Support more ethanol

Tuesday, May 23, 2006

RENEW Wisconsin registered at a Senate hearing in support of Senate Bill 723, which would recue the motor fuel tax on E85 fuel (15% gasoline, 85% ethanol) in Wisconsin.

Brett Hulsey, Better Environmental Solutions, submitted testimony, which included the following excerpt:

There is a great need to expand the use of 85% ethanol (E85) in Wisconsin. More than 100,000 flexible fuel vehicles only burn an average of seven gallons of E85 each, although E85 sells for up on $1 less than regular gasoline. There are also only 25 E85 stations in the state, though this number is growing.

We have a simple choice for our energy future: get more oil from the Mideast or grow more fuel in the Midwest. Homegrown fuels like ethanol are a better, safer environmental solution to our energy challenges than drilling for more oil.

To summarize, we should support producing and selling more ethanol blends to reduce air pollution and cancer risks, help create jobs in Wisconsin, support our family farmers, and could eventually make Wisconsin and America energy more independent. Measures in this bill move us toward cleaner, safer energy.

Read the complete testimony here.