Farming For Algae

Joanna Schroeder

Steve Mayfield, the Director of the San Diego Center for Algae Biotechnology, believes that we need new sources and new revenue streams for agriculture. The most important element of the crop, says Mayfield, is that it can’t complete with existing agriculture. His answer? Algae.

Algae, says Mayfield, is going to be the next big agricultural crop. The only difference is algae grows on water, whereas traditional ag crops grow on land.

Today, researchers across the country are studying algae to produce fuel and feed and maybe even some day fiber, and Mayfield told me during an interview as part of a San Diego Algae Tour, that what we’re looking for in algae is exactly what they worry about in ag.

There are four things that Mayfield and his team are focusing on in their algae research: growth rate, the product being made, crop protection and harvestability. For example, when his team is growing algae, they need it to grow fast, produce a high amount of lipids, be free of disease, and be harvested as cheaply as possible.

I asked Mayfield when we would see full-scale deployment of algae fuel and he noted, “In this country, it took 100 years to reach the scale of ag we’re at right now. It’s not going to take 100 years to get to that scale in algae because the need is much great now.” You would typically build up your technology as the population increases, continued Mayfield, but the population increase is here now and we’re running out of fuel.

Mayfield estimates that we’re ten years away, and approximately $10 billion from commercial production but he is confident we’ll get there.

You can view pictures from my algae trip in my San Diego Algae Tour Photo Album.

algae, biofuels, Research

Harris Poll Finds Support for Renewable Energy Subsidies

Cindy Zimmerman

A new Financial Times/Harris poll in the U.S. and the five largest European countries finds strong public support for increasing some renewable energy sources, particularly wind farms, provided that they are not asked to pay much more for it.

The new poll found big majorities of the public in all six countries favor the building of more wind farms in their countries, varying from 90% in Spain and 87% in the U.S. to 77% in France. And large numbers of them favor it “strongly.” Majorities in all six countries, from 77% in Italy and 76% in Spain to 60% in the U.S. favor governments giving financial subsidies for the use of bio-fuels.

When those who pay energy bills were asked how much more they would be willing to pay for renewable energy, most people in all countries said either no more or only 5% more. Those willing to pay more than 5% varied from 32% in the U.S. and 31% in Italy to only 17% in Spain and 20% in France.

The poll showed less support on whether to build more nuclear power plants, more or less equally divided in the U.S.

biofuels, Ethanol, Ethanol News, Wind

Amazon Includes Hydrogen as a Green Shipping Option

John Davis

Everyone’s favorite online retailer (well, ok, at least the favorite in the Davis household) is offering its customers some more environmentally friendly options when it comes to having their items shipped to your door, and one of those options is hydrogen.

The London Financial Times reports that Amazon has patented its “environmentally conscious electronic transactions” that allow customers to see the environmental impact of their purchase and choose green shipping options:

The proposal includes the idea of adding a fourth “environmentally friendly” shipping alternative to Amazon’s current range of standard, overnight or two-day options.

“A customer can be presented with a shipping option that might not be as fast and might be more expensive, but that is more environmentally friendly, at least in one way,” the patent description says.

It says this could include opting for hybrid or hydrogen-powered delivery vehicles or using empty space on already scheduled routes.

The article goes on to point out that Ocado, the UK-based the online grocery home delivery service, already uses biodiesel in its delivery vans.

Biodiesel, Hydrogen

E85 Station Celebrates Odyssey Day Tomorrow

The Petro Serve E85 station at 3902 Main Ave. in Fargo, North Dakota will be celebrating Odyssey Day tomorrow with an E85 promotion. Odyssey Day is a nationwide series of events and promotions held every two years to educate the public about alternative fuels and advanced technology vehicles.

The alternative fueling facility will sell E85 for 85 cents less per less per gallon and will sell E30 at 60 cents less per gallon than regular unleaded. The event is being sponsored by the North Dakota Renewable Energy Council, North Dakota Corn Growers Association, North Dakota Department of Commerce, North Dakota Ethanol Council, North Dakota Ethanol Producers Association, Petro Serve USA and by the American Lung Association in North Dakota, which supports cleaner-burning E85 as one way to reduce air pollution and its related health concerns.

More than 41,000 FFVs are now registered in North Dakota and flex fuel capability comes standard on more than 40 vehicle models.

E85, Ethanol, Ethanol News, News

Cattle and Ethanol Producer Hosts International Farmers

Cindy Zimmerman

A group of farmers from around the world gathered in Des Moines this week for the fifth annual Global Farmer-to-Farmer Roundtable organized by Truth About Trade and Technology (TATT) and held in conjunction with the World Food Prize.

As part of the event, the 16 farmers had the opportunity to visit Couser Cattle Company, owned by Bill Couser, who is a director on the board of the farmer-owned Lincolnway Energy ethanol plant in Nevada, Iowa. Bill conducted a fascinating presentation about his marriage of row crop farming (corn/soybeans), livestock production and ethanol production. He used a long table to display all the products he produces starting with an ear of corn and winding up with ethanol (2.81 gal/bushel of corn) as well as by-products like DDGS and ultimately fine quality beef.

Couser debunks the food versus fuel debate by explaining how corn going into an ethanol plant produces feed, fuel, food and fertilizer. Watch his presentation here:

TATT Global Farmer To Farmer Roundtable Photo Album

Ethanol, Ethanol News, International, livestock feed

CUERP Biodiesel Program Licensed to Sell Biodiesel

Joanna Schroeder

No school in the U.S. has ever been given approval to sell its biodiesel, until now. Loyola University Chicago Center for Urban Environmental Research and Policy’s (CUERP) Biodiesel Program has become the first school program to be licensed by state and federal authorities to produce and sell its biodiesel fuel. The program has received the approval of the Environmental Protection Agency, Internal Revenue Service, Illinois Department of Revenue, and the National Biodiesel Board.

“The growth and success of our biodiesel lab has been amazing and we will continue to expand not only our production and sales, but also our outreach to schools, small businesses, and individuals interested in biodiesel,” said Zach Waickman, lab manager for the biodiesel program. “It is like running a small business that will be financially sustainable by finding unique ways to benefit the environment.”

The program already has a customer base with The Free Enterprise System, Inc., that runs the school’s shuttle service between campuses. The six buses will begin running on biodiesel and eliminate the use of nearly 3,000 gallons of diesel fuel each year. In addition to selling biodiesel fuel, the University will also sell the lab’s “BioSoap” at its campus stores and select retailers across Chicago. The BioSoap is made from the byproduct of the biodiesel fuel production, which is known as glycerin.

According to a University press release, the Biodiesel Program began in 2007 when CUERP was awarded a $10,000 grant from the EPA to implement a new program known as “Solutions to Environmental Problems” or STEP. The program’s first project was to focus on the problem of carbon dioxide (CO2) gas emissions on Loyola’s campuses. From there, the students identified, designed, and implemented an array of projects to contribute to the solution, including fuel-production research, the drafting of a biofuels legislative bill, the development of a documentary film, the establishment of the biodiesel lab, and outreach to local high schools that allowed teachers to deliver the STEP curriculum to their students. Today, the Biodiesel Program stands alone.

“Our work has just begun, as our Biodiesel Program plans to collaborate with other universities in the Chicagoland area to collect waste vegetable oil, convert it into biodiesel fuel, and then sell it to other community circulator buses and universities,” says Nancy Tuchman, vice provost and former director of CUERP. “I’m so proud of what our students have accomplished thus far, along with their passion for finding solutions that protect the environment and ultimately will make the Loyola community a greener place to live, work, and study.”

Biodiesel, Education

National Solar Job Census 2010 Released

Joanna Schroeder

The first National Solar Jobs Census 2010 report was released this week and the report shows that top state for solar energy companies is California followed by Colorado, Pennsylvania, Texas, Michigan, and Arizona. The Solar Foundation, along with Green LMI Consulting undertook the project aimed at examining the size and scope of the solar industry.

The census found that in general, U.S. solar companies expect to add jobs at a pace greater than the general economy. They also anticipate their revenue will grow in the next few years. As of August 2010, the industry employs around 93,000 solar workers as defined as spending at least 50 percent of their time supporting solar-related activities. Job growth numbers are optimistic with more than 50 percent of solar firms expecting to add jobs in the next year, while only 2 percent expect to eliminate jobs.

In response to the report, Arizona U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords noted that while the state is leading the way in solar development with an estimated 230 solar companies located in the state, they still have a tremendous potential to expand.

“Arizona is the sunniest state in the country,” said Giffords. “There is no reason that states more famous for cars, cheese and peaches should have more solar energy jobs than we do.”

Giffords continued, “The growth potential of the solar industry in Arizona is – like the sunshine that beats down on our state – virtually limitless. When we harness the power of the sun and put it to work for us, we not only tap into a clean, renewable source of energy, we also strengthen our economy and lay the foundation for future prosperity.”

Other key findings from the report include that solar jobs are available in all 50 states, and solar job growth over the next 12 months is anticipated to be 26 percent, representing nearly 24,000 net new jobs. This expected growth rate is significantly higher than the U.S. economy-wide expectation of 2 percent growth over the same period.

Electricity, Solar

Shell & MIT Partner to Pursue Energy Technology

Joanna Schroeder

In a $25 million research opportunity, Shell has partnered with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to support the MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) that will focus on research and development of sustainable technologies designed to drive innovation in energy delivery. Beginning this year, MIT will receive $5 million per year for five years from Shell. The projects that the MITEI will engage in will focus on advanced modeling, earth science, biofuels, nanotechnology, and carbon management. MITEI was founded in 2006.

“Both Shell and MIT are globally recognized innovation leaders. This collaboration accents Shell’s commitment to develop new technologies and drive innovative solutions to address the global energy challenge,” said Gerald Schotman, chief technology officer, Royal Dutch Shell. “Our collaboration with MIT will form another important building block in strengthening Shell’s global technology leadership.”

One of the longer term goals of the collaboration is to develop future and emerging technologies that demonstrate game-changing potential for the energy industry. The collaboration will focus on a broad array of existing and new oil and gas technologies including but not limited to next-generation applications in nanotechnology, biochemistry, electronics, and computer modeling (Let’s also hope they develop technology to help prevent and/or clean up oil spills).

“The lack of access to affordable energy poses a significant barrier to economic advancement around the globe. Together with the rapidly accelerating demand for energy, the need to develop environmentally sensitive and sustainable energy resources becomes increasingly acute. Our collaboration with Shell will drive energy innovations with the potential for significant, real-world impact,” said Susan Hockfield, president, MIT.

Other ares of focus are research into water treatment improvements, greater fuel efficiency, new solar energy applications and enhanced catalytic technology for advanced fuel cells, and smart grids.

Professor Ernest J. Moniz, director of MIT Energy Initiative concluded, “Shell has earned a reputation for advancing a broad portfolio of important energy technologies and for a long-term view of how the global energy system will and should evolve. We are excited about this opportunity to significantly expand our research and education collaboration.”

biofuels, Electricity, Energy, Oil, Research, Solar

Governor’s Conference on Energy In Full Swing

Joanna Schroeder

The first Governor’s Conference on Energy is underway this week in Richmond Virginia with nearly 500 people on hand to learn how America can develop its domestic energy sources. During the conference Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell is touting his state’s mission of becoming the “Energy Capital of the East Coast.”

McDonnell said of the conference, “In this era of global competition, it is critical that we fully develop our domestic energy resources in order to provide reliable, low-cost power while helping to reduce our dependence on foreign sources. This means developing all of our energy resources, traditional, alternative and renewable, and making the most of conservation and efficiency…. (N)ew and expanding energy businesses will be an important part of our economic recovery and growth in the years ahead. Working together, we will make Virginia the “Energy Capital of the East Coast.”

One fuel under discussion during the conference is propane, and Roy Willis, president and CEO of the Propane Education & Research Council (PERC) was on hand as well as Stuart Weidie the president of Alliance AutoGas to discuss ongoing research, development and commercialization of propane vehicles.

“It is appropriate that propane participate in this important, forward-thinking conference,” said Roy Willis. “In Virginia and around the country, propane vehicles can play a vital role in providing a cost effective solution for transportation, with economic and environmental benefits that can be recognized immediately.

“Propane already is used by millions of Americans for transportation, commercial, industrial, and agricultural applications,” continued Willis. “With 55,000 miles of pipeline, more than 6,000 retailer dealer locations, and thousands of propane fueling stations, propane is readily accessible and ready to do more.”

conferences, Propane

Proposed Pennsylvania Tax Threatens Biodiesel

John Davis

A bill pending before the Pennsylvania State Legislature could hurt the biodiesel industry in that state.

Biodiesel Magazine reports an amendment to SB 901 would slap some new fuel taxes on places that sell biodiesel and could affect selling and blending biodiesel in surrounding states:

The amended legislation establishes a total of four of these registration fees:

– $5,000 for each biodiesel manufacturing facility within the state
– $5,000 for each location within the state where biodiesel is blended
– $100 for a person, other than a person that operates at a biodiesel production or blending facility, that sells, offers sale or otherwise transfers biodiesel or a biodiesel blend within the state, whether or not the that person operates a location within Pennsylvania where such activities are conducted
– $100 for each location, in excess of one, within Pennsylvania where a registered person sells, offers for sale or otherwise transfers title of biodiesel or a biodiesel blend

“This tax, which is imposed on distributors and retailers who are required by the state to sell this kind of fuel, adds more costs to handling the fuel,” [John Kulik, executive vice president of the Pennsylvania Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Store Association] said. “While some might argue that $100 does not seem like much, for businesses that have multiple locations, the tax can accumulate to thousands or tens of thousands of dollars. It’s a tax that they and their customers will be forced to pay.”

Ironically, the money raised is to be used to support Pennsylvania’s enforcement of the state’s biodiesel mandate, which started with a B2 blend last May and could be stepped up eventually to B20.

Biodiesel, Government, Legislation