|
Biotechnology
| Ethanol | Transportation
| Trade | Research
| Farm Bill
| Conservation
January
17, 2002
The
Honorable Gray Davis
Governor
State of California
State Capitol
Sacramento, California 95814
Dear
Governor Davis:
I
am writing on behalf of the nation's corn farmers to urge you to keep
your commitment to eliminate MTBE from California gasoline by January
1, 2003. When you originally made that commitment, you and members of
your Administration expressed the desire to eliminate MTBE at the earliest
date possible because of the negative impact using MTBE was having on
water quality in California.
Today,
MTBE is still being used in the overwhelming majority of California
gasoline and drinking water supplies in California continue to be contaminated;
this much has not changed. What has changed is the clear and undeniable
existence of a real alternative to MTBE, ethanol. Following your pledge
to eliminate MTBE, many in California questioned the ability of the
ethanol industry to meet the needs of California refiners with adequate
supplies of ethanol. Because of these doubts, California filed for a
waiver from the federal reformulated gasoline oxygen requirement. EPA
has denied that waiver request.
However,
while California invested significant resources in your waiver request,
corn farmers invested their resources in new ethanol production by becoming
members of ethanol cooperatives. In fact, most of the new capacity being
built to meet the new demand anticipated from new market opportunities
like California are farmer-owned cooperatives. The Renewable Fuels Association
recently reported that since your executive order, 10 new ethanol plants
have opened in the United States, producing an additional 550 million
gallons of ethanol annually and 18 more plants that will add another
470 million gallons of capacity are under construction. This unprecedented
investment by farmers is in direct response to the challenge made by
you and members of your Administration when you suggested that ethanol
was not a viable alternative to MTBE because enough was not being produced.
That
is why I am asking you to fulfill your commitment to eliminate MTBE
according to the schedule you announced nearly 3 years ago. The investments
of many of our members will be affected by your decision.
Sincerely,
Tim Hume
President
|