(Radio Iowa) – The Environmental Protection Agency has announced it will let a higher blend of ethanol be sold this summer in Iowa and seven other Midwestern states. The sale of fuel with a 15 percent blend of ethanol has been prohibited nationwide in the summer due to concerns it could worsen smog levels. Bills have been introduced in congress to make the year-round sale of E-15 a permanent federal policy.

E-P-A Administrator Lee Zeldin says in the absence of congressional action, the agency is considering emergency waivers. He announced late Friday that E-15 may be sold in the Midwest this summer. Iowa elected officials, farm groups and the ethanol industry praised the decision.