Re: [MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[ernest breakfield]

   that would be nice, but (IIRC) the reason we're still paying taxes 
anyway is because there still isn't a recognized standard for BioDiesel 
and it's still categorized as a "Fuel Additive", not an actual fuel in 
its own right.
   (the frequently referenced ASTM standard is only for BioDiesel as an 
additive up to a certain percentage in Petrodiesel. there's lots of 
other problems with it as well that we can thank the National Biodiesel 
Board for, but that's a topic for another discussion.)


   in the meantime you'll still see statements like this one from our 
local BioD vendor:

"The price includes sales tax, state excise tax, and federal excise tax."


cheers!
e


andrew strasfogel wrote:

I think the Energy Act exempts biofuels from taxes.

On 1/3/07, *ernest breakfield* <[EMAIL PROTECTED] 
> wrote:



Allan Streib wrote:
> There's no mention of any road/fuel tax being collected on this
> "co-op" fuel -- while I don't like paying taxes any more than
the next
> guy, fuel taxes are one of the few where the amount you pay bears a
> relationship to the benefit you derive (i.e. your use of the roads).
>

   it stated their pricing and that they're they're buying it
commercially; taxes are paid.


> Is bio-diesel exempt from tax?

   no.


>   Or are the co-ops dodging it?

   not this one, since they're just buying it commercially; maybe
others are if they're making it (though they are invited to declare it
on their annual taxes).


> Or was
> the topic simply omitted from the article?
>

   as you noted at the start, there's no mention of it, so
apparently, yes.


cheers!
e

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Re: [MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[andrew strasfogel]

I think the Energy Act exempts biofuels from taxes.

On 1/3/07, ernest breakfield <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:



Allan Streib wrote:
> There's no mention of any road/fuel tax being collected on this
> "co-op" fuel -- while I don't like paying taxes any more than the next
> guy, fuel taxes are one of the few where the amount you pay bears a
> relationship to the benefit you derive (i.e. your use of the roads).
>

   it stated their pricing and that they're they're buying it
commercially; taxes are paid.


> Is bio-diesel exempt from tax?

   no.


>   Or are the co-ops dodging it?

   not this one, since they're just buying it commercially; maybe
others are if they're making it (though they are invited to declare it
on their annual taxes).


> Or was
> the topic simply omitted from the article?
>

   as you noted at the start, there's no mention of it, so apparently,
yes.


cheers!
e

___
http://www.okiebenz.com
For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/
For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED]

To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to:
http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com

Re: [MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[ernest breakfield]

Allan Streib wrote:

There's no mention of any road/fuel tax being collected on this
"co-op" fuel -- while I don't like paying taxes any more than the next
guy, fuel taxes are one of the few where the amount you pay bears a
relationship to the benefit you derive (i.e. your use of the roads).
  


   it stated their pricing and that they're they're buying it 
commercially; taxes are paid.




Is bio-diesel exempt from tax?


   no.


  Or are the co-ops dodging it?  


   not this one, since they're just buying it commercially; maybe 
others are if they're making it (though they are invited to declare it 
on their annual taxes).




Or was
the topic simply omitted from the article?
  


   as you noted at the start, there's no mention of it, so apparently, yes.


cheers!
e

Re: [MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[Allan Streib]

There's no mention of any road/fuel tax being collected on this
"co-op" fuel -- while I don't like paying taxes any more than the next
guy, fuel taxes are one of the few where the amount you pay bears a
relationship to the benefit you derive (i.e. your use of the roads).

Is bio-diesel exempt from tax?  Or are the co-ops dodging it?  Or was
the topic simply omitted from the article?

Allan
-- 
1983 300D
1966 230

Re: [MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[ernest breakfield]

many people would say Sacramento *needs* a good reason for them to move 
to it!   ;-)


   but seriously; there are several commercial vendors of BioD in the 
Greater SF Bay Area, and several Co-Ops as well. from what i'm reading, 
they're springing up all over the place.



cheers!
e

(and i never get why people always seem to say BioD smells like French 
Fries; it always just reminds me of oil in a hot wok,...)



andrew strasfogel wrote:

This sounds like a very good reason to move to Sacramento
 Biodiesel co-ops fill demand for green fuel For exhaust that smells like
french fries, you need an appointment.
By Jim Downing - Bee Staff Writer

Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D2

Print  |
E-Mail| Comments
(4) 

Will Semmes, left, fills the tank of his car with biodiesel fuel from a
home-based co-op run by Obadiah Batholomy, background. Sacramento Bee/Jay
Mather


Biodiesel: It's clean, green, made in America and makes your exhaust smell
like french fries.

Want to get some?

Get ready for a fuel-buying adventure. The nation's production of biodiesel
is booming -- it's set to triple this year.


But finding the fuel in Sacramento remains a challenge. And it's likely to
remain so, even as the fuel gains in popularity and becomes more plentiful.

A biodiesel fill-up -- assuming you have a vehicle that burns diesel fuel --
starts with an e-mail to Steve Bash, a longtime biodiesel guru in
Carmichael.

Bash provides a phone number for one of the region's half-dozen biodiesel
co-operatives, the chief way area consumers can now purchase the fuel. A
call is made, an appointment set.

The trail could lead to a narrow driveway in Land Park with a view of the
sun setting on the Tower Theatre.

Here, Obadiah Bartholomy, a 27-year-old SMUD engineer, keeps a 250-gallon
tank of biodiesel in his one-car garage. Still in his clothes from the
office, he trundles it down the driveway on a hydraulic jack. On top of the
tank, Bartholomy has rigged a pump and a meter. A fuel filter hangs from
baling wire and plumber's tape.

A 2002 Volkswagen Jetta backs into the driveway, and Will Semmes, in a
blue-checked shirt and red tie, climbs out. Using a white cloth, he takes
the greasy fuel hose. Bartholomy turns on the pump and keeps his hand on the
switch while Semmes listens for the sound of an impending overflow: There's
no auto-shutoff.

Afterward, Semmes settles up. The cost: $3.62 a gallon, compared with $2.99
diesel at the Chevron station around the corner.

Semmes paid $80 cash for his last two fill-ups. For that, he got fuel-buying
ecstasy.

"It's a totally different experience from buying petroleum diesel," he said.
"You actually feel good about buying gas. When's the last time that
happened?"

For Semmes and other local biodiesel fans, the charm of buying fuel through
a personal network outweighs the hassle and extra expense. They cite what
they say are biodiesel's virtues:

• Burning biodiesel cuts net carbon dioxide emissions by 70 percent or more,
compared with burning petroleum diesel.

• Biodiesel supports U.S. farmers and doesn't have to be imported.

• Biodiesel generally produces fewer pollutants than standard diesel, though
it does release slightly higher concentrations of some smog-forming gases.

• And, of course, biodiesel smells like comfort food.

A former platoon commander in the Marines and now the director of the
California Conservation Corps, Semmes said he started buying biodiesel not
long after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, when he began to see reducing the
nation's dependence on foreign oil as essential.

"I don't need to buy from the Saudis anymore," he said. "We've been treating
our oil suppliers like gas stations, and now we're paying the price in so
many ways."

Bartholomy got into biodiesel at California Polytechnic State University,
San Luis Obispo, and built a trailer-mounted biodiesel refinery for his
senior project. He volunteered his garage as a distribution node in 2004,
and now has about 15 regular customers.

Bartholomy isn't in the veggie-fuel business for the money. He sells the
fuel at cost, after collecting a $25 membership fee from his customers,
which partially covers his investment in the equipment -- the tank, jack,
pump and meter -- he keeps in his garage.

Running a filling station out of one's garage is a bit of a hassle,
Bartholomy said -- though at least he doesn't have to drive anywhere to fill
up his own vehicle, a 1981 Volkswagen pickup.

He generally meets customers in the evening. Most of his buyers tend not to
drive much, he said, so they fill up only once every few weeks.

[MBZ] Biodiesel coops in Sacramento area

[andrew strasfogel]

This sounds like a very good reason to move to Sacramento
Biodiesel co-ops fill demand for green fuel For exhaust that smells like
french fries, you need an appointment.
By Jim Downing - Bee Staff Writer

Published 12:00 am PST Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D2

Print  |
E-Mail| Comments
(4) 

Will Semmes, left, fills the tank of his car with biodiesel fuel from a
home-based co-op run by Obadiah Batholomy, background. Sacramento Bee/Jay
Mather


Biodiesel: It's clean, green, made in America and makes your exhaust smell
like french fries.

Want to get some?

Get ready for a fuel-buying adventure. The nation's production of biodiesel
is booming -- it's set to triple this year.


But finding the fuel in Sacramento remains a challenge. And it's likely to
remain so, even as the fuel gains in popularity and becomes more plentiful.

A biodiesel fill-up -- assuming you have a vehicle that burns diesel fuel --
starts with an e-mail to Steve Bash, a longtime biodiesel guru in
Carmichael.

Bash provides a phone number for one of the region's half-dozen biodiesel
co-operatives, the chief way area consumers can now purchase the fuel. A
call is made, an appointment set.

The trail could lead to a narrow driveway in Land Park with a view of the
sun setting on the Tower Theatre.

Here, Obadiah Bartholomy, a 27-year-old SMUD engineer, keeps a 250-gallon
tank of biodiesel in his one-car garage. Still in his clothes from the
office, he trundles it down the driveway on a hydraulic jack. On top of the
tank, Bartholomy has rigged a pump and a meter. A fuel filter hangs from
baling wire and plumber's tape.

A 2002 Volkswagen Jetta backs into the driveway, and Will Semmes, in a
blue-checked shirt and red tie, climbs out. Using a white cloth, he takes
the greasy fuel hose. Bartholomy turns on the pump and keeps his hand on the
switch while Semmes listens for the sound of an impending overflow: There's
no auto-shutoff.

Afterward, Semmes settles up. The cost: $3.62 a gallon, compared with $2.99
diesel at the Chevron station around the corner.

Semmes paid $80 cash for his last two fill-ups. For that, he got fuel-buying
ecstasy.

"It's a totally different experience from buying petroleum diesel," he said.
"You actually feel good about buying gas. When's the last time that
happened?"

For Semmes and other local biodiesel fans, the charm of buying fuel through
a personal network outweighs the hassle and extra expense. They cite what
they say are biodiesel's virtues:

• Burning biodiesel cuts net carbon dioxide emissions by 70 percent or more,
compared with burning petroleum diesel.

• Biodiesel supports U.S. farmers and doesn't have to be imported.

• Biodiesel generally produces fewer pollutants than standard diesel, though
it does release slightly higher concentrations of some smog-forming gases.

• And, of course, biodiesel smells like comfort food.

A former platoon commander in the Marines and now the director of the
California Conservation Corps, Semmes said he started buying biodiesel not
long after the Sept. 11 terror attacks, when he began to see reducing the
nation's dependence on foreign oil as essential.

"I don't need to buy from the Saudis anymore," he said. "We've been treating
our oil suppliers like gas stations, and now we're paying the price in so
many ways."

Bartholomy got into biodiesel at California Polytechnic State University,
San Luis Obispo, and built a trailer-mounted biodiesel refinery for his
senior project. He volunteered his garage as a distribution node in 2004,
and now has about 15 regular customers.

Bartholomy isn't in the veggie-fuel business for the money. He sells the
fuel at cost, after collecting a $25 membership fee from his customers,
which partially covers his investment in the equipment -- the tank, jack,
pump and meter -- he keeps in his garage.

Running a filling station out of one's garage is a bit of a hassle,
Bartholomy said -- though at least he doesn't have to drive anywhere to fill
up his own vehicle, a 1981 Volkswagen pickup.

He generally meets customers in the evening. Most of his buyers tend not to
drive much, he said, so they fill up only once every few weeks.

And if the scheduling doesn't work out, customers can always just buy
petroleum diesel -- switching back and forth between the fuels doesn't cause
problems.

Sacramento's biodiesel co-ops were organized beginning in 2004 by Bash, and
now have a few hundred members, he said. He arranges 1,000-gallon-plus
orders from a biodiesel distributor in the Bay Area, which fill garage tanks
like Bartholomy's.

Bash, who produces educational videos for a