NEVADA, Iowa — There is a long line of semi-trucks hauling corn to Lincolnway Energy today. That’s normal right now, as gas prices soar and ethanol production races to keep up with demand.

Of course, that hasn’t always been the case in an industry that has seen more than its share of ups and downs over the last 40 years. And the crystal ball doesn’t yet provide a clear picture of whether it will be the case in another few decades. But there is a sense of optimism behind the waterfall of corn flowing from the trucks into the grain pit.

DES MOINES — Iowa lawmakers have been debating a bill this session that could lead to more gas stations in the state selling E15 blends of fuel.

The idea was proposed last year, according to Monte Shaw, executive director of the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association. But that 2021 proposal drew opposition from lawmakers who saw it as an E15 mandate and a potential threat to small rural gas stations.

Ethanol’s impact on Midwest agriculture is hard to miss, and the time for its next step might be now. The country is watching gas prices rise, and one solution may fall in higher blends of ethanol.

“We are at that next level and are ready to go to higher blends,” Northeast Iowa farmer Bob Hemesath said. “We are ready to go to the new technologies and engines, but we need the Next Generation Fuels Act to pass to get us to that level.”

The gasoline industry and alternative fuel makers put aside their differences for court challenges to a Biden administration rule imposing limits on automobile greenhouse-gas emissions.

Renewable fuel advocates and at least one oil refiner joined together last month, saying they’d asked a federal appeals court in Washington to review the Environmental Protection Agency standards, which promise to boost the sale of electric vehicles and could shrink the market for liquid fuels, whether made of petroleum or plants.