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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Noone wants to be negative…unless they are talking about carbon negative of course. The aviation industry has been all abuzz about lowering their carbon footprints for years, then carbon neutral, now carbon negative. According to Gevo’s Timothy Cesarek, EVP & Chief Commercial Officer, the carbon footprint
Farming/Growing
December 14, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) The global climate negotiating sessions in Madrid come to a close this week, and producer advocates remain gratified that delegates to the talks have demonstrated a growing acceptance of the agricultural sector’s role in addressing the climate crisis. As SfL steering committee member Ray Gaesser pointed
December 13, 2019
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by Lorraine Muromo (NewsDay) Oil Castor Zimbabwe has pledged to end the country’s fuel crisis urging farmers to invest more in castor bean farming which will aid bio-diesel production. According to the company website, Oil Castor supplies castor seeds of high grade which it converts to castor oil for bio-diesel
December 13, 2019
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by Wilda Asmarini, Bernadette Christina Munthe and Fransiska Nangoy (Reuters) Indonesia, the world’s largest palm oil producer, plans to implement a biodiesel program with 40% bio-content (B40) between 2021 and 2022, a government official said on Tuesday. From January, Southeast Asia’s largest economy is set to bring in biodiesel with 30%
December 11, 2019
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(Algae Biomass Organization) Algae production technologies are gearing up to provide biomass that can be used in markets that are projected to reach hundreds of billions of dollars. To help meet that opportunity ABO ‘s sister organization, The Algae Foundation, is coordinating a number of projects that are educating and training the
December 9, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) … SfL Steering Committee member Ray Gaesser, an Iowa corn and soybean producer, and SfL President Ernie Shea appeared on the panel, which focused on climate change and the agriculture sector. They spoke of the role farmers are playing in addressing climate change, sharing with those
December 9, 2019
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by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico’s Morning Energy) A meeting last June in Newburg, Md., represented a change for U.S. farmers, Pro’s Helena Bottemiller Evich reports . The event was hosted by the U.S. Farmers and Ranchers Alliance, a group made up of the heavyweights in American agriculture. It brought together three
December 9, 2019
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by Mark A. Bradford, Chelsea J. Carey, Lesley Atwood, Deborah Bossio, Eli P. Fenichel, Sasha Gennet, Joseph Fargione, Jonathan R. B. Fisher, Emma Fuller, Daniel A. Kane, Johannes Lehmann, Emily E. Oldfield, Elsa M. Ordway, Joseph Rudek, Jonathan Sanderman & Stephen A. Wood (Nature Sustainability) Soil-based initiatives to mitigate climate
December 5, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) … Representatives from the North America Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance (NACSAA), a farmer-led platform for North American agricultural partners facilitated by Solutions from the Land, have been attending and contributing to the global discussions for the last two years. With this seat at the table, NACSAA delegates are promoting
December 5, 2019
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Insights about the most promising industrial crops grown on marginal land. MAGIC aims to promote the sustainable development of resource-efficient and economically profitable industrial crops grown on marginal lands, considering that industrial crops can provide valuable resources for high added value products and bioenergy. To achieve that, an up-to-date database of
December 5, 2019
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(Eni) This will be the world’s first example of semi-industrial non-food being cultivated in a pre-desert area to generate of sustainable Biofuels — Eni and the SNDP (Societè National de Distribution des Petroles AGIL SpA), signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the Tunisian Ministry of Industry, in the presence of the
December 5, 2019
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(U.S. Department of Energy) As the global population swells, boosting the demand for both food and energy, land management has never been more important. Now, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory are conducting pivotal research that will help keep soil healthy now and into the future.
December 4, 2019
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by Claire Asher (South Africa Today/Mongabay) -Sugarcane crop production in Brazil may need to expand by up to 5 million hectares by 2030 to meet a rising demand for ethanol biofuels, according to computer models that compared the impact of different economic, social, and policy scenarios on increased ethanol production. -The
November 29, 2019
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(South African Airways) South African Airways (SAA) and its wholly-owned subsidiary and low cost carrier, Mango Airlines, made history in 2016 as the first two airlines in Africa to operate commercial flights respectively, which were powered by sustainable aviation fuel produced from Sunchem’s nicotine-free tobacco plant, Solaris. That momentous occasion
November 29, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Iowa agriculture, business, academic, government and conservation leaders met in Des Moines on Monday in a forum that began an exploration of the impacts that extreme weather events and changing climatic conditions are having on the state’s agriculture sector. More importantly, those participating in the event
November 26, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Louisiana, longtime industry executive Glenn Johnston said that NuSeed has acquired the carinata assets of Canadian agricultural pioneer Agrisoma. Johnston was speaking at the IATA Sustainable Aviation Fuels Symposium in New Orleans and confirmed that five Agrisoma staff members have joined NuSeed, with the asset acquisition.
November 26, 2019
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by Joanne Ivancic* (Advanced Biofuels USA) Not only is the Manta Biofuel system a way to grow, harvest and process algae into oil that can be used for heating or powering heavy duty engines or ocean-going vessels, or as a feedstock for refineries; Dr. Ryan Powell sees the Manta Biofuel
November 16, 2019
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by Naira Hofmeister (Mongabay) -Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro has signed a decree revoking a zoning regulation for the sugarcane industry, effectively allowing for cultivation of the crop in the Amazon and other areas of primary forest. -The measure is controversial because it wasn’t requested by the industry, which, under the
November 15, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) A Wonder Woman Power Duo spoke at the recent ABLC NEXTin San Francisco and in case you missed it, this is one presentation you won’t want to miss. It’s got the goods on green chemicals and how we can replace toxic biocides and antibiotics in
November 15, 2019
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by Isabella Murray (Iowa Starting Line) … (Beto) O’Rourke had read a guest op-ed by Leonard and Matt Russell, executive director of Interfaith Power and Light — a group that pushes for faith-based solutions to climate change — in the New York Times about how to win rural America. O’Rourke wanted to learn
November 13, 2019
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by Sarita Reed and Vincius Fontana (Future Fuel Strategies/China Dialogue) There are 332 million cars on the road in China, more than anywhere in the world. Most run on pure petrol, but from next year Chinese fuel companies will add 10% ethanol, a move that could have far reaching implications for the
November 13, 2019
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(Biofuels International) US industry association the National Sorghum Producers (NSP) has partnered with the US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) in Kansas, US to quantify sorghum sustainability in a key American ethanol production region. The partnership will be carried out through a conservation collaboration grant that
November 12, 2019
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by Nidhi Sharma (Economic Times) Chhattisgarh government has offered the Centre a solution to the problem of stubble burning in fields—set up ethanol or biofuel units using paddy husk and rice straw. On its part, the Chhattisgarh govt has decided to set up at least 6 biofuel plan… As Delhi
November 7, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Streamlined Optimization of Filamentous Arthrospira/SpirulinaTraits (SOFAST) is looking at algae in a whole new way. Lumen Bioscience in particular has been working on a unique, patented technology to genetically enhance Arthrospira for improved growth and biomass composition for biofuels and bioproducts. Damian Carrieri from Lumen Bioscience gave
November 6, 2019
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by Nur Yasmin (Jakarta Globe) Indonesia’s B30 biofuel plan, which will become effective at the beginning of January next year, will further increase domestic consumption of palm oil and prop up the price of the commodity, analysts said. The average palm oil price has rebounded to $650 per metric ton this
November 5, 2019
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(Algae Biomass Organization) A recent report by the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) takes a close look at using carbon emissions as a feedstock to more efficiently decarbonize economies around the world. The authors identify an enormous opportunity for algae. C2ES published “Carbon Utilization–A Vital and Effective Pathway for Decarbonization” to
November 4, 2019
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(CBH Group) The CBH Group has launched a new trial to supply certified sustainable malting barley from Western Australia to international customers as part of a pilot program in response to the growing global trend for sustainably sourced products. Since 2010, CBH Marketing and Trading has been accredited to access the
November 1, 2019
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by Paolo Corvo (Clariant/Biofuels Digest) … The success of making use of that sustainable biomass resource and a rapid uptake of bioenergy technologies relies on many factors. One of it is the cost of feedstock, which is directly dependent on the development, establishment and execution of a reliable, stable, high-quality feedstock
November 1, 2019
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(Biomass Research and Development (BR&D) Board) Created through the Biomass Research and Development Act of 2000, the Biomass Research and Development (BR&D) Board facilitates coordination among federal government agencies that affect the research and development of biofuels, bioproducts, and biopower. Since 2013, the BR&D Board has worked to shape an interagency
November 1, 2019
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(Biofuels International) … One of the most critical steps in the bioprocessing of algae to optimise economy and yield is the cell disruption stage. The functionality of algae biochemicals must be maintained while obtaining high disruption yields, hence the need for an efficient, scalable process. High pressure homogenisation (HPH) offers
October 25, 2019
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(Environmental News Network/International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis) … IIASA researchers contributed to the development of a new roadmap outlining actions on deforestation, restoration, and carbon cuts that could lead to the land sector becoming carbon neutral by 2040 and a net carbon sink by 2050. A study published in
October 24, 2019
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by Heather Jacobs and Rima Al-Azar (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations) The main objective of this report is to review the monitoring and evaluation (M&E) frameworks, tools and guidance documents that are available for Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA), and in particular for objective (“pillar”) two on adaptation and
October 23, 2019
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by Tony Hall (Adirondack Explorer) If New York State is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 85 percent by 2050, as required by this year’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, it will need its forests. But it’s not for wood biofuel, lawmakers decided. By design, the legislation omits
October 23, 2019
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by Emily Skor (Growth Energy/Ethanol Producer Magazine) Growth Energy report highlights ethanol’s environmental benefits as EPA contemplates RFS reset. — … Right now, the agency is also crafting a rule that will set new goal posts for renewable energy in 2021 and 2022. When Congress established the Renewable Fuel Standard,
October 23, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Tomorrow marks the seventh annual Bioenergy Day, during which more than 40 organizations all over the United States and Canada – businesses, non-profits, universities, and state and local governments – are showcasing the many ways they benefit from bioenergy. The day facilitates interaction between bioenergy projects and
October 22, 2019
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by Betsy Lillian (NGT News) At its annual awards reception in Manhattan, N.Y., earlier this month, Energy Vision – a national nonprofit that promotes low-carbon energy and transportation fuels – honored government and business leaders for accelerating the adoption of renewable natural gas (RNG). The 2019 Energy Vision awardees include as follows: State Sen. Todd Kaminsky, D-N.Y., chair of
October 22, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Washington state, Phase Genomics will receive $325,000 as part of the $73 million Department of Energy (DOE) Office Efficiency and Renewable Energy funding. Phase Genomics’ proximity-ligation metagenomic technology will be leveraged to sequence the genomes of new microorganisms to help detect and manage microbial pests in
October 21, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Over 10 years (2007–2017), three Bioenergy Research Centers produced multiple breakthroughs in the form of deepened understanding of sustainable biomass production practices, targeted re-engineering of biomass feedstocks, development of new methods for deconstructing feedstocks, and engineering of microbes for more effective production of a diverse
October 18, 2019
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(The Nation) Cassava has the capacity to generate N10 trillion and save Nigeria over N1.2 trillion from import of derivatives such as ethanol, starch and sweetener, Nigeria Cassava Growers Association (NCGA) said on Monday. Its President, Mr Segun Adewunmi, who spoke in Abuja, lamented that the huge potential in cassava
October 18, 2019
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by Hans Nicholas Jong (Mongabay.com/Eco-Business) A European member of parliament says the bloc isn’t concerned about threats by Indonesia and Malaysia to file a trade complaint over an EU policy to phase out palm oil-based biofuels by 2030. The two Southeast Asian countries have denounced the EU policy as discriminatory. — The
October 15, 2019
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by Tan Xue Ying (The Edge Markets) Concerned by the impact of low commodity prices on livelihoods of Malaysians in the plantation sector, the government has proposed a palm oil replanting loan fund of RM550 million. In the budget speech 2020 in parliament today, Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said the
October 15, 2019
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by Katharine Gammon (Inside Science) An experiment off the coast of California may bolster efforts to make biocrude from “the Sequoia of the sea.” — Catalina Island, …. Its waters are also home to an unsual-looking science experiment: a floating bed of planted kelp that is pushed down and pulled up
October 14, 2019
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(Union for the Promotion of Oil and Protein Plants (Union zur Förderung von Oel- und Proteinpflanzen e. V. (UFOP)) Human-caused climate change is already visible and is especially evident in agriculture, as the “drought year” of 2018 clearly demonstrated. Agriculture, however, is not only affected. It is also part of
October 14, 2019
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by Mark E. Griffin (Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center) Stems, leaves, flowers, and fruits make up the biggest chunk of potential living space for microbes in the environment, but ecologists still don’t know a lot about how the microorganisms that reside there establish and maintain themselves over the course of a
October 11, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) National Farmer’s Day, an acknowledgement of the hard work that goes into feeding and supplying a nation, will be observed this Saturday, Oct. 12. The day acknowledges and thanks farmers for the hard work they do every day to supply safe and abundant food, feed, fiber
October 10, 2019
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(Bioenergy Association of Ukraine) SEC Biomass experts Tetiana Zheliezna, Oleksandra Tryboi and Olha Haidai took part in the second BIOPLAT-EU (Promoting Sustainable Use of Underutilized Lands for Bioenergy Production through a Web-Based Platform for Europe) project meeting that was held in Kyiv on 26 of September, 2019. The project partners presented
October 9, 2019
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by Gerard de Souza (Hindustan Times) The team of researchers has found that the species of microalgae Chlorella vulgaris NIOCCV grew well in a medium of seafood industry wastewater and was tolerant to different salinity regimes and higher concentrations of carbon dioxide — In a significant breakthrough that could boost the
October 3, 2019
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(United Arab Emirates Ministry of Climate Change and Environment) The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE) today announced the launch of the Green Barjeel research project that aims to leverage innovative methods to grow microalgae biomass with a high lipid content in tower-shaped structures. Run in cooperation with American University
October 2, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Washington, the U.S. Department of Energy has selected 35 projects totaling $73 million for bioenergy research and development support. Funded through the DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, these projects will help reduce the price of drop-in biofuels, lower the cost of biopower,
October 2, 2019
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(Growth Energy) Growth Energy, the nation’s largest association of biofuel producers, released a new report examining the potential impact of a growing role for U.S. biofuels in America’s clean energy future. The report was authored by Ramboll, a global research and management firm specializing in sustainable development, at the request of Growth Energy.
September 26, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Some people believe in magic and some don’t but MAGIC is real in this case – the Marine AlGae Industrialization Consortium, that is. MAGIC is working on answering the question “How do we produce that remaining 15 bboe/year of energy-dense, liquid hydrocarbon fuels to meet the
September 26, 2019
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by Monica Evans (Forests News) Open-access atlas a boon for monitoring and transparency — In a welcome “good news” story for the world’s carbon stocks and biodiversity, the felling of old-growth forest for oil palm plantations on the island of Borneo has tracked a steady decline since its 2012 peak. That
September 24, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Advanced Algal Systems. Maybe you’ve heard of it but did you know that technologies are being developed as part of a DOE program to enable production of sustainable algal feedstocks that perform reliably in conversion processes to yield renewable fuel blendstocks, as well as bioproducts and
September 24, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest)Advanced Algal Systems. Maybe you’ve heard of it but did you know that technologies are being developed as part of a DOE program to enable production of sustainable algal feedstocks that perform reliably in conversion processes to yield renewable fuel blendstocks, as well as bioproducts and
September 20, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … We’ve managed to get a hold of three presentations that really were the bomb at ABS 2019. Jonathan Male, director of the Bioenergy Technologies Office and one of the original Pyromaniax himself, gave this one on the algae R&D priorities and actions for fuels and
September 20, 2019
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(Alberta Innovates) Alberta Innovates is joining federal, provincial, municipal and industry partners in contributing to a unique clean technology demonstration project to reclaim land at an Alberta coal mine. Municipal organic waste from Edmonton will be used to replenish soil at the mine site to grow a willow crop that may
September 19, 2019
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by Zaidi Isham Ismail (New Straits Times) Malaysia is on track to export MSPO (Malaysia Sustainable Palm Oil) certified palm oil to Europe by next year. Malaysia Palm Oil Certification Council (MPOCC) chief executive officer Chew Jit Seng said the MSPO certification scheme is important as it will allow the country’s
September 19, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) …Couple of good trends to point to: 1. Lot more emphasis on farms and farming these days. It’s still an industry dominated by people in white coats, but there are some more overalls around the ABS than we’ve ever seen before. 2. A little more emphasis
September 19, 2019
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(Biorenewable Deployment Consortium) BDC is a 501c3 organization focused on education and brokering partnerships in order to accelerate the deployment of economic bioprocesses and assist the forest products industry to get the most value from the tree. BDC membership represents bioprocess companies and the major forest products companies. BDC believes
September 16, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) PACE – Producing Algae for Coproducts and Energy, has several project goals including increasing algal biomass productivity to >25 grams dry weight per meter squared per day using robust engineered algal strains to reduce costs. So how do we get these high value, high market algal
September 16, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) A panel of political, business and environmental leaders is the latest to issue warnings about the growing climate crisis emanating from increasingly volatile global weather patterns. Citing what it calls new research findings, the Global Commission on Adaptation, which is led by former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon,
September 12, 2019
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(National Farmers Union) The NFU has set the ambitious goal of reaching net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the whole of agriculture in England and Wales by 2040. This is our contribution to the UK’s ambition of net zero by 2050. Agriculture is uniquely placed to be part of
September 12, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Camelina is one of those fascinating feedstocks but often the yields aren’t high enough to be profitable for farmers. That’s a problem Kristi Snell from Yield10 Bioscience is tackling by developing a camelina feedstock with significantly increased seed yield and/or seed oil content to maximize
September 11, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Global Algae Innovations is working on a trifecta of goals: 1) to develop improved strains and cultivation methods to increase the algal biofuel intermediate yield by at least 70% AND 2) to develop new drying and extraction technology to reduce the energy for downstream processing by
September 10, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) This week is a merry mix of biobased innovations around the world. From the creation of artificial reefs made from PLA in Israel and Spain’s starch-based gift cards to the U.S. where biobased battery materials are reality in Washington state and where flame retardants made from
September 5, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Product, processes and partnerships are what it’s all about in India right now with the country’s latest bioenergy policies and growing activity in the bioeconomy. Pramod Chaudhari, Executive Chairman at Praj Industries gave this illuminating presentation at ABLC 2019 in Washington, D.C. on how exactly India
September 4, 2019
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(Designed 2 Scale Challenge) Algae-based feedstocks have shown tremendous potential in providing a safe, secure and locally available source of drop-in liquid fuels for the transportation sector. These feedstocks have the potential to not compete with conventional food crops and fresh water resources, and use marginal land for cultivation. Once
September 3, 2019
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by Tim Ryan (Court House News) The D.C. Circuit on Friday upheld the Environmental Protection Agency’s renewable fuel standards in the face of challenges from energy companies, biofuel producers and industry groups. Under longstanding EPA policy, the burden of introducing more renewable fuel into the U.S. market falls on fuel
September 3, 2019
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(U.S. Department of Energy) oday, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $64 million in funding for 25 university-led genomics research projects on plants and microbes for bioenergy and bioproducts. The plant research—12 projects totaling $29 million over three years—focuses on expanding knowledge of gene function in plants to be grown for bioenergy
August 29, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) It’s all about the life cycle, right? That’s what the USDA set out to find out about corn ethanol – just exactly what are the GHG emissions associated with the production of corn-based ethanol in the U.S.? Back in 2010, the RIA LCA concluded that –
August 29, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Rural America drew a considerable amount of attention in the last presidential election. President Trump won the White House in large part due to the support he received from voters in this nation’s vast non-metropolitan areas. As a result, most of this year’s wide range of
August 28, 2019
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by Tina Casey (Clean Technica) … Aside from scaring the children and scattering the chickens, they are genuinely a major threat to US agriculture and yet another headache for farmers who are already suffering under the impacts of climate change and President* Trump’s trade policies. That includes corn growers and
August 26, 2019
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by Virendra Singh Rawat (Business Standard) The unit is proposed to be set up on 50 acres of land in the premises of the now-defunct Dhuriapar Co-operative Sugar Mill — Union petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan will lay the foundation of an ethanol plant being set up by the Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) in Gorakhpur district
August 26, 2019
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by Lauren Manning (Ag Funder News) … Carbon sequestration is a phrase that’s becoming commonplace in the media, in food policy circles, and more recently around the dinner table. Put simply, Zorner says, carbon sequestration describes the process that plants use to absorb carbon from the air through photosynthesis, convert it
August 23, 2019
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by Michael A. Fatigati (Vantaggio Renewables/Biofuels Digest) … We believe that one of our nation’s important natural resources, while protected in some ways, is being neglected to our peril and should be re-classified as infrastructure. This segment of infrastructure supplies 95% of the food requirements of our nation. This segment
August 21, 2019
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(North American Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance) A NACSAA webinar held last month on what transpired at the June climate talks in Bonn (SB50) underscored the limited approaches to climate smart agriculture under discussion by global representatives. The global conversation about the need to transform agriculture and the food system to
August 19, 2019
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In Iowa, Candidates Are Talking About Farming’s Climate Change Connections Like No Previous Election
by Georgina Gustin (Inside Climate News) About half the candidates have policy proposals or statements addressing climate change impacts on agriculture or farming’s potential as a climate solution. … They also brought an unprecedented focus on agriculture‘s connections with climate change—an issue that’s getting more traction among rural Midwestern voters and farmers in
August 16, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Florida Rep. Kathy Castor told a group of farmers, ranchers and timber producers in her state Monday that responding to a changing climate must be a collaborative effort, drawing together producers, government agencies and academics to develop the steps needed for the agriculture sector to adapt
August 14, 2019
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by Sarita Reed and Vinicius Fontana (China Dialogue) Adding ethanol to Chinese petrol will decrease emissions but could worsen Brazil’s deforestation — There are 332 million cars on the road in China, more than anywhere in the world. Most run on pure petrol, but from next year Chinese fuel companies
August 14, 2019
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by Katherine Durrell (Food Ingredients First) Scientists across Europe are calling for a rethink on the restriction of genome editing technology by the newly-elected European Parliament and European Commission. The open statement is signed by 126 research institutes and comes exactly one year after the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled
August 6, 2019
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(Agence-France Presse/FirstPost) The overlapping crises of climate change, mass species extinction, and an unsustainable global food system are on a collision course towards what might best be called an ecological land grab. Coping with each of these problems will require a different way of using of Earth’s lands, and as
August 6, 2019
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(Geva/Globe Newswire) Gevo, Inc. (NASDAQ: GEVO) announced today (August 5, 2019) it has achieved its International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) under the ISCC PLUS scheme for Food, Feed, Industrial Applications, Energy, Biofuels outside Europe. In obtaining ISCC certification, Gevo continues to prove its dedication to meeting the highest industry
August 6, 2019
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(Science Daily/U.S. Department of Energy Los Alamos Laboratory) New DNA analysis has revealed surprising genetic diversity in a bacterium that poses a persistent threat to the algae biofuels industry. With the evocative name Vampirovibrio chlorellavorus, the predatory pest sucks out the contents of the algae cells (thus the vampire reference) and
August 2, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Oceans are the largest untapped growth opportunity for biomass and that macroalgae is the quintessential ocean crop, according to ARPA-E. But, it says that with the current state of technology, it will never scale to meet energy and CO2 capture demands. So what to do? That’s
August 2, 2019
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by Douglas L. Faulkner (The Cleantech Conservative/Leatherstocking LLC/ Biofuels Digest) … (W)e first addressed bio-based plastic research needs; second, we reviewed government regulations preventing the growth of advanced biofuels, a controversial action; then we launched an effort for 2019 for an intensive look at forests of the future and their opportunities for woody
August 1, 2019
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by Tom Philpott (Mother Jones) In a mesmerizing recent article, Mother Jones’ Tim Murphy recounts the surprising backstory of one of corporate marketing’s greatest flops: Coca-Cola’s quickly aborted 1985 effort to tweak its formula and convince consumers to accept “New Coke.” … Coca-Cola had already started adding high-fructose corn syrup to the mix five
July 30, 2019
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by Philip Blenkinsop, Sybille de la Hamaide and Bernadette Christina Munthe (Reuters) The European Commission has proposed duties ranging from 8% to 18% on imports of biodiesel from Indonesia to counter what it says are unfair subsidies, the latest twist in a case that has lasted seven years. The subsidies would
July 29, 2019
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(Terravesta) Norfolk farmer, Adam Brewer, is planning for the future by diversifying his income and looking after his soils with Miscanthus. Farmers wanting to learn more about the many environmental and financial benefits presented by the crop are invited to attend a Miscanthus farm walk hosted by Adam and Miscanthus specialist, Terravesta on
July 29, 2019
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(Xinhua) A Chinese firm on Wednesday launched an ethanol processing plant in central Zambia, which the government says will go a long way in helping the country tackle fuel problems and reduce poverty. The 9-million U.S. dollars plant of Zhongkai International Company will result in the creation of about 200 direct
July 26, 2019
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(American Coalitin for Ethanol/Market Screener) American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE) CEO Brian Jennings highlighted the important role corn ethanol could have in further reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions if properly valued under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) in a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler today, informing the agency of
July 26, 2019
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by Helena Tavares Kennedy (Biofuels Digest) … A $118 million pie in new investment money for this Tennessee-based biomass company. The financing was anchored by an equity investment from WindSail Capital Group, which partnered with investors Coppermine Capital and Stairway Capital in the Genera financing. The money will be used for
July 26, 2019
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(Green Car Congress) Commercially viable cellulosic ethanol plants has proven devilishly difficult to bring to fruition. The primary outlier from the list of efforts that have shut down over the past few years is POET/DSM’s Project Liberty (earlier post). In an editorial in the journal Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining, two POET team
July 22, 2019
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(Renewable Fuels Association) Two new academic studies released this week provide further evidence that grain-based ethanol is significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions and call into question the reliability of recent “land use change” analyses based on flawed satellite imagery-based methodologies. These studies add to a large body of existing literature that
July 17, 2019
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by Kelley Christensen (Michigan Technological University) … Forest biomass is expected to be one of the key energy sources, but many people have wondered how to feed biofuel plants the materials they need without destroying forest resources. Whole-tree aspen logging promotes renewable biomass energy from tops and branches, parts of the tree
July 16, 2019
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by Ian Heath (Jersey Evening Post) But now experts are claiming that the annual ‘plague’ of slimy green sea lettuce in St Aubin’s Bay could actually become a blessing in disguise – in the form of a source of renewable energy for Jersey. A government report published today on seaweed harvesting
July 10, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) A company that says it is “dedicated to harnessing nature to help farmers sustainably feed the planet,” announced last month the launch of The Terraton Initiative™, a project designed to accelerate carbon sequestration at an unprecedented scale. … Among the steps cited by Indigo are regenerative farming practices
July 9, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Science-based decision making and putting farmers at the center of all discussions were among the guiding principles touted by representatives of NACSAA and many of its member organizations in a workshop held by United Nation’s facilitators in Bonn, Germany, on the development of an agricultural work program
July 9, 2019
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(University of Tsukuba/EurekAlert!) University of Tsukuba researchers developed a new, highly efficient system for removing water from algae biomass with reusable nanostructured graphene, which can greatly increase the yield of ecofriendly biofuels, pharmaceuticals, and fertilizers — A team at the University of Tsukuba introduced a new procedure of harvesting energy and organic
July 9, 2019
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(Iowa State University Extension and Outreach) Iowa and Midwest agriculture has started to change in recent years. One visible change is the interest to grow crops for biofuel and bioproducts (referred to as “energy crops”). Fossil fuel usage contributes to the growing problem with greenhouse gases. Alternative energy options from plant
July 5, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Agrisoma Biosciences, Inc. has the world’s largest collection of Carinata and an extensive modern crop improvement program that allows them to select high yielding varieties ideally suited for production across a broad range of geographies. Agrisoma has commercialized Carinata in North and South America, working with
July 5, 2019
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(Total) Total has started up production at the La Mède biorefinery in southeastern France, with the first batches of biofuel coming off the line. It is the final step in converting a former oil refinery into a new energies complex. Launched in 2015, the project represents a capital expenditure of
July 5, 2019
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(Xinhua) The German government is expecting global palm oil production to grow and is calling for “globally coordinated measures to implement deforestation-free cultivation”, according to a response to a parliamentary inquiry first reported on by the German press agency (dpa) on Tuesday. “Due to the almost unrivalled yields, interest in the
July 3, 2019
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by Hualong Wang, Fru Azinwi Nche-Fambo, Zhigang Yu, Feng Chen (ResearchGate/HY-TEK Bio) Certain species of microalgae are capable of growing under high concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2), and these microalgae have potential to be used for sequestering CO2 released as industrial pollutants using phototrophic carbon fixation system. While some CO2-tolerant algal species have been identified
July 1, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) In Washington state, there’s a new mill near the city of Dayton that is the first to use waste straw to make pulp for paper products, and biopolymers; and, a new project near Granger turning dairy waste into pipeline-quality renewable natural gas; also, a proposed
June 27, 2019
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by J.Richard Hess (Idaho National Laboratory/U.S. Department of Energy) A new techno-economic analysis by Idaho National Laboratory (INL) demonstrated that, by using integrated landscape management (ILM) techniques, bioenergy stakeholders could produce biomass at costs 20% lower than previous assumptions.1 The efficiencies gained using ILM practices could generate a new revenue
June 26, 2019
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by Alayna DeMartini (Ohio State University College of Engineering) Although the stalks and leaves of a corn plant can be turned into ethanol, the high cost of collecting, storing, and transporting the material has limited its use in producing the fuel. Ajay Shah, an agricultural engineer at The Ohio State University, is
June 24, 2019
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by Lauren Crothers (South Africa Today) -Norway saw drop in palm oil consumption following new regulations limiting sales in response to concerns about deforestation for plantations. -The decrease has been lauded by a Norwegian rainforest advocacy group, which called it a “big win for rainforests.” -Indonesia and Malaysia, the world’s
June 24, 2019
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(IEA Bioenergy) Several systems to define and monitor performance and progress towards sustainability of bioenergy have been developed for implementation at different scales, including operations, landscapes or jurisdictions. Some are formalised systems (e.g. GBEP 2011; RSB 2016; ISO 2015; ASTM 2016; SBP 2019) while others are inputs made through the scientific
June 24, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) The University of Hawai’i is on top of the latest research on Hawaii’s tropical agriculture, its hot zone and tropical feedstocks for the bioeconomy. Peter Matlock, Strategic Advisor for Aviation Fuels and Special Projects for Joint BioEnergy Institute and who is developing the Institute for Tropical
June 24, 2019
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by Marcelo Teixeir (Reuters) Brazil’s Sao Martinho SA , one of the country’s largest sugar and ethanol producers, plans to build a facility to produce ethanol from corn in the state of Goiás, the company said in a securities filing. Sao Martinho is the latest in a growing number of companies
June 21, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) North American Climate Smart Agriculture (NACSAA) leaders are once again on the global stage, talking this week with representatives from nations around the world meeting in Bonn, Germany, promoting the role of farmers, ranchers and woodland owners in addressing climate change challenges. NACSAA Chairman Fred Yoder, Steering
June 19, 2019
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(Boeing) Boeing today (June 17, 2019) announced a USD 1 million investment in Brazil’s efforts to establish a sustainable aviation fuel industry. The investment will focus on initiatives that maximize social, economic and environmental benefits to local communities engaged in the development of feedstock that can be used to produce sustainable
June 19, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) … Specifically, in the past month, Gevo also executed an agreement with Praj to develop jet fuel and isooctane from rice straw and other feedstocks. Gruber noted that “we believe this second-generation technology combination has great potential to address India’s rice straw burning problem and related
June 19, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) MicroBio Engineering works on facility designs, algae equipment, R&D, engineering consulting, techno-economic analyses, LCAs and wastewater treatment. Their focus on algaculture, specifically microalgae cultivation, is what the focus of this presentation is on. John Benemann, CEO and Tryg Lundquist, CTO, both of MicroBio Engineering, gave this
June 18, 2019
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(North America Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance) North America Climate Smart Agriculture (NACSAA) representatives will be at UN talks in Bonn, Germany, next week to push the message that agriculture is a major solution platform for achieving global climate stability and sustainable development goals (SDGs). Attending the talks will be NACSAA Chairman Fred Yoder,
June 13, 2019
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by Laura Reiley (Washington Post) It sounds like an idea plucked from science fiction, but the reality is that trees and plants already do it. — … Boston-based Indigo AG, now wants to transform farming practices so that agriculture becomes quite the opposite of what it is today — a major source
June 13, 2019
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by Marta Gomez San Juan, Anne Bogdanski and Olivier Dubois (Food and Agricultural Organization) … )T)his report offers lessons from 26 case studies of sustainable bioeconomy interventions from around the world and from a range of different sectors. The overall aim of the report is to use these case studies to expand the general understanding of
June 11, 2019
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by Femi Ibirogba (The Guardian) … Mr Rajavelu Rajasekar is a Director (Agro), Allied-Atlantic Distilleries, Agbara, Ogun State, where 250 metric tonnes of raw cassava roots are processed into ethanol. He revealed, in this interview with Head, Agro-Economy Desk, FEMI IBIROGBA, why cassava production fluctuates between scarcity and gluts; why more
June 10, 2019
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by Josette Lewis and Jessica Rudnick (Frontiers Media) Climate smart agriculture (CSA) provides a framework for balancing multiple dimensions of agriculture and food systems in an era of climate change: addressing agricultural contributions to global greenhouse gas emissions, vulnerabilities to climate change impacts, and the relationship between agricultural productivity, incomes and
June 7, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) One of Solution from the Land’s (SfL) primary missions over the past decade has been to help and inspire agricultural and forestry sector leaders to become powerful voices in the broader discussion of climate change, including adaptation and mitigation. Towards this end, SfL has been building state,
June 4, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Solutions from the Land takes great pride in supporting the North American Climate Smart Action Alliance (NACSAA) as it continues its important work in putting farmers, ranchers and foresters in a central position to develop the steps needed to adapt to changing climate conditions, sequester carbon,
June 4, 2019
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(AZO Cleantech) Seaweed can be broadly termed as marine macroalgae, and belongs to one of the many groups of multicellular red, green and brown algae. Seaweed is widely used to produce vitamin supplements, cosmetics, plastics and animal feed in many parts of the world. The importance of seaweed has skyrocketed ever
June 4, 2019
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Glaucia Mendes Souza, Rubens Maciel Filho, Luís Cassinelli, Carlos Henrique de Brito Cruz and Renato D. Godinho (IEA Bioenergy Task 39) … Brazil has an energy matrix with substantial renewable content, with renewables (including hydropower) accounting for 42.9% of the total domestic energy supply (Brazilian Energy Balance 2018). … Even with an energy matrix
June 3, 2019
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(Argonne National Laboratory) Critical updates to WATER tool help the bioenergy industry manage resources. — The U.S. Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory recently released an updated version of an online computer model meant to help bioenergy developers preserve critical resources. The model, called Water Analysis Tool for Energy Resources or WATER, has users from more
June 2, 2019
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by Todd Neeley (DTN Progressive Farmer) … The latest planting progress report tells the story for worsening ethanol margins. An estimated 58% of U.S. corn was planted as of last Sunday, the slowest progress since at least 1980. Corn planting was up 9 percentage points from 49% the previous week, but was
May 31, 2019
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(Solutions from the Land) Solutions from the Land (SfL) Co-Chair A.G. Kawamura recently issued a challenge to a diverse group of California agricultural stakeholders, cautioning that in these often turbulent political times, those who work the land must come together and assert their role in combatting climate change and other threats
May 29, 2019
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by Jon Cartwright (Physics World) Between 2008 and 2012 expansion of cropland in the US released carbon each year equivalent to the running of 36 coal-fired power plants, according to scientists in the US. “Folks can easily see and understand how tropical deforestation removes carbon from the landscape and emits it to the
May 29, 2019
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(Sime Darby) Sime Darby Plantation Berhad (SDP) today launches ‘Crosscheck’, an open access online tool that allows everyone to trace sources of SDP’s palm oil supply down to the mill level. This latest effort by SDP represents a major step forward for the Company in its journey to create a deforestation-free
May 29, 2019
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(BASF) Sustainability project in Lampung, Indonesia launched; Program to encompass 1,000 independent Indonesian smallholder farmers — BASF, The Estée Lauder Companies and the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) are partnering with the civil society organization Solidaridad to promote sustainable palm oil and palm derivatives production in the district of Waykanan, Lampung, Indonesia.
May 29, 2019
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(U.S. Department of Energy) American small businesses got nearly a $22 million boost from the Energy Department’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program. Small businesses are receiving Phase I Release 2 grants (from each EERE office) that demonstrate technical feasibility for innovations during
May 28, 2019
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(American Coalition for Ethanol) ACE CEO Brian Jennings sends Chairman Pat Roberts (R-KS) and Ranking Member Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) data on the positive impact agriculture and low carbon fuels like corn ethanol can have as a hearing takes up the policy debate between farming and climate change. American Coalition for Ethanol
May 24, 2019
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by Neha Arora (Science Trends) … Biofuels, particularly bioethanol and biodiesel, have been touted as one of the most propitious and greener alternatives since the beginning of the millennium. In this regard, algal-derived biofuels have the potential to become the savior of our dwindling fossil fuel reserves. … The energy-rich compounds,
May 21, 2019
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by Jitendra (Down to Earth) The sugar industry engages around 50 farmers and two million mill workers. If there is one crop that affects India’s economy, water supply and promotes nepotism, it is sugarcane. India was the first country in the world where sugarcane farming — and the first refined sugar — was
May 21, 2019
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Marcelo Teixeira (Reuters) …(T)there was a general assumption that it was more expensive to produce ethanol from corn than from sugarcane. Five years on, the group has doubled capacity in the initial plant, built a second unit and announced plans for three more, as Brazilian farmers ramp up corn production. Two
May 21, 2019
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(Green Car Congress) The California Energy Commission approved nearly $11 million for clean energy demonstration projects, including biofuels, renewable gas, and microgrids. The Energy Commission approved a $2-million grant to Technology & Investment Solutions to demonstrate a more sustainable and cost-effective process of creating biomethane from food waste at an existing anaerobic
May 17, 2019
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(European Science Communication Institute/Phys.org) A New Mobile Refinery Is Travelling Across The West Of Ireland To Turn Grass Into Sustainable Materials — Along the windy west coast of Ireland a biorefinery on wheels is turning grass into a series of different green products that could give farmers a more diversified source
May 16, 2019
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(The Guardian) Produces about six per cent of national need; Cassava can fill the gap with good policies Despite the abundance of cassava roots as essential raw materials for production of ethanol and the government’s import substitution policies, Nigeria produces about six percent of the national need and imports between 300
May 15, 2019
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by David Wagman (Engineering 360) … However, growing cyanobacteria at an industrial scale requires a lot of water and nutrients. The Idaho researchers decided to grow cyanobacteria at a wastewater treatment facility, producing algae to grow biofuels and also reducing blooms downstream. The researchers worked with the Drake Water Reclamation Facility
May 10, 2019
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(World Wide Fund for Nature) Agricultural ministers need all the facts for their climate discussion on 14 May. — WWF has submitted a Freedom of Information request for a crucial assessment of EU farming policy’s impact on the climate. The assessment, carried out by external consultants, has been delivered to the European
May 7, 2019
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by Emily Dreyfuss (Wired) … Plant biologist Joanne Chory thinks plants can do more. She has studied the genetics of plants at the Salk Institute in San Diego for more than 30 years, and she and the rest of the five-person Harnessing Plants Initiative team are convinced that photosynthesis itself can
May 4, 2019
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(U.S. Department of Energy) From March 4–8, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), within the Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, hosted the 2019 Project Peer Review in Denver, Colorado. This was the largest Peer Review in BETO history—almost 600 people attended the event! Bioenergy researchers
May 3, 2019
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by Sanjoy Sanyal and Esther Kahinga (World Resources Institute) … While irrigation systems could help provide a more stable source of water, they currently cover only six to eight percent of Kenya’s land. Some farmers, though, are gaining access to them through a novel source of power—biodiesel made from crushed cotton seeds. Biodiesel
May 2, 2019
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by Chris Lo (Power Technology) The green technology sector has fallen out of love with algae as a feedstock for biofuel production, but there is hope yet for algae-derived fuel in the long-term. What are the recent advances that are refining the production processes that could see algal biofuel compete with
April 30, 2019
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by Vincent “Zippy” Duvall (American Farm Bureau Federation) … But consumers need to know how much the folks who grow and raise their food are doing to protect our planet. 1. Farmers are conserving resources and protecting the soil. As the population booms, farmers and ranchers face higher production demands than ever
April 29, 2019
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by Yiswaree Palansamy (Malay Mail) Primary Industries Minister Teresa Kok said the ministry is planning to produce biofuel using palm oil for the aviation industry, in a bid to boost palm oil sales and to reduce carbon emissions. In a special media interview on Thursday, Kok said the move fulfils Malaysia’s
April 29, 2019
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(ACT News) A promising new partnership demonstrates how dairy farms can realize the many benefits of capturing and selling biomethane as fuel. Quantum Fuel Systems just announced that Quantitative BioSciences, Inc. is partnering with and purchasing the company’s newest 10-foot Virtual Pipeline trailers to be used in a California dairy biogas
April 26, 2019
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by Cindy Zimmerman (Energy.AgWired.com) The Renewable Fuels Association (RFA) has become the first biofuels organization to join Field to Market: The Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture, a leading multi-stakeholder initiative working to unite the agricultural supply chain in defining, measuring and advancing the sustainability of food, fiber and fuel production in the United States. As
April 26, 2019
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by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Sandia National Laboratories shares a famous acronym with Saturday Night Live but the work they have done is key to the future of the bioeconomy, having delivered essential science and technology to resolve the nation’s most challenging security issues for over 60 years. One piece of
April 26, 2019
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