Friday, September 30th 2016
A regulatory framework needs to be initiated immediately for lower-carbon, higher-octane fuel such as ethanol, if EPA and other agencies hope to fulfill the “ambitious goals” of the CAFE-GHG program, says Brian Jennings, executive vice president for the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE). Jennings' comments are in response to EPA's Midterm Evaluation (MTE) Draft Technical Assessment Report (TAR) for light-duty vehicle greenhouse gas (GHG) emission standards for model years 2022-2025. EPA is coordinating the evaluation with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the California Air Resources Board (CARB). Through the MTE, which examined a wide range of issues relevant to the 2022-2025 standards, the EPA will decide whether the standards for model years 2022-2025, established in 2012, are still appropriate, given the latest available data and information. The model years (MYs) 2017-2025 program builds on the success of the first phase of the National Program for MYs 2012-2016 vehicles, EPA says. Combined with the MYs 2012-2016 standards, EPA says that the final program will result in MY 2025 vehicles emitting one-half of the GHG emissions of a MY 2010 vehicle. According to EPA, light-duty vehicles are currently responsible for nearly 60 percent of U.S. transportation-related petroleum use and GHGs. While EPA projects that manufacturers will comply with the MYs 2017-2025 standards by using a wide range of technologies, the agency expects that the majority of improvements will come from advancements in internal combustion engines (ICEs), and says that manufacturers can meet the current standards for MY 2022-2025 with conventional gasoline vehicles that use ICEs with well-understood technologies. CE, which has been in talks with automakers, agricultural organizations and government researchers to develop strategies and action plans to accelerate the transition of North American transportation fuels to higher-octane, lower-carbon renewable fuels such as ethanol, submitted its comments to the agencies during the TAR 60-day comment period.