Corn Growers Advance Ethanol for the Nation's Energy, Environmental And Economic Interests

    WASHINGTON, April 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The nation's corn growers say ethanol
 deserves a leading role in emerging national energy policy because it delivers
 energy security, promotes environmental stewardship and revitalizes rural
 communities.
     Lake Preston, S.D., farmer Lynn Jensen -- chairman of the National Corn
 Growers Association (NCGA) -- testified yesterday before the House
 Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural
 Development and Research.
     Jensen provided an up-to-date portrayal of the U.S. ethanol industry,
 noting that given the uncertainty about this nation's energy supplies, the
 arguments promoting ethanol are compelling.  He said the current cost of
 producing ethanol lies in the range of $0.95-1.10 per gallon and research
 shows that for every 100 BTUs of energy used to produce ethanol, 135 BTUs of
 ethanol are produced.
     "Ethanol facilities are not only cost effective, they are energy
 efficient...  Therefore, the myth that it takes more energy to produce a
 gallon of ethanol than is contained in the ethanol itself is just that: a
 myth," Jensen noted.
     Citing research conducted by the Argonne National Laboratory, Jensen
 testified that ethanol produces 32 percent fewer emissions of greenhouse
 gasses than gasoline for the same distance traveled.
     "Last year, ethanol production set a new record, utilizing more than
 600 million bushels of corn, or about 6.5 percent of the crop to produce
 1.63 billion gallons of fuel ethanol," Jensen explained.  "Corn demand created
 by ethanol kept valuable farmland resources in production, adding as much as
 $3 billion to the income of our corn farmers."
     The viability of the ethanol industry hinges in large part on government
 policy, he said, adding, "Given the uncertainty regarding how the
 Administration will respond to California's request for a waiver from the
 federal reformulated gasoline program (RFG), growers' investments in new
 ethanol plans are on hold."
 
     Jensen suggested a two-track approach that achieves:
 
     *  The development of a comprehensive energy strategy that includes a
        renewable fuels requirement complementing the current oxygen
        requirement in the RFG program; and
     *  A comprehensive reauthorization of the Clean Air Act where new
        developments in fuel and vehicle technology "can be considered through
        the critical lens of analysis that our environmental policy demands.
        Such a course would provide the renewable fuels industry the necessary
        signals needed to attract additional investment while maintaining the
        environmental benefits of current law that has provided millions of
        Americans with cleaner air."
 
     Jensen's complete testimony is posted on NCGA's website at
 http://www.ncga.com .
     The National Corn Growers Association mission is to create and increase
 opportunities for corn growers in a changing world and to enhance corn's
 profitability and usage.  NCGA represents more than 30,000 members, 25
 affiliated state corn grower organizations and hundreds of thousands of
 growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.
 
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SOURCE  National Corn Growers Association

    WASHINGTON, April 26 /PRNewswire/ -- The nation's corn growers say ethanol
 deserves a leading role in emerging national energy policy because it delivers
 energy security, promotes environmental stewardship and revitalizes rural
 communities.
     Lake Preston, S.D., farmer Lynn Jensen -- chairman of the National Corn
 Growers Association (NCGA) -- testified yesterday before the House
 Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Conservation, Credit, Rural
 Development and Research.
     Jensen provided an up-to-date portrayal of the U.S. ethanol industry,
 noting that given the uncertainty about this nation's energy supplies, the
 arguments promoting ethanol are compelling.  He said the current cost of
 producing ethanol lies in the range of $0.95-1.10 per gallon and research
 shows that for every 100 BTUs of energy used to produce ethanol, 135 BTUs of
 ethanol are produced.
     "Ethanol facilities are not only cost effective, they are energy
 efficient...  Therefore, the myth that it takes more energy to produce a
 gallon of ethanol than is contained in the ethanol itself is just that: a
 myth," Jensen noted.
     Citing research conducted by the Argonne National Laboratory, Jensen
 testified that ethanol produces 32 percent fewer emissions of greenhouse
 gasses than gasoline for the same distance traveled.
     "Last year, ethanol production set a new record, utilizing more than
 600 million bushels of corn, or about 6.5 percent of the crop to produce
 1.63 billion gallons of fuel ethanol," Jensen explained.  "Corn demand created
 by ethanol kept valuable farmland resources in production, adding as much as
 $3 billion to the income of our corn farmers."
     The viability of the ethanol industry hinges in large part on government
 policy, he said, adding, "Given the uncertainty regarding how the
 Administration will respond to California's request for a waiver from the
 federal reformulated gasoline program (RFG), growers' investments in new
 ethanol plans are on hold."
 
     Jensen suggested a two-track approach that achieves:
 
     *  The development of a comprehensive energy strategy that includes a
        renewable fuels requirement complementing the current oxygen
        requirement in the RFG program; and
     *  A comprehensive reauthorization of the Clean Air Act where new
        developments in fuel and vehicle technology "can be considered through
        the critical lens of analysis that our environmental policy demands.
        Such a course would provide the renewable fuels industry the necessary
        signals needed to attract additional investment while maintaining the
        environmental benefits of current law that has provided millions of
        Americans with cleaner air."
 
     Jensen's complete testimony is posted on NCGA's website at
 http://www.ncga.com .
     The National Corn Growers Association mission is to create and increase
 opportunities for corn growers in a changing world and to enhance corn's
 profitability and usage.  NCGA represents more than 30,000 members, 25
 affiliated state corn grower organizations and hundreds of thousands of
 growers who contribute to state checkoff programs.
 
                     MAKE YOUR OPINION COUNT -  Click Here
                http://tbutton.prnewswire.com/prn/11690X27677865
 
 SOURCE  National Corn Growers Association