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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State
Rep. Greg Vitali |
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To: Editorial page editors
From: State Representative Greg Vitali, D-Delaware
Please consider the following commentary for your Editorial/Op-Ed section. If you have any questions, please contact Mike Storm at 717-787-7895 or at mstorm@pahouse.net.
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The PennSecurity Fuel Initiative: Home-grown fuel
By State Representative Greg Vitali
Decreasing our dependence on foreign oil, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, curbing air pollution, creating jobs and preserving Pennsylvania’s farmland: these are the goals of the PennSecurity Fuel initiative unveiled by Gov. Rendell in February. Legislation to implement this initiative by increasing the production and use of biofuels is now pending in Harrisburg. Pennsylvanians should urge their legislators to pass Special Session House Bill 2.
The Clean Fuels and Energy Independence Act (Special Session H.B. 2) was introduced by Rep. Michael Gerber, D-Montgomery, on Sept. 24. The bill seeks to boost production and use of biodiesel and ethanol in Pennsylvania to 1 billion gallons annually by 2017. The legislation is identical to House Bill 1202, which the state House passed in regular session in June.
Under this legislation, the biofuels content requirement for diesel fuel and gasoline sold in the state would increase as the in-state production of biofuel increases. Specifically, diesel fuel sold in Pennsylvania would be required to contain at least 20 percent renewable content once the in-state production of biodiesel reaches 300 million gallons annually. Gasoline sold in Pennsylvania would be required to contain at least 10 percent ethanol once the state’s production of ethanol reaches 200 million gallons annually.
Biodiesel today is produced mainly from soy oil. It can be added to diesel oil and used by motor vehicles with diesel engines and as heating oil. Ethanol is made primarily from corn in the United States and is already widely used as a gasoline additive in automobiles. The increased production and use of biofuels offers many benefits to Pennsylvania.
Using home-grown biofuels would substantially reduce our state’s dependence on oil from the Middle East, making us much less reliant on that volatile part of the world for our energy needs. The amount of biofuels sought to be produced by this legislation – 1 billion gallons a year – is equal to the amount of fuel that Pennsylvania currently imports from the Persian Gulf.
Pennsylvania is responsible for 1 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. Increasing our use of biofuels would help address this problem. Gasoline with 10 percent ethanol content (E-10) emits 10 percent less carbon dioxide, according to the U.S. Environmental Agency. Diesel fuel with a 20 percent renewable content (B-20) emits 15 percent less carbon dioxide, according to the U. S. Department of Energy.
The use of biofuels also results in less air pollution. The EPA estimates that E-10 results in the emission of 25 to 30 percent less carbon monoxide, 5 percent less nitrogen oxide and 7 percent less volatile organic compounds.
The production of biofuels is also good for Pennsylvania’s economy. A recent study by LEGC, LLC concluded that offsetting 900 million gallons of petroleum based transportation fuel with biofuels by 2017 would add nearly $1.5 billion to Pennsylvania’s economy and help create as many as 25,000 new jobs. This study was commissioned by PennFuture.
The growth of the biofuels industry in Pennsylvania could also help to preserve thousands of acres in state farmland by increasing the demand for corn, soybeans and other crops used in biofuels production.
Opposition to the PennSecurity Fuels initiative has come from the American Petroleum Institute. That’s no surprise since a substantial increase in the production and use of biofuels would eat into the oil industry’s enormous profits.
Now is the time to contact your state representative and state senator and urge them to pass Special Session House Bill 2 to give Pennsylvania a cleaner and more secure, independent and economically dynamic energy future.
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CONTACT: Mike Storm |