Andrew Wheeler, acting U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) administrator, recently approved Florida Gov. Rick Scott’s request for an emergency fuel waiver, which ensures the state will have an adequate supply of diesel during its response to Hurricane Michael.
The waiver went into effect immediately and expires Oct. 26. After that date, wholesale purchaser-consumers and retailers are permitted to sell or dispense diesel fuel that meets the conditions of the waiver until supplies are depleted.
Under the waiver, the EPA defers the highway diesel fuel red dye requirements to allow the use of 15 parts per million sulfur. It applies to non-road diesel used for emergency response, utility, and highway vehicles responding to or assisting in recovery efforts in the Florida panhandle.
The Clean Air Act stipulates the criteria for issuing fuels waivers and requires that they are limited in duration and geography.
Before the waiver was approved, the EPA and the Department of Energy (DOE) evaluated the request to determine if granting a short-term waiver was in the public’s interest. The waiver was granted in coordination with the U.S. Secretary of Energy Rick Perry.
The EPA and DOE are actively monitoring the fuel supply in the wake of Hurricane Michael.