Letter Urges Trump to Direct EPA to Complete RFS Electric Pathway

by Erin Voegele (Ethanol Producer Magazine) On Aug. 17, the owners of nearly 60 anaerobic digestion (AD) projects sent a letter to President Trump asking him to tell the U.S. EPA to prioritize the development of an electric pathway under the Renewable Fuel Standard.

The letter cites efforts by members of Congress to encourage the EPA to take action on an electric pathway under the RFS, and notes that farmers from across the U.S. have testified at two EPA hearings in the past year on the issue and continue to engage the agency on the matter. “EPA has advised us that activating the electric pathway and helping farmers and rural communities is still not a priority, despite the goals you have set for your administration,” said the AD owners in the letter.

According to the letter, the EPA finalized regulations in 2014 that approve electricity approved from biogas as a cellulosic or advanced biofuel under the RFS, and established a corresponding RFS fuel pathway. “Unfortunately, though the pathway is in place and we are already producing electricity, we have not yet been able to participate because the agency refuses to approve applications to do so,” the AD owners said in the letter. “For four years, we have watched as other cellulosic and advanced biofuel producers benefit from the RFS program, while we have had to wait for EPA to enable us to do the same. The forgone revenues for our facilities are significant and have continued to grow, at the same time EPA has repeatedly acknowledged that significant shortages of cellulosic and advanced biofuels cause problematic market dynamics in the RFS program.”

The letter notes that approximately 250 dairy and livestock farms current generate electricity from AD. The USDA estimates another 9,000 farms could build AD facilities, given the right incentives. AD projects can also be developed at wastewater treatment plants and waste processing facilities. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico's Morning Energy: More than 100 organizations signed onto a letter to Wheeler calling for renewable electricity to be included in the RFS. EPA doesn't currently recognize RINs for electricity producers, also known as "eRINs," under the standard. "By whatever mechanism biomass and biogas electricity is produced, when our energy is used as transportation fuel, it qualifies as an RFS fuel, and we are entitled, by law, to participate in the RFS program," the letter states. READ MORE

Excerpt from Ethanol Producer Magazine: The owner of a biomass power facility in California is asking the U.S. EPA to process applications from biomass power producers who want to participate in the Renewable Fuel Standard program.

Steven Mueller, president of Loyalton Cogen LLC, a 20 MW biomass cogeneration power station located in the Sierra Nevada region of rural northern California, sent a letter to Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler on Sept. 25.

Within the letter, Mueller notes that his biomass plant is surrounded by three of the largest national forests in the U.S. “Our plant is the only facility in the region, other than out-of-state landfills, that is able to receive high fire-risk biomass,” he wrote.

“The EPA now faces a four-year backlog of applications from power producers seeking registration as RIN producers for biogas-based electricity,” Mueller wrote. “More requests are expected following positive findings by the agency that power produced using certain solid forms of biomass now qualifies under the RFS. ..."

Without the timely inclusion of eRINs, Mueller said that hundreds of biomass, biogas and other renewable power generators will be forced to shut down. “These small facilities, located in rural communities and provide critically important jobs, will be lost in the push to build ever-larger solar electric and wind generation facilities,” he said.

The Biomass Power Association has spoken out in support of Mueller’s letter. READ MORE