Advanced BioFuels USA

Ethanol Ad Urges Visiting Trump to ‘Tear down That (Blend)’ Wall’

by Mikkel Pates (Ag Week) Ethanol proponents try to make some political hay with President Donald Trump when he visits Rapid City. They ask that he “tear down that wall” of 10% ethanol blends, and allow ethanol to climb to 30% blends. They say the Environmental Protection Agency should do it to comply with clean air laws.

A group of South Dakota ethanol supporters is taking out an advertisement in the Rapid City Journal when President Donald Trump visits for an event at Mount Rushmore on July 3. They want the president to increase ethanol blends in gasoline from the current 10% ethanol to 30% ethanol.

Supporters of changing the “blend wall,” led by the South Dakota Farmers Union, say the move would have an $8 billion potential economic impact on the South Dakota economy if “illegal regulatory barriers are removed.”

“With a stroke of his pen, Mr. Trump can tear down that (blender) wall by directing his (Environmental Protection Agency) to enforce laws now on the books,” said SDFU President Doug Sombke, whose family farms in the Groton, S.D., area, east of Aberdeen.

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Sombke said the EPA has authority to increase octane in gasoline, which would provide a huge boost to ethanol. “It also has the legal obligation to substantially reduce the toxic, carbon-intensive, oil-based compounds refiners currently use for octane,” he said.

The National Farmers Union and a number of biofuel and environmental groups are challenging EPA in court to reverse its refusal to increase octane.

SDFU and other promoters point to the “strong leadership” of South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem who declared Feb. 25 as “E30 Day” in the state. Noem is part of a group of Midwest governors implementing EPA-approved E30 demonstration programs in their state fleets.

Jim Seurer, chief executive officer of of Glacial Lakes Energy, based in Watertown, S.D., and the SDFU, since 2016 have staged an annual “E30 Challenge,” which encourages the public to try 30% ethanol blends, which are higher than the 10% blends found in regular gasoline.

Ethanol promoters have lobbied the EPA, citing the Clean Air Act. The change “would significantly reduce fine particulates that may be carriers of the COVID-19 virus,” say the proponents, which include the Clean Fuels Development Coalition, National Farmers Union, Renewable Fuels Association, Dakota AG Energy, Biofuels Coalition, Clean Fuels Foundation, Environmental & Energy Study Institute, Glacial Lakes, and presidents of state Farmers Union groups in South Dakota, North Dakota and Montana.

They argue that “new science” from Argonne National Laboratories, U.S. Department of Agriculture and others confirms that “high-yield corn” with deep roots add to soil organic matter, sequestering “millions of tons of carbon dioxide each year, equivalent to taking tens of millions of cars off the roads.” READ MORE

Farming, Biofuels, and Public Interest Groups Challenge EPA on SAFE Rule (National Farmers Union)

South Dakotans Speak Truth to Power: Time for Trump to “Tear Down That Wall” (South Dakota Farmers Union)

QUOTE OF THE WEEK — Doug Sombke

South Dakota Farmers Union President Doug Sombke points out that Title II of the Clean Air Act requires EPA to reduce toxics in gasoline to the greatest extent possible as new technologies become available. “Higher ethanol blends are that technology, and they are available today. We know that widespread implementation of these blends would result greatly reduce toxics as well as provide a significant octane boost.” READ MORE

Ethanol Ad Urges Visiting Trump to ‘Tear down That (Blend)’ Wall’

by Mikkel Pates (Ag Week) Ethanol proponents try to make some political hay with President Donald Trump when he visits

July 3, 2020 Read Full Article

IIT-Hyderabad Uses Machine Learning to Study Biofuel Supply

by Syed Akbar (Times of India) Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Hyderabad have developed a method using

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New Candidate for Raw Material Synthesis through Gene Transfer

(Karlsruhe Institute of Technology/Phys.Org) Cyanobacteria hardly need any nutrients and use the energy of sunlight. Bathers are familiar with these

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New Video Spotlights Ethanol’s Important Co-Products

(Renewable Fuels Association) A new video from the Renewable Fuels Association and Kansas Corn provides a clear introduction to other important products

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First Steel Cut for Terntank Two LNG / LBG-Powered Biofuel Tankers at China Merchants Jinling Shipyard

by Milton Stuards (Vessel Finder) First steel cut for Terntank two LNG / LBG-powered biofuel tankers with hybrid battery systems took place

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Potential Feedstocks, Biofuel Markets, Corn and Cellulosic Ethanol: The Digest’s 2020 Multi-Slide Guide to Increasing Feedstock Production for Biofuels

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)The Biomass Research and Development Board published a report that looks at how to address the

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Gingko Bioworks Case Study: The Digest’s 2020 Multi-Slide Guide to Digital Transformation of Chemicals & Materials

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) “Making money in chemicals and materials isn’t as easy as it once was,” – according to

July 3, 2020 Read Full Article

Competitive Edge: REN Energy International

by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Objective is to sustainably meet the legislated demand in British Columbia for renewable fuels. We

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Biomethane, the Key to Decarbonize Now the European Mobility

(European Biogas Association/NGV Journal) The European Biogas Association (EBA) is launching a new paper providing a comprehensive analysis on the potential

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Indonesia Allocates US$195 Million Subsidy on Palm Biodiesel Producers over Smallholders

by Hans Nicholas Jong (Mongabay/EcoBusiness) Campaigners have blasted the move, noting that the fund is meant to empower small oil palm