As some folks call for more offshore drilling of non-renewable petroleum, a place known for its beautiful beaches is looking to biodiesel as an alternative to drilling platforms breaking up that breath-taking views.
This story from Miami Today says Biomix Energy Corp. wants to build a biodiesel plant on the Miami River:
The first phase of the project, expected to be operating by the end of next summer, could yield 15 million gallons of production a year, said Steven Karpel, chief operating officer of Biomix Energy Corp.
The completed facility, an estimated $40 million to $50 million investment, is expected to produce 30 million gallons annually beginning in 2011, he said.
The company is in the process of securing a three-acre site on the river and an official OK from Miami-Dade County’s Department of Environmental Resources Management, as well as planning and zoning officials.
The article goes on to say that the Biomix Energy plant might need a zoning change to become a reality, however, commissioners lacked a quorum at the latest meeting and could not vote on it.
Just last month, Dade County commissioners debated about what more drilling would do to the area’s vital tourist industry, and the article reports Commissioner José “Pepe” Diaz as saying that the more we drill, the less we’ll consider alternative fuels.