Statement of Congressman John D. Dingell, Chairman
Committee on Energy and Commerce

SUBCOMMITTEE ON ENERGY AND AIR QUALITY
HEARING ENTITLED “ALTERNATIVE FUELS:
CURRENT STATUS, PROPOSALS FOR NEW STANDARDS, AND RELATED INFRASTRUCTURE ISSUES”

May 8, 2007

Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding yet another important hearing regarding energy security and climate change.

Today’s examination of alternative fuels is particularly important to the Committee’s ongoing work on these vital issues. Any initiative addressing energy security or climate change must take steps toward moving our economy away from its reliance on petroleum. Consumers deserve to have vehicles capable of operating on alternative fuels and to have those fuels readily available for their use.

Ethanol has already helped clean the air as an additive to gasoline: 10 percent ethanol blended with 90 percent gasoline. It is not as an additive, however, that ethanol has its greatest potential. Its greatest contribution to improving national security and addressing climate change will be realized when low-carbon ethanol is available in the marketplace as a true alternative: 85 percent ethanol blended with 15 percent gasoline, known as E-85. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses what obstacles remain toward achieving this objective and what we can do to overcome them.

In additional to E-85, other bio-fuels, such as bio-diesel offer unique opportunities to improve efficiency and consume less petroleum. Diesel fuel inherently contains more energy and performs more efficiently than gasoline. These properties make diesel fuel well-suited for heavy-duty applications, both on and off road. Bio-diesel expands upon diesel’s natural efficiency by making a portion of it renewable. Additionally, bio-diesel emits fewer pollutants and hydrocarbons than traditional diesel fuel.

Without a standardized fuel specification for bio-diesel, engine and vehicle manufacturers have been reluctant to warrant their products when used with greater concentrations of bio-fuel. The potential benefits of bio-diesel extend well beyond light-duty passenger cars and trucks. If bio-diesel is standardized and widely available, it has significant potential to save petroleum and reduce emissions of carbon dioxide from freight, rail, maritime, and other transportation sectors which are often overlooked. Establishing a single national specification for bio-diesel at concentrations of 20 percent and greater should be part of any package addressing these issues.

It is also wise to examine long-standing regulations of both fuels and vehicles in the context of alternative fuels. Government regulations should encourage alternatives to petroleum, not provide perverse disincentives. For example, the Corporate Average Fuel Economy program regulates how efficiently a vehicle burns its fuel. It does not take into consideration, however, what fuel it is burning or the levels of carbon dioxide it is emitting. Assuming our national objectives are to consume less petroleum and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, is the efficiency with which a vehicle burns a non-petroleum based fuel that emits few greenhouse gasses still relevant? E-85 is less efficient than gasoline, yet it displaces petroleum and can significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We must continue to ask these questions as we proceed with new legislation and review existing policies.

Lastly, as these home-grown bio-fuels are considered in the context of energy security and climate change, it is important that we continue to examine how they can be made available to consumers as true alternatives to petroleum. Anything short of that objective, stated plainly, will fall short.

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(Contact: Jodi Seth or Alec Gerlach, 202-225-5735)