WASHINGTON – Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), along with the entire Iowa delegation, joined a bipartisan, bicameral push for the Biden administration to continue embracing the GREET model for assessing lifecycle emissions. Last week’s letter, led by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), John Thune (R-S.D.) and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), is in anticipation of another Department of Energy (DOE) update to the GREET model on March 1, after it just issued one in December.
“We recognize your recent decision to allow the GREET model to serve as a secondary model for sustainable aviation fuel as a step in the right direction. This announcement has the potential to bring us closer to scaling up domestic production of [Sustainable Aviation Fuels] as America looks to fortify its domestic energy supply and decarbonize the aviation fuels sector,” the lawmakers wrote to the SAF Lifecycle Analysis Interagency Working Group.
“Biofuels drive economic growth, create good-paying manufacturing jobs, and strengthen economies across rural America. As you continue to develop a model to determine eligibility, we ask that you take measures to permit every participant in the SAF lifecycle to appropriately participate in the carbon reduction process,” they continued.
The SAF Lifecycle Analysis Interagency Working Group is comprised of DOE, the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). Access the full letter and list of over 40 signatories HERE.
Background:
The GREET model, created by the nonpartisan Argonne National Lab, most appropriately considers land use and recognizes the agriculture industry’s contributions to U.S. energy goals. Grassley has advocated for federal adoption of GREET model because it uses up-to-date data and science. This inherently promotes SAF, most of which comes from biofuels or biomass-derived fuels. Ramping up SAF production to power commercial aviation is not only sound energy, environmental and geopolitical strategy, but it also supports certainty for domestic agriculture and biofuels sectors.
Ethanol producers rely on the GREET model to qualify for SAF tax credits, grow their markets and help the aviation industry further its emissions goals. Grassley has touted biofuels’ environmental performance on the Senate floor, in White House meeting requests and during a question-and-answer session.
Related Grassley Policy Efforts:
Grassley is advancing bills to boost SAF opportunities across a slew of agencies. He is co-leading a bill to require EPA to modernize its biofuels emissions framework. The Farm to Fly Act encourages SAF development at USDA, in part by fostering greater public-private sector collaboration. And, he’s working to align certain federal standards with FAA’s definition of SAF.
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