Zeldin promises RFS announcement in March

Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin promised today that EPA will make an announcement on volumetric requirements and other aspects of the Renewable Fuel Standard by “the end of the month.”

Interviewed at the Agri-Pulse Ag and Food Policy Summit, Zeldin added, “That narrows it.”

As soon as this RFS announcement is made, he said, EPA will begin working on the next set of RFS rules in order to provide “certainty and predictability.”

He said there are “four dials” that have to be taken into consideration on biofuels policy including biomass-based diesel, discounting Renewable Identification Numbers and reallocations of biofuels types.

On biofuels, “the stakeholder input we receive is very diverse,” he said.

He also noted that Congress is considering whether to pass a bill allowing the sale of E15, a higher ethanol blend, year-round nationwide.

He said that senators from the Midwest including Iowa Republicans Charles Grassley and Joni Ernst view E15 as both an economic and national security issue, but added that “you have members who represent other parts of the country — they have different constituencies.”

On pesticides, Zeldin said he was pleased that the agency has reduced the backlog of pending pesticide decisions from 14,500 to 8,500. He said that the agency has added information technology and staff to the office making those decisions.

He also said he is determined to make EPA’s communications about pesticides understandable to the average American, including the Make America Healthy Again supporters who are trying to make decisions for the safety of their children. Too many of EPA’s “pages” about pesticides are too technical, he said.

If people can’t turn to the government and get answers to their questions, he said, they will turn elsewhere.

On dicamba, Zeldin said EPA had responded to concerns of cotton farmers and issued approval for two years rather than one to provide more certainty.

Many MAHA advocates now understand the importance of dicamba, but “it’s now important for farmers to follow the risk mitigation efforts,” he said.

On glyphosate he said the review is underway and that that he will not tell the safety officials what the outcome should be.

Zeldin said he believes that his predecessors gave themselves powers that were not provided in statute. He said he sees “ways to reduce my power every single day” and that those decisions will “reduce the power of whoever follows me.”