WASHINGTON – In response to the announcement this morning by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that it had denied pending Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) waiver requests, Brooke Coleman, executive director of the Advanced Ethanol Council (AEC) commented:

“The advanced ethanol industry commends the US EPA for denying the RFS waiver petition. Waiving the RFS would have done little if anything to reduce grain prices, but would have hurt consumers at the pump and undercut investment in advanced biofuels. Congress was right to protect the RFS from specious and politically-motivated waiver arguments, and to include in the program explicit flexibility provisions that allow the standard to adjust to changing market conditions. The RFS is well-designed and is the primary reason why the United States has emerged as the global leader in the development of advanced biofuels. There will be other stalking horses advanced by the oil industry to weaken the RFS, but it is a step in the right direction to put this one behind us.”