Despite the evidence that Ethanol not only takes more energy to produce then it puts out, or that it is causing the price of corn and related foods to skyrocket, the Environmental push to keep it regulated is far too strong for Texas to say “Care to cut back the requirements a wee bit?”

From the Associated Press via MSNBC:

The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday denied a request from Texas Gov. Rick Perry to cut the federal ethanol mandate in half for a year.

…

An energy bill passed in December required 9 billion gallons of ethanol to be blended into gasoline this year and about 11 billion gallons next year. Perry asked the EPA in April to drop the Renewable Fuels Standard requirement to 4.5 billion gallons because demand for ethanol is raising corn prices for livestock producers and driving up food prices.

Gov. Rick Perry has been quoted as saying:

 ”I am greatly disappointed with the EPA’s inability to look past the good intentions of this policy to see the significant harm it is doing to farmers, ranchers and American households…” “For the EPA to assert that this federal mandate is not affecting food prices not only goes against common sense, but every American’s grocery bill.”

And to prove that the sky is falling, even environMental groups supported the waver.  Sandra Schubert, spokeswoman for the Environmental Working Group, said (referring to how shortsighted the denial is and how nonviable ethanol is as a ‘clean energy solution’):

“Instead, the misguided corn ethanol mandate is forcing farmers to plow up marginal land and wildlife habitat, while increasing global warming and dumping toxic fertilizers and pesticides into our precious water sources,” she said in a statement.

Oh well.  I guess in retrospect, what are a few dead Ethiopian children when you can save the planet?  You can’t make an omelet without killing a few people.