More ethanol? Act now to stop it (by Monday 7/27/15)

[T-Topless]

TradeOnlyToday said:

BoatUS couldn’t have said it better than in an email to members: “EPA Wants to Know How Much Corn You Want in Your Boat’s Gas Tank?”

It’s not a joke. Unless boaters and the industry respond in a huge way by Monday, we’re going to be living with higher concentrations of corn ethanol. That’s the deadline the Environmental Protection Agency has set for public comments about its proposal to significantly increase the amount of ethanol that must be blended into the nation’s fuel supply this year and next.

If adopted, these EPA-proposed increases will push the volume mandated to a record amount of ethanol, thus forcing higher-level fuel blends (including E15) into more gas stations nationwide. Here’s the situation:

It’s all about the Renewable Fuel Standard, a broken 2005 federal law requiring biofuels, (essentially corn ethanol) to be blended into our gasoline. When it was written, the assumption was that America’s gasoline consumption would continue to rise, so the law mandated steadily increasing amounts of biofuels to be blended with gas. But since 2005, gasoline usage has steadily declined. Thus, the fuel standard is unnecessarily forcing more ethanol into less gasoline.

To use up the increasing ethanol, the EPA in 2010 pushed E15 (up from E10) into the marketplace. Even though E15 is prohibited from being used in marine engines, snowmobiles, motorcycles and millions of other small engines, as well as any vehicle made before 2001, this fuel can now be found in 24 states at the very same pumps as E10.

According to the National Marine Manufacturers Association, 97 percent of boaters fill up at retail gas stations. It’s a no-brainer that the risk of misfueling is greatly heightened wherever E15 is dispensed with E10. To add to the absurdity prescribed by the fuel standard, the U.S. Department of Agriculture plans to spend $100 million to get more ethanol at the gas pumps. Talk about pandering to ethanol producers.

We must push back hard today.

It’s easy. If you want to oppose the EPA proposal as a boater, simple go to goo.gl/CkfOtK, which is set up by BoatUS to quickly send your message to EPA. And Boating United has also made it easy to let EPA hear from you — just click here.

Completing the easy-to-use forms on either site takes only a minute. How about having every employee in your dealership take a moment today to do it on a computer? We’re at a critical moment in our fight to prevent any increase in corn ethanol. It’s critical that all of us who make a living in the boat business speak up.

Please don’t wait — do it now.

Ref:

• TradeOnlyToday article blog.tradeonlytoday.com/dealer_outlook/?p=2435/?utm_source=trade-enewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=textlink&utm_campaign=enewsletter-072315
• NMMA: www.votervoice.net/NMMA/Campaigns/41081/Respond
• BoatUS: www.capwiz.com/boatus/issues/alert/?alertid=67065646

[985crabs]

Done.

[Juan]

Done, but a waste of time... when is the last time a politician or government agency like the EPA gave a hoot about our concerns?

[T-Topless]

Jul 23, 2015 13:01:53 GMT -6 Juan said:

Done, but a waste of time... when is the last time a politician or government agency like the EPA gave a hoot about our concerns?

Can't help to shake our tiny fist

[985crabs]

Jul 23, 2015 13:01:53 GMT -6 Juan said:

Done, but a waste of time... when is the last time a politician or government agency like the EPA gave a hoot about our concerns?

If you were a low-income, minority, disenfranchised individual whose vote could be easily swayed in return for some "free sh!t" it would matter a lot. I believe that if Welfare recipients are "entitled" to free cell phones, I should be entitled to a choice of fuel I want to purchase, and pay fuel taxes on, to the great big teat in Washington.

Yes, I know, I am naive.

[Juan]

Jul 23, 2015 13:32:47 GMT -6 985crabs said:

Jul 23, 2015 13:01:53 GMT -6 Juan said:

Done, but a waste of time... when is the last time a politician or government agency like the EPA gave a hoot about our concerns?

If you were a low-income, minority, disenfranchised individual whose vote could be easily swayed in return for some "free sh!t" it would matter a lot. I believe that if Welfare recipients are "entitled" to free cell phones, I should be entitled to a choice of fuel I want to purchase, and pay fuel taxes on, to the great big teat in Washington.

Yes, I know, I am naive.

Good luck... I'm on your side... While you're at it, why not ask for a million bucks for every time one of your ancestors was called a coon azz? rofl

[T-Topless]

NMMA Member Testifies Against the RFS to Congress

www.nmma.org/article.aspx?id=20019

On Thursday, July 23, Mercury Marine’s Tim Reid testified to Congress regarding the dangers of ethanol to the recreational boating industry. Reid, Mercury’s Director of Engine Design and Development, warned Members of the House Science’s Subcommittee on Energy and Oversight about the harmful effects of over 10% blended ethanol on small marine engines. In his testimony Reid cited two studies; one by Volvo Penta and the other by Mercury Marine, both in association with the DOE and NREL. These studies tested the effects of 15% blended ethanol, or E15 on performance, emissions, and durability. In all cases, the use of E15 had catastrophic effects, leading to increased emissions, deterioration, and in most cases, complete engine failure. Reid warned that the use of E15 is not only dangerous for the engine, but creates a safety risk for the boaters who rely on them. “E15 creates a higher probability of phase separation with water in the tank fuel resulting in a greater chance of disabling the boat engines and stranding a boater out on the open water” Reid informed the Subcommittee.

The levels of blended ethanol proposed in the original Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) do not reflect the market demand, and pose a serious threat to recreational boating. Modern marine engines are only certified to run on 10% blended ethanol (E10) or less. Engines made before 1990 are not certified to use fuel blended with any ethanol at all, and can only use E0. In his testimony, Reid reminded Congress of the incompatibility between E15 and the still numerous older engines in the fleet, warning of the dangers misfueling poses to these boaters and their engines. Reid also refuted claims that fuel with higher ethanol blends decreased emissions, stating that the use of E15 caused engines to run hotter, increasing the output of Nitrogen Oxides and hydrocarbons. “The absurdity of it all” he said “is that by using higher ethanol blends to achieve the mandates of the RFS, we are actually increasing emissions and lowering efficiency.”

On Monday, July 27th, the comment period on the RFS mandate will come to a close. NMMA urges all members to take action through Boating United, and tell Congress why increasing the amount of blended ethanol into the market is bad news for the recreational boating industry.

[gtightline]

Sent...but we all know that these lying XXXXXXXs are going to do what ever it takes to continue to fill their stinking hands, and to line their filthy pockets..Unfortunately, for the most part, we just don't matter....JMHO is all.