Recently, the White House directed the Environmental Protection Agency to begin permitting year-round sale of E15 fuel, which is a blend containing 15 percent ethanol by volume. The trouble with this rule change is that, unless it is coupled with major reforms to the federal Renewable Fuel Standard, American consumers will suffer both financially and environmentally.
E15 is unhealthy for the engines that power motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles, boats, lawn mowers, and powered equipment, not to mention cars manufactured in 2000 and earlier. None of the estimated 22 million motorcycles and ATVs currently in operation is approved by the EPA to use E15.
Using E15 in engines not designed for it can result in motor and fuel system damage and jeopardize manufacturers’ warranties.
Although the adverse effects of using E15 in these types of engines are well known, without RFS reform, many Americans will likely use the unsafe blend without realizing this. With the EPA now mandating even higher levels of ethanol into our transportation fuel supply, refineries will have no choice but to sell E15 on a more frequent basis just to keep up with the government’s growing renewable fuel mandate, limiting consumer choice to the detriment of engine health and consumers’ pocketbooks.
Increasing the supply of E15 fuel in the marketplace could further reduce the availability of fuel with no ethanol (E0), which is required by many older motorcycles.
Studies show that most Americans tend to make their fuel purchases based on price, rather than manufacturer recommendations, ethanol content, or octane rating. Since ethanol blends are typically cheaper than gasoline, the possibility of inadvertent misfueling increases as the availability of higher-ethanol blends rises.
In addition, many of today’s leading conservationist organizations — among them, Mighty Earth, National Wildlife Federation, and the Sierra Club — have turned against the Renewable Fuels Act because they believe burning ethanol adds more hydrocarbons to the atmosphere, producing more pollution. At the same time, fertilization, needed to augment the growth of ethanol sources such as corn, drives water pollution issues. And more land devoted to crops for ethanol production means less land for food crops.
Given these facts, why do members of Congress and the EPA seem content with the status quo? And why does the administration want to increase the amount of E15 fuel sold?
It’s time for Washington to rethink and reform this mandate. The program’s track record during the past decade should make it abundantly clear that the Renewable Fuel Standard needs to be rethought and revamped.
We need to ensure a safe, reliable fuel supply for all Americans.
Congress has already introduced several bills that would address many of these issues. Here’s hoping that, for the sake of American consumers, they are reviewed and considered sooner rather than later.
Dr. Wayne Allard, a former U.S. senator and U.S. representative, is vice president of Government Relations for the American Motorcyclist Association, which is part of a coalition to Rethink Ethanol.
