Coalition Protests Senate’s Anti-biofuel Research Vote

Thirteen aviation groups, including NBAA and GAMA, are firmly supporting continued research by the Department of Defense on the use of biofuels after the Senate Armed Services Committee voted to strip funding for those efforts. By a 13-12 vote last month, Senate committee members are blocking Defense participation in programs to construct biofuel refineries and have prohibited the Pentagon from purchasing renewable biofuels that are more expensive than regular jet fuel.

In a letter sent to lawmakers, the coalition of aviation groups protested the vote to block the department’s participation in programs to construct biofuel refineries, which would severely curtail research into the use of biofuels derived from plants such as algae and sugar cane to supplement the use of petroleum-based jet fuel.

“It is our collective belief that the ongoing efforts of the United States military on alternative fuels are helping reduce the cost of those alternatives and will ultimately help reduce our reliance on foreign oil,” the groups said.