NGVAmerica statement on Electric Vehicle Investment Impacts on Rural America

January 17, 2022. NGVAmerica issued the following statement responding to the U.S. House of Representatives Agriculture Committee’s January 12th hearing entitled, “Implications of Electric Vehicle Investments for Agriculture and Rural America”:

“A successful green transportation strategy is one that all of America can buy into and from which every American in every community – urban, rural, and everywhere in between – can benefit.  Flexibility, commercial availability, and affordability are key.

“Renewable natural gas (RNG), or biogas, is gas produced from methane emitted through the decomposition of dairy, poultry, and hog waste, food waste, and forest and crop management waste.

“Witnesses at the hearing highlighted the unique challenges to rural America, delays in domestic manufacturing of EV components, and the need for biofuels and other advanced fuels in our clean transportation future.  RNG is central to decarbonizing transportation.

“Its production provides new revenue streams for family farms.  Its employed use offers an affordable, fully sustainable, and storable carbon-negative motor fuel to fuel vehicles, including ranch and farm equipment.  And its promoted capture ensures rural America can be part of the climate change solution.

“Former U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz argues that full electrification of the economy is simply not an attainable goal, advising policymakers and the private sector to turn more attention to low-to-no-carbon fuels and carbon-negative technologies like RNG and saying, ‘I believe when you think this through that you reach the conclusion that while electricity and electrification are the lead horse in the decarbonization race, we also need a fuel.’

“Representatives Carbajal, Costa, and Cammack all recognized the role of RNG use in decarbonizing transportation, bringing up this alternative fuel during questioning of witnesses.

“RNG is the carbon-negative fuel solution available today.  RNG is waste reimagined.  And RNG ensures that rural America is not left behind in the transition to a cleaner energy economy.

“We ask Congress to support rural America’s participation in the path to decarbonization by fully embracing RNG use in transportation.”