BILL ANOMALIES IMPLEMENTATION PACIFIC ETHENOL YOUR CAR HB2210 SB1079

Stop Mandatory Ethanol In Oregon!

Did you know that on July 3, 2007 Governor Ted Kulongoski signed HB 2210, mandating that all gasoline sold in Oregon contain 10% Ethanol without exception?

Late Breaking News

Pangs of Conscience Are Setting In As Economy Tanks

• 24 July 2008: Democratic State Senator Viki Walker Flip/Flops when her precious Prius takes huge mileage hit on ethanol.
• 14 August 2008: Oregon House Republicans Flip/Flop and propose empty gesture to repeal HB-2210 ethanol mandate.
• 7 November 2008: Oregon now has the highest average gasoline price in the Northwest according to AAA and ethanol now costs more than the gasoline that it is blended with to make E10, according to DTN.

• The price of gasoline will go UP.
   
• Your mileage will go DOWN. (See: http://zfacts.com/p/436.html )
   
• Many vehicles will suffer mechanical effects from ethanol, some of them serious, possibly including the complete destruction of their fuel system. Your insurance WILL NOT cover this damage! This is especially true for cars built before 1982 because ethanol is a solvent and these cars don't necessarily have ethanol proof parts like gaskets, O-rings and rubber fittings in their fuel system. Google "ethanol problems". This is my favorite story which goes to prove that it isn't just old cars that may have problems with E10. The greatest effect of this bill will be on the most vulnerable people in Oregon, who are scraping by on minimum wage, but not a living wage, since they are the majority of the people driving much older cars that may not be particularly well maintained and I know some of them are living in those cars. E10 may destroy their car but they will have no choice. In fact, with the total lack of media coverage, they won't even know why their cars died.
   
• Many boats will be affected by ethanol, especially older, classic boats for the same reason as older cars.
  (See: http://www.daybreakfishing.com/ethanol-fuel.html and here: http://www.amlibpub.com/liberty_blog/2006/09/ethanol-damage.html and it looks like our legislators really should have read this: http://www.uscgboating.org/recalls/pdfs/BSC85_1.pdf, pg. 6-10, but then they never asked the Oregon State Marine Board to testify.)
   
• All 2 cycle tools will be effected causing maintenance problems for tool rental businesses and businesses that rely on 2 cycle tools, like forest management and fire fighting crews and yard maintenance businesses. Apparently there was no concern for public safety when enacting this law, because the legislature never asked the Forest Service or any of the fire services to testify about how HB2210 will affect their tools. The bill will also affect snow mobiles, jet skis and all other 2 cycle engine powered recreational vehicles. This article summarizes the problems with ethanol and 2 cycle engines.
   

  

  Oregon is the only state that will send their fire fighters into battle with E10 in their tools. The legislature didn't bother to ask anyone in Public Safety if this was a good idea.

• Gasoline stations may incur hefty costs because all storage tanks will have to be inspected and may have to be flushed out and new storage tank caps are required. Some of the one pump stations in eastern Oregon may just go out of business because it won't be economical to comply with the law.
  (See: http://oregon.gov/ODA/MSD/docs/pdf/gasoline_dealer_notice.pdf )
   
• The entire gasoline delivery system will incur unspecified changeover costs as ethanol storage tanks and mixing equipment will have to be installed to handle at least 160 million gallons of ethanol / yr.
   
• Many older airplanes that have paid for an STC to use unleaded fuel, instead of burning highly leaded airplane fuel that they weren't designed for, will have a worthless piece of paper and will have to go back to burning leaded fuel, thus polluting the environment even more, while incurring increased maintenance costs. But then the legislature never asked the Oregon Department of Aviation to testify.
   
• If ethanol is the holy grail of clean air and energy independence, why does government on all levels have to guarantee market access and give out tax incentives or subsidies to business? Have you ever considered what it is doing to food costs when you convert a universal food grain to an energy supplement? And keep this in mind. HB 2210 creates a monopoly. The ethanol companies have guaranteed access to every gas tank you own. If a new wonder gasoline enhancement comes along and it is incompatible with ethanol, as ethanol was with MTBE, Oregon won't get it unless it changes the law and you know that the monopolist ethanol companies are going to fight that tooth and nail using your tax dollars. So how does ethanol clean up CO in your exhaust gasses, it converts it to CO2, a greenhouse gas! See: http://www.cei.org/gencon/019,05432.cfm Don't you just love the irony?
   
• Hawaii is the only other state, so far, that has a mandatory E10 law with no exceptions. This article should give all Oregonians pause: http://starbulletin.com/2007/03/18/editorial/commentary3.html
   
•  Here is something to ponder. It was pointed out to me by a gasoline distributor. Oregon makes about 40 million gallons of ethanol / yr. It needs at least 160 million gallons of ethanol / yr. It is the law that all gasoline in Oregon must have 10% ethanol in it, no exceptions. What if one or more gasoline terminals can't get enough ethanol for one reason or another. They must stop distributing gasoline. Even if they have gasoline, you can't have it.
   
• If you get bad gasoline you need to tell the Oregon Department of Agriculture here: http://oda.state.or.us/dbs/fuel_complaint/fuel_complaint.lasso
   
• And as if you didn't already have enough to worry about with ethanol, now this: http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hkfJr7eBlUGNeJW2UuEctWBVfhQQD8V28S580
  Is your fire department prepared?