Republicans backtrack, call for end to ethanol requirements in gas
Republicans backtrack, call for end to ethanol requirements in gas
mongabay.com
September 2, 2008
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Meeting at the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, Republicans Monday called for an end to a requirement that gasoline contain a set amount of ethanol, reports Reuters. Critics have blamed the Bush Administration policy for driving up global food prices, worsening pollution in the Gulf Of Mexico and promoting destruction of tropical forests.
“The U.S. government should end mandates for ethanol and let the free market work,” said a statement laying out policy positions for the party. The resolution was passed unanimously.
The move comes as criticism of American and European policies on biofuels mounts. In July a report from the OECD, the club of industrialized nations, said that government support of biofuel production in rich countries is squandering vast amounts of amounts of money while exacerbating the global food crisis and failing to meaningfully curb greenhouse gas emissions and improve energy security. The report reached similar conclusions as earlier assessments by the U.N. and World Bank.
Nevertheless supporters of ethanol claim the fuel source reduces foreign dependence on oil and has helped limit increases in gas prices. In July the biofuels industry formed a lobby group — the Alliance for Abundant Food and Energy — to influence lawmakers and the general public. The group will spend “in the multimillions” to promote genetically modified crops to improve crops yields and will lobby Congress to keep subsidies for ethanol and biodiesel production in place.
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