Biofuel consumption has saved almost 590m tonnes of CO2 over 10 years

Over its 10-year lifespan, the Renewable Fuel Standard's (RFS) requirement to substitute biofuels for fossil fuels has displaced nearly 1.9 billion barrels of foreign oil and reduced US transportation-related carbon emissions by 589.33 million tonnes. These are the findings of an analysis released by the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO).

Brent Erickson, executive VP of BIO's industrial and environmental section, comments: 'The RFS was signed into law 10 years ago this month by President George W. Bush. The law's purpose was to end America's addiction to oil, reduce reliance on foreign oil and lower carbon emissions from the transportation sector. The RFS programme has demonstrably achieved those goals. The total reduction in carbon emissions achieved under the programme is equal to removing more than 124 million cars from the road over the decade.

'It is unfortunate that the Environmental Protection Agency has delayed issuing new rules for the programme and is now proposing to halt growth in the biofuel market. The agency's delay will continue to allow fossil fuels to be used when cleaner, lower carbon biofuels are available, reversing some of the progress made in the past 10 years.'

The major findings of the study include:
• The RFS has slashed US transportation-related carbon emissions by 589.33 million tonnes over the past 10 years.
• The total reduction is equivalent to removing more than 124 million cars from the road over the decade.
• The RFS has displaced nearly 1.9 billion barrels of foreign oil over the past decade by replacing fossil fuels with homegrown biofuels.
• EPA's recent proposed rules for the RFS would cut short achievable future carbon emission reductions. In 2015 alone, the proposal would add 19.6 million tonnes of CO2e for the year, equal to putting 7.3 million cars back on the road, compared with achievable levels of biofuel use.

A copy of the study can be downloaded here.