Wisconsin Ag Connection - Wisconsin Opens 100 Ethanol Fueling Stations

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Wisconsin Opens 100 Ethanol Fueling Stations
Wisconsin Ag Connection - 05/20/2008

The Menomonie Cenex is giving away free gift cards with qualified purchases of 85 percent ethanol fuel as part of a statewide celebration taking place this week to recognize ethanol's contribution to the state's improved air quality. During the Menomonie event, the first 100 Flex Fuel Vehicle owners who purchase 10 gallons or more of E85 between 10 a.m. and noon on Tuesday, May 20 at the Menomonie Cenex will receive a $20 fuel card good toward their next fill up. Additional events are planned throughout the week, as a coalition of groups celebrate the opening of 100 E85 fueling stations in Wisconsin and mark the 100th anniversary of the American Lung Association of the upper Midwest.

"E85 fuel is recognized as a Clean Air ChoiceTM by the American Lung Association of the Upper Midwest, so it is very appropriate that we celebrate our organization's anniversary--and 100 years of better breathing--at the same time the state is marking its 100th E85 fueling station," says Dona Wininsky, Director of Public Policy and Communications for the Lung Association. "Using E85 can reduce ozone-forming pollutants by 20 percent and evaporative emissions by 25 percent or more. A typical flex-fuel driver can prevent as much as four tons of lifecycle CO2 and other pollutants from entering our air every year simply by fueling with E85 instead of gasoline. That helps make the air cleaner and better for everyone to breathe, which is the heart of our mission."

Helping celebrate the Wisconsin ethanol events along with the Menomonie Cenex and Lung Association, are the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association, General Motors, The Wisconsin Office of Energy Independence, Wisconsin Clean Cities, the Ethanol Promotion and Information Council and local E85 stations.

"With gasoline prices approaching $4 per gallon, American consumers must realize that ethanol and the country's Renewable Fuels Standards are part of the solution for rising food and energy costs," says Randy Woodruff, president of the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association. "Americans are saving billions of dollars at the pump thanks to biofuels and several recent studies have disproved big oils contention that corn prices are driving up food prices."

For a list of E85-compatible vehicles, visit www.cleanairchoice.org.