofuel in 2020,” said Nelson.

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