A 130 giant wind turbine project planned for off the shore of Cape Cod, Massachusetts has received the green light from a key federal agency, but it still faces some opposition from one of its powerful neighbors.
This story from the Boston Herald says the U.S. Department of the Interior’s Minerals Management Service has given a preliminary approval to the $1 billion Cape Wind project calling it a “milestone” for offshore wind energy:
The decision was expected because a draft MMS report last year had already signaled the agency’s favorable view toward the project, which calls for 130 giant wind turbines in Nantucket Sound, costing more than $1 billion.
But there was some doubt that the MMS’s final report could be issued before President George Bush left office and before opponents, including some Massachusetts congressional members, could possibly torpedo the project.
Now MMS has release its long-awaited final draft – and it will go through a 30-day review.
Cape Wind still needs to get other government permits. But MMS’s OK is considered crucial.
Critics have bitterly denounced the Cape Wind project as spoiling one of the most scenic off-shore sites in America. They’ve also said it’s an unnecessary blight just a few miles off the coast, considering new technology is emerging that could locate wind farms farther out to sea.
Ironically, one of the biggest opponents of the project is Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Massachusetts), who is a close ally of President-elect Barack Obama… who recently said that wind energy and other renewables are key to the nation’s economic recovery (see my post from January 16, 2009). Maybe those two should talk.
The Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA) has announced that E85 sales in Iowa remained strong during the third quarter of 2008 despite rapidly falling gasoline prices. According to the Iowa Department of Revenue, sales of E85 by Iowa retailers reached 2,208,837 gallons during July, August, and September of 2008 – more than double the 1,270,587 gallons sold during the same period in 2007. 
The auction will take place between March 16 and March 31. The merger of the two companies was final on April 1, 2008.
Plants to be auctioned include two in Nebraska, two in Iowa and one each in North Dakota, Minnesota and Michigan – all were originally owned by U.S. BioEnergy. The only former U.S. BioEnergy plant not included in the auction is the Marion, South Dakota facility because it is backed by a different lender, but it is currently idle. In fact, only four of VeraSun’s 17 plants are still producing ethanol at this point.
The vast majority of city government vehicles in Boulder, Colorado will run on biodiesel or ethanol within the next few years, if city planners have their way.
“Osage Bio Energy’s barley feedstock approach provides a substantial opportunity for local farmers and viable sources of ethanol in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic,” said Joel Stone, Chief Operating Officer of Osage Bio Energy. “And GM’s dedication to the flex-fuel vehicle market makes it an ideal partner for the yield contest.”
An Ohio wind-turbine parts factory was the backdrop today as President-elect Barack Obama made his case to include renewable energy in his economic-stimulus package.
Under the Biorefinery Assistance Program authorized by the 2008 Farm Bill, USDA will provide an $80 million loan to 
According to the California Air Resource Board (CARB), a division of the California Environmental Protection Agency, beginning Jan. 1, every 2009 model year and newer car built for sale in California is be required to carry a label that clearly ranks the vehicle’s environmental impact (see example left).
Less than a week before the inauguration, the American Soybean Association (ASA) has given President-elect Barack Obama a list of its 2009 policy priorities… and biodiesel tops that list.