IF ONLY! - NEAT Implementation Would Have Increased Demand For "Grown In America" Ethanol Fuels
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November 2020: The Auto Channel presented their "NEAT" (National Ethanol Action Team) marketing plan details for approval in 2020, in response to an invitation by National Corn Growers Association Ethanol Marketing committee, in session at NCGA Annual Convention held in St Louis.
And Now June 2024, 4 Years Later...The National Corn Growers Association, American Farm Bureau Federation and a group of six auto dealers representing sixteen brands and collectively operating dozens of dealerships in major markets across the country join API as co-petitioners in today’s lawsuit. NCGA Comments On Ethanol Fuel From Filed Law Suit: “Today, we are taking action to protect American consumers, U.S. manufacturing workers and our nation’s hard-won energy security from this intrusive government mandate,” API Senior Vice President and General Counsel Ryan Meyers said. “EPA has exceeded its congressional authority with this regulation that will eliminate most new gas cars and traditional hybrids from the U.S. market in less than a decade. We look forward to making our case in court. 4 years later - oh my!
“By approving tailpipe standards that focus exclusively on electric vehicles, EPA has ignored the proven benefits corn ethanol plays in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and combatting climate change,” Minnesota farmer and National Corn Growers Association President Harold Wolle said. “While it could take decades to get enough electric vehicles on the road to significantly lower GHG emissions (see also; Electric Vehicles Solution Or Diversion (Orig Published 2009), ethanol is a critical and effective climate solution that is available now. We have tried to make this case to EPA to no avail, and now we will make our case in court.”
“Farmers answered the call to help America be more sustainable by growing the crops necessary for renewable fuels. Now, the rug is being pulled out from underneath them with unrealistic emissions goals that put years of investment at risk,” American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said. “Impractical standards for light-duty and medium-duty trucks will drive up the cost of farm vehicles and force farmers to rely on a charging network that does not yet exist in rural areas
The Practical and Sustainable Transportation Solution
For more than a decade, The Auto Channel, the web's first interactive automotive interest publication has focused its alt-fuel editorial efforts on delivering the truth about ethanol fuel.
As an enthusiastic advocate for ethanol fuel The Auto Channel applauds more research into innovations for the production, distribution and consumer benefits of the only realistic near term green alt-fuel solution.
The Auto Channel believes that its ethanol expertise and decade's long communications efforts has made us a media model to help increase understanding, acceptance and enthusiasm of ethanol fuel by consumer/motorists.
We all agree that ethanol is the most misunderstood and lied about "best thing," and that without a truthful understanding of ethanol it will remain what it is today, just an octane booster, or garner a 10% or 15% drop-in-the-bucket share of the liquid mobility fuel universe, much less than it deserves to be given with all the problems that ethanol corrects.
Many times during the past decade we have proposed that the ethanol industry support a natural expansion of our ethanol communications reach, but unfortunately there is a secret roadblock actively preventing any support needed to expand consumer understanding and a desire to fill-up with ethanol fuel.
The Auto Channel has seemingly been pigeonholed by persons and entities within the ethanol industry sphere as an adversary instead of the only consumer facing main-stream automotive publication that is promoting and supporting the use of ethanol.
The Auto Channel owners are not farmers or ethanol distillers, we get no grants or support from the EPA or anyone now, we just choose to continue to support our "just cause." Sadly, our economic reality will shortly curtail our ability to continue helping an industry that has taken but has not given us anything, we chose to keep-on-keeping-on without any monetary support because it was and is the right thing to do for America.
We believed that our editorial support of distillers, farmers and their multi-billion dollar corn ethanol industry could not remain unsupported forever, right for everyone but not fair to us. All we have asked for were a few crumbs from their advertising or lobbying budget to help us continue The Auto Channel's pro-ethanol media and promotional outreach.
But no matter how "just-the-cause," or beneficial the product NEAT needs funding to help us counter the mainstream media silence and decimation of mistruths about ethanol. We need funding to help us overcome today's ubiquitous cacophony of media driven EV fairy-tales, lies, exaggerations and overstatements, which every day diminishes ethanol's potential share of the consumer's mind and pushes it even further away,
Then Along Comes N.E.A.T.
Should brave thinking ever take hold in the leaders of the Ethanol Industry and they recognize the benefits of providing economic support for an Ethanol Truth communication effort, The Auto Channel is ready to launch NEAT. An organization designed to supercharge ethanol marketing communication and education.
NEAT will focus on correcting the most egregious lies and miss-understanding's about ethanol fuel...observed and documented by Auto Channel journalists during the past decade.
NEAT will establish national, regional and local ethanol action teams, formed from experienced hands-on auto technicians, energy company scientists, automotive educators, motor-sport crew chiefs, auto company engineers, hot-rod and race car designers and other on the ground ethanol under-standers,
NEAT members will bring the truth about ethanol and move it to a front-burner anticipation, and create motorist enthusiasm for the near future's ubiquitous availability of clean, green renewable ethanol fuel from abundant diverse sources before it even shows up at fuel pumps across the country.
NEAT's Initial Targets:
· Auto Journalists
· Automotive Educators and Students
· Automotive Technicians
· Fuel Retailers (Convenience Stores)
· Auto Part Retailers
· Auto Dealers
· Consumer Organizations
The first tranche of a NEAT investment will be based on geographic roll-out. Current plans call for starting slowly with highly targeted entities, to be visited by the core master action team that will develop, test and fine tune NEAT curricula.
We are confident that with real support we can affect meaningful changes to ethanol perception for tens of millions of motorists. If your organization has interest in pursuing support of NEAT, and wishes to discuss our plans and qualifications please contact us.
Bob Gordon, President
bgordon@theautochannel.com
mjrauch@theautochannel.com