News that U.S. produced ethanol is now being exported has led to calls for an end to federal subsidies for the industry, but supporters say subsidies ought to be continued. Madison based environmental consultant Brett Hulsey said it’s important to realize that while corn-based ethanol is subsidized, it’s not as if petroleum based gasoline isn’t. “Depending on who you listen to, it’s subsidized anywhere from $1.00 to $3.00 per gallon,” said Hulsey, who was recently elected to the state Assembly. “Oil has massive subsidies, and as we saw with oil washing up on the Gulf all summer long, it’s a very dirty fuel.”
Josh Morby with the Wisconsin Bio Industry Alliance said Wisconsin’s nine ethanol plants can help reduce the state’s dependence on imported oil. “It’s important to recognize that we’re not on a level playing field, and that the oil industry continues to be heavily subsidized, and the subsidies for the biofuel industry are necessary in order for them to compete,” said Morby. “The investments we have made in ethanol to date have yielded about the same amount of fuel as we import from Saudi Arabia every year” said Hulsey. “So that’s been a pretty good investment in more energy independence.”
Wisconsin is home to nine ethanol plants, and Morby said some of them are certainly exporting fuel. “It’s really so hard to track just given where it’s blended, when it’s blended and where it actually ends up. But I think there’s no doubt that a lot of the Wisconsin produced fuel ends up out of the state and very well could end up out of the country.”