New EPA rules mean bad news for biodiesel

Washington, D.C.

To qualify toward the annual targets, the 2007 energy law says biodiesel must reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent in comparison to conventional diesel. EPA is crediting biodiesel made from soybean oil with only a 22 percent reduction.

Congress required EPA to assess the carbon footprint of biofuels and to take into account the land-use impacts of using food crops such as soybeans and corn for biofuels. The theory is that using food commodities for fuel can increase greenhouse gas emissions, because forests and grasslands will be put into cultivation to maintain adequate global food supplies.

There also are emission targets for ethanol, but existing corn ethanol plants were exempted from them, whereas existing biodiesel plants were not given a similar break.

DesMoines Register