USDA’s Vilsack Pushing EPA to Raise Ethanol ‘Blend Wall’ to 15%

Bloomberg.com
By Alan Bjerga

Oct. 16 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said he is pushing the Environmental Protection Agency to raise the amount of ethanol allowed in gasoline as the deadline for a decision nears.

Science indicates that a higher “blend wall” is safe for automobile engines, Vilsack said yesterday in an interview at a conference on global hunger in Des Moines, Iowa. Increasing production of ethanol, made from corn in the U.S., would also meet national goals of energy independence and aid the industry as it attempts to expand.

“We will continue to publicly advocate an increase, and privately advocate,” Vilsack said. “Our hope is they understand the significance of this decision as it relates to the future of the industry.”

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