A new study released today concludes that increasing the blend of ethanol in the U.S. gasoline supply from 10 to 15 percent could boost job creation and economic growth. The study was commissioned by Growth Energy and conducted by researchers from North Dakota State University (NDSU). Nancy Hodur, NDSU researcher with the Department of Agribusiness and Applied Economics, says there …
Scientists Question California Climate Plan
Over 100 of the nation’s top scientists are questioning the approach taken by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) which singles out biofuels for “indirect effects,” claiming that petroleum products result in lower carbon emissions. Scientists affiliated with research labs such as the National Academy of Sciences, UC-Berkeley, Sandia National Labs, Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and MIT sent a letter …
“2008 an Anomaly Year”
“When the history books are written, 2008 most likely will go down as an anomaly year, ” began John Urbanchuk, Director of LEGC, LLC. Housing market crash. Financial market crash. Global recession. Commodity boom and bust. Wave of bankruptcies. “We slipped into a recession in December 2007, ending a seven year run of economic growth.” But, he continued, President Obama, in his address …
NRDC’s Take on Indirect Land Use
Indirect land use has been a hot topic at this year’s 14th annual National Ethanol Conference. The ethanol industry has been working closely with many organizations on this issue including the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). I caught up with Nathanael Greene, Senior Policy Analyst–Air and Energy, after he participated in the panel: The Impact of Lifecycle Greenhouse Gas Emissions …
RFA Chairman Previews National Ethanol Conference
The 2009 National Ethanol Conference is underway in San Antonio. Cindy and I are on location and will be bringing you as much of the activities as we can courtesy of the Renewable Fuels Association. We’ll also be posting content onto The Ethanol Report site for RFA. Today, one of the main activities is the annual golf tournament which is …
RFA Analyzes Recent Ethanol Impact Studies
This edition of “The Ethanol Report” podcast features comments from Renewable Fuels Association Vice President of Research and Analysis Geoff Cooper about recently released studies from the University of Nebraska and the University of Minnesota regarding life cycle analysis and greenhouse gas emissions of ethanol compared to gasoline. Cooper compares the two reports and discusses RFA’s major concerns with the …
Retired General Tackles Ethanol Land Use Issue
Retired General Wesley Clark today embraced his new role as a leader in the growth of renewable energy. Clark was named co-chairman of Growth Energy during a Thursday morning press conference in Washington DC. “Every gallon of ethanol that we put in our fuel system today is a gallon of imported gasoline that we avoid,” Clark said. “This country is …
More Biodiesel Awards
Several more awards were presented on the last day of the National Biodiesel Conference this week in San Francisco. As the Inspiration award winners, Bryan Peterson (right) and Pete Bethune shared their inspiring stories at the final general session. Fourteen years ago, Peterson made his way around the world in a small boat powered by biodiesel. He completed the 35,000 …
Melissa Etheridge Supports Biodiesel
Biodiesel continues to prove it is the most star-powered of renewable fuels. Singer/song writer Melissa Etheridge is the latest star to show her support for biodiesel, appearing Tuesday at the National Biodiesel Conference in San Francisco. The artist shared an inspirational story of how her battle with breast cancer led her to want to make a difference in the world …
Ethanol Part of Clean Energy Economy
Ethanol industry leaders are looking forward to working with the Obama administration on the creation of a “clean energy economy,” as outlined in the president’s “American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan.” This edition of “The Ethanol Report” features comments from Renewable Fuels Association chairman of the board Chris Standlee of Abengoa Bioenergy and RFA president and CEO Bob Dinneen on priorities …