Oregon has become the latest state to require diesel sold in the state… well, at least in nine counties in the northwest part of Oregon starting August 5th and the rest of the state by October 1… have a mix of biodiesel. The 2 percent biodiesel (B2) requirement received the praise of the National Biodiesel Board: “Oregon recognizes the proven …
Soybean & Biodiesel Boards Dispel RFS-2 Misinfo
The biodiesel industry and the soybean checkoff have teamed up to try to dispel some of the misinformation being used that would basically disqualify soybean-based biodiesel, the bulk of the nation’s biodiesel, from the proposed federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS-2). This United Soybean Board press release says the National Biodiesel Board’s (NBB) Sustainability Analysis and Awareness project, funded in part …
Feed-In Tariffs Could Help Small Solar, Wind Power
A proposal that would require utilities to buy power from small-scale renewable energy producers could end up being a boon for solar and wind power in America. The New York Times reports that two Democrats in the U.S. House have introduced a bill to do just that: Reps. Jay Inslee of Washington and Bill Delahunt of Massachusetts are preparing a …
Company Intros Portable Ethanol, Biodiesel Analyzer
With more and more blends of biodiesel and ethanol available out there, especially with government tax incentives and regulations based on the percentage of the biofuel, it’s more important than ever for producers and users to know what they are putting in their tanks. Enter the InfraCal Blend Analyzer. This post on EnvironmentalExpert.com says the analyzers from Connecticut-based Wilks Enterprises …
Farm Foundation Recognized for Food & Biofuels Study
A report on food prices and the role biofuels have played (and have not played) in the spike of those prices has been recognized for a very prestigious award. The Farm Foundation report entitled “What’s Driving Food Prices?” released last year has won the 2009 Quality of Communication Award presented by the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association (AAEA) for the …
Mass. Hands Out $2.2 Mil in Wind Energy Grants
The State of Massachusetts has handed out $2.2 million to fund nine new wind energy projects. This press release from the state’s Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs says the agency’s secretary, Ian Bowles, made the announcement of the grants awarded by the Massachusetts Renewable Energy Trust through the new Commonwealth Wind Community-Scale Wind initiative: “Wind energy is a …
JB Hunt’s Big Rigs Running on Algae Biodiesel
National carrier J.B. Hunt has committed to burning algae biodiesel in its semi-trucks. This post on the FleetOwner blog says that after successfully testing 20 and 50 percent blends of SunEco Energy’s biodiesel, made from algae oil, J.B. Hunt found it reduced emissions by more than 80 percent without any loss of power: “Producing renewable fuel supplies from algae grown …
Denver Converting 100 Trucks to Biodiesel
The city of Denver is coverting more than 100 trucks and snow plows to run on clean-burning biodiesel. The Denver Business Journal says the city is getting $700,000 in federal stimulus bucks to retrofit the equipment: Denver announced Thursday that it had received the “Clean Diesel Conversion” grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The money will be spent on: …
Report: Biofuels Market to Triple by 2020
A new report shows some pretty strong growth in the biofuels market in the next decade, especially in the biodiesel sector. This article from Biodiesel Magazine says Boulder, Colorado-based Pike Research sees the biofuels market tripling by the year 2020, growing from $76 billion to $240 billion: “The study started out as an assessment of technologies in the biofuels industries, …
New Biodiesel Plant Nearly Doubles California’s Output
A Colorado biodiesel company has nearly doubled California’s total output of the green fuel. Denver-based Crimson Renewable Energy has completed a 30-million-gallon-a-year biodiesel and glycerin plant near Bakersfield, California, the largest biodiesel facility in the state. Previously, California had only 34 million gallons a year of biodiesel production: Crimson’s new Bakersfield production facility can utilize a wide variety of feed …