Court Upholds RFS
Lawsuit agains the Renewable Fuel Standard thrown out.
Compiled by staff
Published: Dec 22, 2010
In a unanimous opinion by Judge Rogers, from the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the petition by National Petrochemical Refiners Association and the American Petroleum Institute challenging the Renewable Fuels Standard was denied in full. Joining in the decision were Circuit Judges Ginsburg and Garland. Now, the RFS2 program as currently being implemented by the Environmental Protection Agency can continue moving forward.
Petitioners contended three issues: 1) The RFS2 final regulation violated the statutory requirements setting separate biomass-based diesel volume requirements for 2009 and 2010; 2) The RFS2 final regulation was impermissibly retroactive; and 3) The RFS2 violated appropriate statutory lead time and compliance provisions.
Manning Feraci, with the National Biodiesel Board, says this decision wholly validates the U.S. biodiesel industry's legal position and sends a clear, unambiguous signal to the marketplace that the common-sense renewable goals established in the RFS2 program will be met.
Biodiesel is a commercially viable, renewable, low carbon diesel replacement fuel that is widely accepted in the marketplace. The fuel meets an exact commercial fuel specification and is the only domestically produced, commercial scale fuel that qualifies as an Advanced Biofuel under the RFS. Feraci says the NBB has every confidence that their membership is ready, willing and able to meet the nation's Advanced Biofuel goals in 2011.
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Tagged: biodiesel, Environmental Protection Agency, legal
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