 WASHINGTON
08/07/08
EPA REJECTS TEXAS GOVERNOR'S PLEA TO STOP SUICIDAL CORN ETHANOL PRODUCTION The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced it will not curtail a rule requiring that ethanol be added to gasoline, turning back a complaint by Texas Governor Rick Perry that the additive was artificially raising food prices. Gov. Perry petitioned the EPA in late April to grant a 50% waiver on the nation's Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), which calls for 9 billion gallons of corn-based ethanol to be added to gasoline supplies this year. When Perry submitted his request in April, corn was $5 per bushel. When the EPA rejected his plea in August, corn was more than $7 per bushel and climbing. Perry said in a statement, "I am greatly disappointed with the EPA's inability to look past the good intentions of this policy to see the significant harm it is doing to farmers, ranchers and American households. For the EPA to assert that this federal mandate is not affecting food prices not only goes against common sense, but every American's grocery bill." The EPA is clearly lying to the American public. Corn ethanol producers receive a 51-cent-per-gallon federal subsidy for producing ethanol as a "solution" to global warming, creating a huge incentive for profiteering outsiders to invade the farm community, buy up land at inflated prices, push young farmers out of business, and convert food crop farmland into fuel feedstocks. After a weeks-long delay in its ruling, EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson said the government agency denied the waiver request because it did not find that the RFS caused "severe economic harm." Johnson said, "The EPA's professional staff conducted a detailed analysis ... and found that the Renewable Fuel Standard mandate is not causing severe economic harm, but rather strengthening the nation's energy security and farm communities." That is a flat lie. It ignores the traditional farm communities crushed by government-subsidiezed ethanol profiteers, who are the only ones being "strengthened" by the EPA's suicidal rules. The EPA held a period of public comment about the fuel standard in June and received over 15,000 comments. Though many came out in favor of the standard, others said the RFS will contribute to a sharp rise in food prices if not reduced.  SPECIAL FEATURE:FORTUNE ONLINE VIDEO ETHANOL AND FOOD PRICES with Andy Serwer "Rising food prices are a problem, and as a nation we must work together on these challenges," said Johnson. "But is that the result of the RFS mandate, and are those price increases meeting the statutory requirement of severe detriment to the economy? That answer is no." The EPA acknowledged that the RFS has resulted in a rise in corn feed prices, but said the mandate has only added 7 cents to each bushel. Bullfeathers! as Teddy Roosevelt used to say. Then how come the price of a bushel of corn went up more than 2 dollars while the EPA was futzing around between April and August? Supply and demand: Are Americans eating more corn? No. Are American cows eating more corn? No. Is the government paying profiteers 51 cents a gallon to convert American corn to ethanol? Yes. Johnson is lying. Period. Texas Gov. Perry said the RFS has put undue pressure on the already struggling livestock business. "Denying Texas' request is a mistake that will only increase the already heavy financial burden on families while doing even more harm to the livestock industry," said Perry. "Any government mandate that artificially props-up a single industry to the detriment of millions of Americans is bad public policy."Good intentions harming economy? The EPA currently requires that 7.76% of gasoline products be blended with ethanol in 2008. That amounts to about 9 billion gallons that ethanol producers have to put out this year. Next year, they will have to produce 11.1 billion gallons of corn-based ethanol. "The RFS is designed to expand annual biofuel use to 36 billion gallons by 2022 with 21 billion gallons from switch grass, wood chips, municipal garbage, and other cellulosic sources," said Renewable Fuels Association President Bob Dinneen in a statement. "We applaud the EPA for keeping America squarely on the path toward greater energy independence." Well, what would you expect a government-subsidized leech on the American economy to say? Keep shoveling your hard-earned taxes into the pockets of Dinneen's clients. Gov. Perry said the EPA is missing a chance to help American families who have unintentionally been hurt by the EPA's mandate. "Good intentions and laudable goals are small compensation to the families, farmers and ranchers who are being hurt by the federal government's efforts to trade food for fuel," said Perry. "Congress specifically created an emergency waiver provision for situations like these and EPA refuses to implement it." The EPA had originally said it would make a decision on the waiver by July 24, but last month said it needed more time to review the comments and consult with the departments of Agriculture and Energy. Our unelected bureaucrats obviously don't care who they hurt with their "solutions" to global warming. But the rest of America does. Stop the EPA. Stop ethanol. Pay less. |
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