All gas in California will be required to be10% ethanol by 2009.
http://www.sacbee.com/114/story/225365.html
FRESNO, Calif. -- Gasoline sold in the Golden State will include up to 10 percent ethanol, California air managers decided Thursday, a move the renewable fuels industry says will shift the burgeoning ethanol market into high gear.
All California refineries making gas sold in the state will have to blend 10 percent ethanol into their gas to meet new fuel standards set by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger starting Dec. 31 2009, under the resolution adopted by the California Air Resources Board.
Industry groups said the ruling will almost double demand for the biofuel in California, which last year used about 1 billion gallons of ethanol, or nearly one-fifth of the total consumed nationwide.
"It's just another shot of Geritol in the arms of the ever-expanding U.S. ethanol industry," said Bruce Scherr, CEO of Informa Economics, Inc., a Memphis-based consulting firm specializing in renewable fuels. "Once the markets start to fall in line like this, it shows the demand is there and is growing."
[/align]A handful of other states - including Connecticut, Minnesota and Hawaii - have mandates for the use of 10 percent ethanol, or E-10, according to the Renewable Fuels Association.
A surge in demand will be created as large states like California, Texas and New York roll out legislation forcing gas stations to sell a more environmentally friendly energy mix, analysts said. That growth is aided by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which gives small refiners a federal tax credit for using the biofuel.
Blending more of the low-carbon fuel into gas will improve air quality in California and reduce dependency on foreign oil, Schwarzenegger said.
"While many alternative fuels exist in the market, ethanol is one that can be blended into today's gasoline with no change to our current cars," Schwarzenegger said. "It is critical that government continue reducing barriers so that alternative fuels can increasingly penetrate our transportation fuels markets."
If refineries still can't meet clean air standards with 10 percent ethanol in their fuel mix, they can reduce emissions from other sources by donating money to programs that take polluting vehicles off the road, among other alternatives, said board spokesman Dimitri Stanich.
Ethanol, an alcohol-based alternative fuel, is produced from corn, or from other crops that contain starches, like sugar beets or sugar cane.
Demand for ethanol is enticing some farmers to grow corn rather than other crops and has already has pushed feed prices higher. Officials at Cargill Inc., a leading ethanol producer, have said recently the ethanol's industry demand for corn could raise prices for all kinds of foods.
Many environmental groups support the increased use of ethanol in gas because it lowers greenhouse gas emissions, but prefer a more advanced version of the alternative fuel made by processing cellulose-rich plant materials like leaves and stalks, rather than corn.
Others say the high energy cost of making ethanol, coupled with the degraded land and polluted water from heavily fertilized fields, make its value as a biofuel questionable.
The resolution does not address what kind of ethanol could be used.
"The reason why California has the cleanest gasoline is because it has some of the areas in the state also have the worst air quality," said Luke Tonachel, a vehicles and fuels analyst with the Natural Resources Defense Council. "This is good news, but we need to continue to invest in the next generation of advanced biofuels."
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Talking about BioFuels......
