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Ethanol Groups Sue EPA Over Oil Refinery Waivers

By Rebecca Thiele, IPB News | Published on in Economy, Transportation
(127driver/Wikimedia Commons)
(127driver/Wikimedia Commons)

Pro-ethanol groups are suing the Environmental Protection Agency for granting Renewable Fuel Standard exemptions to three oil refineries — which means those refineries don’t have to add the required amount of ethanol to their gas.

The waivers are supposed to be for small refineries experiencing “economic hardship.”

Bob White, with the Indiana Farm Bureau, says those three refineries might be small, but the companies that own them aren’t. Last year, CVR Energy made more than $230 million. Exxon Mobil has also requested waivers in the past.

“When you look at the complete package of Exxon Mobil with over a $1 billion profit last year, why would you grant them a waiver?” says White.

The Renewable Fuels Association says while the EPA used to give out a small number of these waivers a year, it granted more than two dozen in just the past few months.

The waivers are not the only thing disappointing Indiana corn growers. The federal government was also going to allow the year-round sale of gas with 15 percent ethanol, but the EPA missed its deadline for gas stations to sell E-15 this summer.

Indiana Environmental reporting is supported by the Environmental Resilience Institute, an Indiana University Grand Challenge project developing Indiana-specific projections and informed responses to problems of environmental change.