HAVE A GREAT WEDNESDAY READERS!
Now that we've gotten over all the rain on Monday, we should be in store for some beautiful "near fall" weather over the next few days. Time to get ready for fall fishing.....as soon as the water temperature drops to the mid to low 70's F, the fish will be moving into the upper lakes and bays to winter. If you have never tried fall fishing, you really should give it a try. The weather is so much nicer (not having to fight the blistering summer 90+ temperatures), you don't need live bait and the fish are schooled up more in areas that don't require as much water travel.
We're starting to learn of more stations, particularly in the midwest, that are starting to sell the new "E15" gasoline. So, the stories on the highly political and heated argument over this fuel are again surfacing. Here is another article on that issue.
"Pete"
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WITH E15, THE ETHANOL INDUSTRY WINS, BUT AMERICAN CONSUMERS LOSE
By: Charles T. Drevna
9/18/2012
12:40 PM
Technology has
advanced over the years to provide consumers today with high-tech automobiles
that run smoothly, efficiently and are easy to maintain. Americans feel
confident when they pull into a gas station that the fuel they’re putting into
their cars, and using in their outdoor power equipment, is safe and reliable.
But, this is about
to change, if the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has its way.
In a move likely
to take that confidence away from the American consumer, EPA decided to allow
the use of gasoline containing 15 percent ethanol (E15) for model year motor
vehicles 2001 and newer, a 50 percent increase from the current limit of 10
percent ethanol (E10). In its rush to force E15 on the market, the EPA
neglected to conduct basic testing necessary to ensure the safety of American
consumers. Rather, it placed political science and largesse for the ethanol
industry ahead of real science and consumer welfare.
Furthermore,
under the Renewable Fuels Standard, or RFS, refiners will likely be mandated to
blend increasing amounts of biofuels, of which primarily ethanol is a
significant portion of the mandate, into the fuel supply, eventually reaching
36 billion gallons by 2022.
The American Fuel
& Petrochemical Manufacturers Association (AFPM), representing U.S.
refiners, along with a number of other industries and organizations, including
automakers, small equipment and boat manufacturers and owners, motorcycle
groups, food groups and the environmental community, are highly concerned with
the host of potential problems in allowing E15 into commercial use. Regardless
of EPA’s blind approval of its use, studies have shown that it’s not suitable
for any gasoline-powered engine, including ones EPA has deemed capable of
running on E15.
A recent study
by the Coordinating Research Council (CRC) found that the use of E15 can result
in significant engine damage in newer vehicles. Nearly 5 million vehicles
currently on the road have similar characteristics to the newer vehicles that
failed in the study.
We have
repeatedly called on EPA to conduct thorough and objective scientific tests on
the impact of E15 on gasoline engines before authorizing use of the fuel.
Testing conducted by the Department of Energy of E15 simply looked at the
ability of the pollution control equipment of some cars to stand up to E15. The
DOE did not conduct needed testing to determine the impact of the fuel on
engine durability; tolerance of the check-engine light; durability of other
important components, such as the fuel pump and the fuel level sensor; and a
number of other automotive functions.
Liability
concerns
By acting without
adequate scientific evidence to approve the use of E15, EPA has created safety,
operability and liability concerns regarding the operation of the vehicles and
outdoor power equipment used by hundreds of millions of Americans every day.
Perhaps the
strongest indictment of EPA’s certification of E15 came from automakers in a
response to Congressional inquiries. Without exception, the auto manufacturers
responded that use of E15, even in their newest vehicles, would damage engines,
void warranties and reduce fuel efficiencies. Interestingly, the gas caps
of many new cars sold today explicitly warn consumers NOT to use E15.
But most cars on
the road today, powerboats and power outdoor equipment do not come with this
warning, and once E15 is available, misfueling will be a problem. Regardless of
the warning signs the EPA requires gasoline retailers to post at pumps, many
consumers will undoubtedly put E15 into older cars and trucks and use it in
outdoor power equipment, motorcycles, boats and snowmobiles.
Some of the
misfueling will be unintentional—consumers not paying attention to warning
labels on pumps, or filling gasoline cans to run their lawnmowers and chain
saws after they fill up their cars. But, some misfueling could be deliberate because E15 may appear
slightly cheaper than E10 gasoline at times. However, many consumers may not
realize that ethanol is less energy efficient than gasoline and provides lower
fuel economy, eliminating—and indeed reversing—the perceived lower price.
Misfueling is
also likely in other gasoline engines and could have detrimental effects.
Snowmobile engines could stop miles from shelter and boat engines could fail in
the middle of the ocean. Chain saws could overheat and run when their operators
wanted them off, endangering operator safety.
AFPM is not
anti-ethanol. Our members blend it with gasoline every day to manufacture the
E10 fuel that safely powers most U.S. vehicles. However, we want to be sure
that adding greater amounts of ethanol to gasoline is safe for consumers and
will not damage engines.
Unfortunately,
our legal challenge to EPA’s E15 waiver has not been successful. In late
August, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia decided to
dismiss, on purely procedural grounds, a lawsuit from AFPM and other industry
groups challenging the waiver to increase the ethanol content.
Despite this
setback, AFPM will continue to fight this costly and unworkable mandate.
Refiners do not want to sell fuel to consumers that could damage engines or
worse, place them at risk. Entirely too much is at stake to allow EPA to move
ahead with this dangerous agenda.
