The 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) was enacted to provide “greater energy independence and security [and] to increase the production of clean renewable fuels.” Part of EISA requires EPA to revise its Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program to achieve substantial increases in the volume of biofuels used in the nation’s transportation fuels. EISA and the RFS set goals of up to 36 billion gallons per year of biofuel use by 2022. Although combined production of ethanol and biodiesel was less than 18 billion gallons in 2019, it is more than twice the volume produced in 2007 when EISA was passed.
Biofuels are fuels derived from renewable biological materials. Ethanol and biodiesel are currently the most widely used biofuels in the U.S. Ethanol derived from corn starch is the most widely used biofuel in the U.S. Most vehicles can use gasoline-ethanol blends containing up to 10% ethanol (by volume). Flexible fuel vehicles can use blends containing up to 85% ethanol. Biodiesel is made from oilseed crops (soybean, sunflower, rapeseed) and waste fats, oils, and greases. Most biodiesel in the U.S. is produced from soybean oil. Biodiesel is most often blended with petroleum diesel in ratios of 2% (referred to as B2), 5% (B5), or 20% (B20).
EISA recognizes that the increased production and use of biofuels could have impacts on the environment and natural resources. Therefore, the Act requires EPA to report to Congress every three years on the environmental and resource conservation impacts of the increased production and use of biofuels. EISA specifically requires EPA to report on the following:
- Environmental issues, including air quality, effects on hypoxia, pesticides, sediment, nutrient and pathogen levels in waters, acreage and function of waters, and soil environmental quality.
- Resource conservation issues, including soil conservation, water availability, and ecosystem health and biodiversity, including impacts on forests, grasslands, and wetlands.
- The growth and use of cultivated invasive or noxious plants and their impacts on the environment and agriculture.
The reports are also required to discuss biofuel and biofuel feedstocks and the environmental impacts outside the United States of producing those fuels and feedstocks consumed in the U.S.
EPA’s Office of Research and Development leads the development of the reports to Congress, working with EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation and consulting with experts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Energy.