BIODIESEL BULLETIN A Monthly Newsletter of the National Biodiesel Board October 1, 2002
HEADLINES: PARTIAL TAX EXEMPTION DOWN TO THE WIRE BIODIESEL EMISSIONS REDUCE CANCER RISK COMPARED TO DIESEL INDUSTRY EXPERTS HOST BIODIESEL WORKSHOP SERIES BIODIESEL TAKES SPOTLIGHT AT BIOENERGY CONFERENCE LAS VEGAS SCHOOL BUSES BURN CLEANER WITH BIODIESEL KENTUCKY SCHOOL BUSES UTILIZE BIODIESEL FOR CLEANER AIR CALIFORNIA COFFEE COMPANY SWITCHES TO B100 BONNIE RAITT FUELS UP WITH BIODIESEL ON TOUR ãWEST WINGä SEASON PREMIERE FEATURES BIODIESEL PARTIAL TAX EXEMPTION DOWN TO THE WIRE Seventy-five Congress Reps have signed on as cosponsors of H.R. 4843, but the American Soybean Association (ASA) continues to urge Members of the U.S. House of Representatives to cosponsor the bill. Representative Kenny Hulshof (R-MO) introduced the bill in May. It provides a similar partial diesel excise tax exemption to that currently in the Senate Energy Bill. Support for H.R. 4843 is critical to ensure that a biodiesel tax incentive is included in final legislation that results from a conference between the House and Senate on their separate Energy Bills. ãThe House biodiesel tax bill has 75 co-sponsors, but we need more to reach our goal of 100,ä said ASA/Washington Representative Krysta Harden. ãNow is the critical time to build momentum as the energy bill conference committee gets down to serious negotiations. If you do not see key Members of your delegation on the following list, make calls today to encourage support of H.R. 4843.ä Current cosponsors are: AL: Hilliard; AR: Berry, Ross; GA/FL: Linder; IL: Weller, Shimkus, Johnson, Phelps, LaHood, Kirk, Evans, Blagojevich, Davis, Manzullo, Costello, Rush, Gutierrez, Lipinski, Hyde; IN: Souder, Pence, Burton, Kerns, Hostettler, Carson; IA: Nussle, Boswell, Ganske, Latham, Leach; KS: Moran, Ryun, Moore, Tiahrt; KY: Lewis; LA: none; MI: Smith; Mid-Atl: Gilchrest; MN: Gutnecht, Kennedy, Peterson, McCollum, Luther, Ramstad; MS: none; MO: Graves, Emerson, Skelton, Blunt, Akin, McCarthy, Clay; NC: Hayes, Etheridge, Jones, McIntyre, Price, Clayton; ND: Pomeroy; NE: Terry, Bereuter, Osborne; NJ: Smith; OH: Kaptur; OK: Carson, Watkins; PA: Platts; SC: Wilson, Clyburn, Spratt; SD: Thune; TN: Tanner, Bryant, Hilleary, Clement; TX: none; VA: Jo Ann Davis; and WI: Baldwin. BIODIESEL EMISSIONS REDUCE CANCER RISK COMPARED TO DIESEL The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announcement that long-term exposure to diesel exhaust will likely cause lung cancer provides further reason for America to expand use of biodiesel. The EPA study brings to conclusion decades of research and highlights the health problems posed by the emissions of older heavy-duty diesel engines operating nationwide. "The overall evidence for potential human health effects of diesel exhausts is persuasive," the report said. ãThis is not a huge surprise because diesel exhaust has long been a suspected carcinogen,ä said Joe Jobe, executive director of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB). ãBut it does underscore the need for cleaner fuel·and thatâs where biodiesel comes in. Biodiesel dramatically reduces health risks associated with exhaust.ä Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) and Nitrated Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (nPAH) are EPA-targeted compounds thought to cause cancer from diesel engine exhaust. Pure biodiesel reduces most PAH compounds by 80 percent and nPAH compounds by 90 percent. The findings are the result of two years of independent studies on biodiesel as the fuel completed the Health Effects Testing Requirements of the Clean Air Act. To date, biodiesel is the only alternative fuel to have completed the tests, and the industry submitted the results to the EPA. ãCompleting the health effects testing was a huge investment for the industry, most of which came from soybean farmers in the form of their checkoff dollars,ä Jobe said. ãBut it was worth every penny for us to be able to show that biodiesel does not threaten human health. Itâs just one more reason to use more of this renewable fuel.ä EPA studied diesel vehicles built prior to the mid-1990s. Although current diesel technology is much cleaner than older models, the life of a diesel engine can exceed 20 years, so older vehicles are likely to operate for years to come. Biodiesel use helps lower emissions from these vehicles. In addition, biodiesel will work with new, cleaner engine technology. Biodiesel can be used on its own or blended with petroleum diesel at any level ö including the ultra low sulfur diesel that the government will require beginning in 2006. INDUSTRY EXPERTS HOST BIODIESEL WORKSHOP SERIES In an effort to meet the ever-growing demand for knowledge of biodiesel production, testing and business practices, several top industry experts will host the Biodiesel Workshop Series at the Biomass Energy CONversion facility (BECON) in Nevada, Iowa. BECON has a biodiesel plant that will be used for hands-on laboratory sessions. The titles and dates of the workshops are: -Business Management for Biodiesel Producers, Oct. 23-25 -Biodiesel Analytical Methods, Dec. 11-13 -Biodiesel Production Technology, Feb. 12-14 The leaders of the Biodiesel Workshop Series are Jon Van Gerpen of Iowa State University, Rudy Pruszko of the Center for Industrial Research and Service (ISU), L. Davis Clements of the Renewable Products Development Laboratories, Gerhard Knothe of the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture and Brent Shanks of Iowa State University. The cost is $700 per attendee per workshop with a $100 discount for early registration (three weeks prior to each workshop). Mention the National Biodiesel Board and receive the discount price of $1500 for all three workshops if you register by Oct. 15. For more information, visit www.biodiesel.org. BIODIESEL TAKES SPOTLIGHT AT BIOENERGY CONFERENCE Biodiesel was a topic of discussion in many sessions at Bioenergy 2002, a conference sponsored by the Department of Energyâs Pacific Regional Biomass Energy Program. Topics ranged from how the National Park Service successfully uses biodiesel to spectroscopic methods for determining the oxidation of biodiesel. More than 30 speakers discussed biodiesel use or research to the roughly 600 bioenergy professionals, technology developers, educators, researchers and government officials who attended the conference in Boise, Idaho. LAS VEGAS SCHOOL BUSES BURN CLEANER WITH BIODIESEL Children in the Las Vegas area have a healthy advantage as they ride the bus to school this fall. The Clark County School District recently made the switch to biodiesel in more than a thousand school buses, making it the largest school bus fleet in the world to use B20. Several recent independent studies on school buses have indicated that the more than 25 million children who ride buses to school face up to 8 times greater exposure to toxic diesel exhaust than if they walked. Biodiesel significantly reduces the harmful emissions that threaten human health. ãOur responsibility is to deliver children to and from school safely and efficiently,ä said Frank Giordano, vehicle maintenance coordinator. ãIt was our obligation to explore alternatives that would help clean up the exhaust from our diesel engines. School districts have limited budgets, and so we had to explore reasonable alternatives. As we needed new buses, we worked with the engine manufacturer to include their new generation of cleaner burning diesel engines, and got their consent to run them on biodiesel.ä Las Vegas Clean Cities Coordinator Dan Hyde praised the project, saying, ãWe are proud to see the City of Las Vegas and Clark County leading by example. The use of alternative fuels is important both from an environmental perspective and to enhance our national security. Over half of our petroleum is imported from overseas, and from some fairly unstable parts of the world at that. Frank Giordano and his support team deserve credit for demonstrating that biodiesel can work in large school bus fleets. His example should be considered by school districts across the country if they are serious about helping to reduce the health risks to our children.ä Las Vegas-based Biodiesel Industries (www.pipeline.to/biodiesel) is the biodiesel manufacturer supplying Clark County with the fuel. KENTUCKY SCHOOL BUSES UTILIZE BIODIESEL FOR CLEANER AIR Kentucky school children will be breathing easier due to a new alternative fuels program administered by the Kentucky Clean Fuels Coalition (KCFC). Five school districts and the East Kentucky Power Cooperative will receive Kentucky Department of Energy funds totaling nearly $45,000 to replace conventional diesel fuel with biodiesel blends up to 20 percent in school busses, medium duty and heavy duty off and on road diesel equipment. According to Melissa Howell, KCFC executive director, the program will displace approximately 45,000 gallons of standard diesel with biodiesel. ãBased on the amount of diesel displacement, 150 pounds of particulate matter, 160 pounds of sulfur dioxide, 200 pounds of hydrocarbons and 1800 pounds of carbon monoxide will be kept from the air in Kentucky,ä said Howell, ãnot to mention, 570,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, the gas contributing to the greenhouse effect.ä To grant Department of Energy funds, KCFC considered proposals from fleet operators having diesel fleets of at least 20 vehicles. The fleets will use the awarded funds to buy down the incremental cost of biodiesel. The program will begin on October 1 and will continue for one year for most participants. Griffin Industries (www.griffinind.com), based in Cold Spring, Kentucky, will supply the biodiesel. The Kentucky Clean Fuels Coalition (www.kentuckycleanfuels.org) is a non-profit organization that coordinates alternative fuel projects across Kentucky. CALIFORNIA COFFEE COMPANY SWITCHES TO B100 A coffee company based in Ft. Brag, California, began using B100 in its delivery trucks in September. Thanksgiving Coffee is a coffee roaster that bills itself as a socially and environmentally responsible company. The company applied for and was granted AB 2766 funds to offset the difference in cost in fueling its fleet with biodiesel rather than petroleum diesel. These resources are allotted to county Air Quality Management Districts by the State Department of Motor Vehicles in order to finance projects that reduce emissions within those districts. Yokayo Biofuels, located in Ukiah, will make regular deliveries of biodiesel to the Thanksgiving Coffee facilities in Ft. Bragg, where the trucks will fuel up before departing for their delivery routes. A network of biodiesel fueling stations in northern California will provide the fleet with the fuel on the road, though it can be blended with regular petroleum diesel if biodiesel is not available. World Energy Alternatives (www.worldenergy.net), based in Cambridge, Mass., is supplying the biodiesel to the company. Thanksgiving Coffee Company strives to mitigate the environmental impacts their business has on the planet, and this is not the first time they have taken measures to offset greenhouse gases. In 2001, the non-profit Trees for the Future assessed the carbon emissions produced in the processing, delivery, and consumption of Thanksgiving Coffee and is planting about 75,000 trees in Ethiopia÷the birthplace of coffee÷to alleviate those effects. BONNIE RAITT FUELS UP WITH BIODIESEL ON TOUR Musician Bonnie Raitt just wrapped up a tour in which she did more for America than entertain her fans ö she was protecting the environment by using biodiesel. She is the first U.S. entertainer to adopt biodiesel for use on tour. Dubbed the Green Highway Tour, Raitt traveled coast-to-coast performing at major venues while raising awareness about alternative fuels. "It's no accident that we're in danger of losing both our ecological and our economic well-being at the same time," said Raitt. "I feel too many government and corporate policies are inseparably shortsighted and we've created Green Highway to demonstrate that working in harmony with nature can offer real solutions for preserving both our planet and our prosperity." The Raitt tour was powered by a combination of biodiesel, solar energy, wind and hybrid technology. The tour set up exhibits on alternative energy at each venue and handed out information to concertgoers. Companies donating biodiesel to Raitt include Biodiesel Industries, Griffin Industries, Stepan Company, West Central Soy and World Energy, all members of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), which is coordinating the tourâs use of the fuel. ãI think itâs wonderful that Bonnie Raitt is leading by example in using a farm-grown fuel that decreases emissions and dependence on foreign oil,ä said Bob Metz, president of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) and a South Dakota soybean farmer. ãBiodiesel is beginning to enjoy commercial success as one of the fastest growing alternative fuels available, and hopefully Bonnieâs use of it will raise the visibility of the fuel and encourage others to use it.ä Readers can learn more about Bonnie Raittâs Green Highway Tour by visiting www.greenhighway.net. ãWEST WINGä SEASON PREMIERE FEATURES BIODIESEL Biodiesel had a starring role in Wednesday night's season premiere of the NBC television show ãThe West Wing.ä Three White House staffers became stranded after a campaign stop in Indiana, so a local farmer offered to give them a ride in his truck, which he told them ran on ãsoy diesel.ä He explained that it requires no engine conversions and talked about the difference between gas and diesel. The script also addressed the importance of renewable energy, explained and defended the Farm Bill and featured "the farmer's daughter" with a Master's Degree, working the farm, and having taken a second job in order to get the family health benefits. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Home Selling? Try Us! http://us.click.yahoo.com/QrPZMC/iTmEAA/MVfIAA/9bTolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuels at Journey to Forever http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuel at WebConX http://www.webconx.dns2go.com/2000/biofuel/biofuel.htm List messages are archived at the Info-Archive at NNYTech: http://archive.nnytech.net/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
