Pumping Up Rural America

Last fall, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency set Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) targets that are expected to push 14.5 billion gallons of ethanol into gasoline in 2016. This volume could translate into ethanol accounting for more than 10 percent of fuel use in the U.S. and help establish a floor for ethanol production and price.

The RFS is driving billions of dollars of economic activity across America. The results are clear: $184.5 billion of economic output, 852,056 jobs, $46.2 billion in wages and $14.5 billion in taxes each year.¹ “This activity creates a ripple effect as supplier firms and employees re-spend throughout the economy,” says Jack Bernens, head of Enogen® at Syngenta. “Ethanol is fueling rural America’s future—one community at a time.”

And biofuels are cleaner than imported fossil fuels. Part of the impetus for the creation of the RFS was not only energy independence, but also the environmental benefit realized from the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. Over its 10-year lifespan, the RFS has cut U.S. transportation-related carbon emissions by 589.33 million metric tons—equivalent to removing more than 124 million cars from the road over the decade.²

“For the ethanol industry to enjoy sustainable success, however, there needs to be an increase in demand,” says Bernens. “That’s why Syngenta is donating approximately $600,000 to the Prime the Pump Fund.”

This fund is an ethanol-industry initiative created to help the early retail adopters of high-level ethanol blends by awarding grants to reduce their initial investment in infrastructure. The Syngenta donation is part of a commitment begun in 2013 to contribute $1 to the ethanol industry for every acre planted with Enogen corn enzyme technology.

¹ Fuels America, www.fuelsamerica.org
² Biotechnology Industry Organization, www.bio.org.