WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said on Monday that ethanol and other renewable fuels must account for 7.95 percent of total gasoline sales in 2011 to meet Congress' mandate that 13.95 billion gallons of renewable fuels be produced next year.
That is down from the 8.25 percent renewable fuels standard the EPA set for 2010 during February.
The United States still has a long way to go to meet Congress' goal of producing 36 billion gallons of biofuels a year by 2022.
The EPA said the proposed 2011 overall volumes and standards are as follows:
* Biomass-based diesel (800 million gallons; 0.68 percent)
* Advanced biofuels (1.35 billion gallons; 0.77 percent)
* Cellulosic biofuels (5 million-17.1 million gallons; 0.004-0.015 percent)
The EPA also said it was proposing a lower 2011 cellulosic volume than required by Congress, based on analysis of market availability of the fuel.
The agency said it will continue to evaluate the market as it works to finalize the cellulosic standard in the coming months. "Overall, EPA remains optimistic that the commercial availability of cellulosic biofuel will continue to grow in the years ahead," it said.
EPA said it was also proposing changes to regulations that would potentially apply to renewable fuel producers that use canola oil, grain sorghum, pulpwood or palm oil as a feedstock.
This proposal would allow the fuel produced by those feedstocks dating back to July 1, 2010, to be used for compliance should EPA determine in a future rule-making that those fuels help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
The EPA will take public comment for 30 days on the 2011 renewable fuels standard and other proposed changes. (Reporting by Tom Doggett; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
