The latest knock against ethanol claims the green fuel was fueling a spike in wheat prices as more growers were switching to corn acres to provide the feedstock for ethanol. But USDA’s Chief Economist Keith Collins says it just isn’t so. This story from Farms.com says Collins claims global stocks are really behind the rise in wheat: Collins took umbrage …
Safeway Turns to the Sun
California-based grocery store giant Safeway is converting 23 of its stores to run on solar power. This story on Environment News Service covers the opening of one such store in Dublin, California: California Congressman Jerry McNerney joined Safeway officials on a tour of the Dublin store’s rooftop solar panel array. The unit is currently generating electricity to power the 55,000-square-foot …
Commercial Roofer Goes Green with Biodiesel
The shingles might be black, but a leader in the commercial roofing business in California and Arizona is going green… by using bidiesel for its entire fleet of trucks in California. This press release from the company says Highland has always been committed to lowering man’s environmental footprint, and this was a natural fit: The switch to Biodiesel fuel was …
Possible Soybean Crush Partnership in Wisconsin
Officials with Landmark Services Cooperative have announced they want to partner with the state of Wisconsin to build a soybean crushing facility near Evansville, WI., which could help the possibilities of a biodiesel facility going in to the same area. This story in Wisconsin Ag Connection has more details: During a public press conference at its Rock County facilities on …
First Commercial Biomass Ethanol Plant Slated for Kansas
An area best known for its natural gas fields will become home to the first commercial biomass ethanol plant in the U.S. This story in the High Plains Journal says Abengoa Energy will build the plant in Hugoton, Southwest Kansas: The new plant should be completed in 2010 and is funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy. Abengoa …
POET Turns 21 with Plant in Indiana
Ethanol-giant POET has opened its 21st plant during a grand opening ceremony at its latest facility near Portland, Indiana. The 65-million-gallon-a-year makes POET the largest ethanol producer in the world cranking out an amazing 1.1 billion gallons annually. This press release from the company says this is the first POET ethanol plant in Indiana, but two more are in the …
Garbage Trucks Pick Up More than Trash with Biodiesel
The Lawrenceville, Georgia city fleet supervisor got a surprise when he converted his garbage trucks to biodiesel. “I was expecting the economy to go down and the trucks to be more sluggish,” [Lamar] Hall said. But now, “I figure it’s about 10 percent more efficient with biodiesel.” This story in the Atlanta (GA) Journal-Constitution says the suburban Atlanta community is …
Western Dubuque Biodiesel Holds Grand Opening
State, industry, and company officials gathered this week at a brand-new biodiesel plant near Farley, Iowa for the official ribbon-cutting ceremony for Western Dubuque Biodiesel’s $50 million plant. This story in the Telegraph-Herald (Dubuque, IA) says those in attendance praised biodiesel’s environmental and economic contributions: “This plant has no carbon (emissions),” [Nile Ramsbottom, president of Renewable Energy Group Inc. – …
Ethanol Shifting Research to Pipelines
Research and development efforts to get ethanol into the nation’s already-existing oil pipeline… a key issue into getting more ethanol into the nation’s gas tanks… took a step forward this week. This story in Ethanol Producer Magazine says the Association of Oil Pipe Lines (AOPL) is expanding its ongoing research and development efforts to get past the technical barriers to …
Nebraska Officials Answer Ethanol Questions
Some folks in Nebraska are getting a little nervous over the rapid rise of the ethanol industry in the state. That’s why state officials and industry experts set up shop in Norfolk, NE on Thursday (Sep. 13th) to answer some of those concerns. Nebraska’s 17 ethanol plants (and another nine on the way) makes the state third in the nation …