Voters siding with Cruz on biofuels

Washington Examiner:
More than three-quarters of voters are worried that the Environmental Protection Agency's biofuel standard will drive up the cost of gasoline and harm their car's engine, according to a new poll.

The American Petroleum Institute released a new Harris poll Wednesday showing 77 percent of registered voters are concerned that breaking the so-called "blend wall" could end up increasing gas prices and reduce the country's fuel supply.

The Renewable Fuel Standard requires biofuel to be added to the nation's gasoline supply, and it's mandated by Congress. Because that standard is a total amount and not a percentage of the gasoline supply, it can push past the "blend wall."

The "blend wall" is the term used to describe the point at which a vehicle's engine is harmed by the amount of biofuel added to the gasoline supply. If more than 10 percent of fuel is biofuel, usually corn ethanol, it can cause damage to engines.
...
The current requirements already damage smaller engines used in lawn and garden equipment as well as outboard motors.  To keep the ethanol from ruining the engine of a chainsaw or other equipment, it is best to run the machine until the fuel is completely used up so that it does not foul the fuel system, requiring expensive repairs.  It could do the same for cars if more is added to the blend.

Ethanol is largely a product of a perceived scarcity of oil used to make gasoline.  That scarcity no longer exists and there is really no good reason for  keeping the requirement.

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