Category: Policy

USDA adds 2500 products to BioPreferred program

August 8, 2011 | admin

In Washington, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the designation of 14 additional biobased product categories which are eligible for federal procurement preference, adding 2,500 biobased products. The new categories include animal repellent, bath products, bioremediation materials, compost activators and accelerators, concrete and asphalt cleaners, cuts, burns and abrasions ointments, dishwashing products, erosion control materials, floor […]

Boeing, Imperium call for 15-year military aviation fuels contracts

August 5, 2011 | admin

In Washington, members of the aviation industry testified at a Senate Aviation operations, safety and security subcommittee hearing. Among those testifying, John Plaza, Imperium CEO, asked that the Pentagon be allowed to sign long-term contracts for as long as fifteen years as opposed to the current five-year limit. Billy Glover, Boeing managing director for environmental […]

The Philippine's Mr. Biofuels resigns from Senate over electoral scandal

August 4, 2011 | admin

In the Philippines, Juan Miguel Zubiri, known as Mr. Biofuel for authoring the country’s biofuel mandate, has stepped down from his Senate seat amidst allegations of cheating during the 2007 election when he was in a tight race. In his resignation speech in the Senate, Zubiri denied any wrongdoing and vehemently denies the allegations of […]

Malaysia to develop new palm oil sustainability standard

August 3, 2011 | admin

In Malaysia, the government plans to develop a sustainability scheme for palm oil in response to outcry from NGOs and would-be importers. It, like Malaysia, is developing its own sustainability criteria because they feel that the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil keeps changing the rules, which has slowed the growth of the palm oil industry. […]

US debt deal: biofuels industry reaction

August 2, 2011 | admin

Brian Jennings, Executive Vice President of the American Coalition for Ethanol “ACE and our members are disappointed that the ethanol compromise was not included in the final debt limit deal just because some in Congress insisted that revenue-generating measures were sacred cows. This was truly a missed opportunity. We sincerely appreciate the efforts undertaken by […]

"How do we fix our fuel and energy problems?"

August 1, 2011 | admin

In New York, “How do we fix our fuel and energy problems?” is a question posed by Bloomberg Businessweek Chairman Norman Pearlstine to BP Capital Management’s T. Boone Pickens; Bob Shapard, chairman and chief executive officer of Oncor Electric Delivery and chairman of GridWise Alliance; Carol Browner, former director of the White House Office of […]

Coalition of trade groups oppose ban on implementing E15

July 29, 2011 | admin

In Washington, a coalition including Growth Energy, Advanced Ethanol Council, American Coalition for Ethanol, National Corn Growers Association, National Farmers Union, National Sorghum Producers and the Renewable Fuels Association is opposing a series of amendments offered by Reps. John Sullivan, R-Okla., Gary Peters, D-Mich., and Michael Burgess, R-Texas, that would block the legal implementation of […]

Klobuchar: Public loses $400M this month if ethanol compromise is not enacted

July 28, 2011 | admin

In Washington, a Senate compromise reached by Dianne Feinstein of California, Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, and John Thune, of South Dakota, that would end the ethanol tax credit immediately, generate deficit reduction and deploying $688 million in savings to blender pumps and small producer incentives, may not make it into tax law. Under the Constitution, […]

Chu, Vilsack, Pfannenstiel headline, light up BIOMASS 2011 congress

July 27, 2011 | admin

In Washington, US Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack, US Secretary of Energy Steven Chu, and US Assistant Secretary of the Navy Jackalyne Pfannenstiel provided a rousing opening to the DOE’s annual BIOMASS congress in Washington. Opening the conference, DOE Biomass Program Manager Paul Bryan noted that “Two years ago, we could have been called the […]

USDA awards $45 million to four new BCAP projects