The biofuels industry sees the Environmental Protection Agency’s approach to spurring electric vehicles as a top-down-approach versus a free-market one. The Renewable Fuels Association argues it’s fighting an uphill battle against the EPA and its proposed tailpipe emissions standard if the agency insists on favoring electric vehicles with no tailpipe.
RFA President & CEO Geoff Cooper says; “The only way to restore fairness to this rule is to ensure that all emissions associated with these vehicles are being counted.”
And Cooper says that includes emissions from electricity generation and mining the critical minerals to make EV batteries. Asked if EPA’s done those calculations; “Well, EPA hasn’t done much of their own work on that topic, but there’s plenty of academic literature out there on that subject.”
Bottom line, Cooper says EPA and the Biden Administration are taking a top-down approach to force more EV production. Cooper; “The role of policy is not to force or dictate certain technologies. It’s to set societal goals and help the marketplace figure out the best way of accomplishing those goals, and then get out of the way.”
Cooper says to let the automakers come up with the best mix of vehicles and technologies to accomplish a set emission goal. Instead, he argues the agency’s got its finger on the scale in favor of electric vehicles and readily assumes the public will buy more if more are produced, despite higher costs, fueling, and other issues.
