May 6 2009
Based on the limited body of science that exists, our land use studies, and our most recent work on satellite imaging used to assess land use impact, it is clear that additional time is required before indirect land use rules can be applied with any certainty. We are therefore encouraged by today's EPA announcement that the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS-2), specifically its treatment of indirect land use, will be subject to scientific peer review.
Our UIC Energy Resources Center team has conducted several scientific studies on land use effects for corn ethanol and the results of that work lead us to conclude that the consideration of indirect land use effects today would be premature.
Our detailed studies of land use requirements surrounding an ethanol plant indicate that indirect land use effects differ between manufacturing plants (based on plant location, agricultural practices, etc.) and that these differences are not captured in current models. Furthermore, we have published a study of underutilized ethanol technologies that if ubiquitous throughout manufacturing, would alter the fossil fuel requirements and co-products produced with ethanol and thereby greatly shift the global warming and land use impact of corn-based biofuels
Our latest work (by Messrs. Copenhaver and Mueller) looks at the limitations of satellite imaging technology in assessing indirect land use effects. We have observed that the error range of certain technologies relied upon today to provide indirect land use data in some cases exceeds the indirect effects they purport to claim.
Every day science moves closer to a better understanding of indirect land use effects. The EPA's commitment to transparency and scientific review is pragmatic and consistent with the Administration's stated goal - which the broad scientific community supports -- that rule making be based on sound science.