Concerns about E15 gasoline

I've heard some arguments in the past about the advantages and disadvantages of E10 "gasohol" ethanol-gasoline mixtures.  Apparently the pressure from the ethanol industry is on now to move to E15 (15% ethanol), but concerns are being voiced, especially by manufacturers of non-automotive equipment:

...the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute and manufacturers argue that once gas stations sell [E15], consumers will mis-fuel their power equipment, with terrible results...

For veteran power-equipment guys such as Mick Matuskey, the prospect of E15 entering the fuel stream is vexing. Matuskey... has been in the business for 44 years and remembers when snowblowers, chain saws and mowers lasted much longer.  "You're getting half of the life out of the product today compared to 30, 40 years ago," he said.

Cheaper components and higher running temperatures are taking their toll. But critics say a 15 percent ethanol blend would shorten engine life more and make equipment prone to fuel leaks and fire hazards. Apart from causing engines to run hotter, ethanol fuel eats away at rubber components...

Tools such as trimmers, mowers and blowers generally use engine technologies long abandoned by carmakers: air cooling, carburetion and, often, two-cycle engines fueled by an oil-gas mix . Ethanol blends cause engines to run leaner and hotter - modern auto engines can adjust for that; lawn mowers and chain saws cannot...

The institute says its members can develop machines that will run on more ethanol, just as they are making them less polluting. But there are as many as 200 million existing pieces of equipment now in jeopardy, used by homeowners, landscapers, foresters, companies and institutions...

Power-equipment makers say consumers filling a portable gas can while also fueling their vehicles are not going to pay attention to a sign telling them to use E15 only in approved automobiles. They also speculate that gasoline retailers will make more money from E15 than E10, and if it becomes legal for 54 percent of automobiles, "at some point there is likely to be a wholesale transfer over to a majority fuel," Guerry said...

Equipment makers are also worried that the ethanol, which absorbs water, will make the fuel unstable and destructive to engines when seasonable equipment is stored for months on end. Another problem, Kiser said, is that the faster engine idling speeds will cause machines with centrifugal clutches, such as chain saws, to engage blades at rest...

More at the Washington Post.  I've been using E10 in my lawnmower, chain saw, and snow thrower.  I'm going to look for non-ethanol gas (if I can find it) for future fillups.