by Ann Bailey (Ethanol Producer Magazine) Companies across the United States, are signing on with their support for the American Business Act on Climate Pledge. By late October, 81 companies including at least 11 with ties to the biofuel industry,
water consumption
Back TO HOMEThree Sustainability Tools Are Enhancing Environmental Benefits of Biofuels
by Kristen Johnson and Alicia Moulton (U.S. Department of Energy) At the Energy Department’s Bioenergy Technologies Office, we’re actively working to develop the advanced biofuels industry in a way that leads to positive impacts and that demonstrates responsible stewardship of
October 28, 2015 Read Full Article
ICM Aims for Strong Legacy
by Holly Jessen (Ethanol Producer Magazine) For two decades, ICM has adapted with the changing times, bringing technology solutions to the ethanol industry. -- In 1995, ICM Inc. got its start with the purchase of the engineering, manufacturing and marketing
October 27, 2015 Read Full Article
DOE Warns That Climate Change May Disrupt Growth of Biomass Feedstocks
(Environmental and Energy Study Institute) On October 9, the U.S. Department of Energy released a report about the threats posed by climate change to the U.S. electricity and fuels sector, U.S. Energy Sector: Regional Vulnerabilities and Resilience Solutions. Climate change
October 17, 2015 Read Full Article
Do Biofuels Massively Worsen Water Stress?
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Does bioenergy place such massive pressure on water resources that it zeroes out the climate change benefits? Tweets around a recent article from PNAS say “yes, that’s so!” But is it really so? The dire headline tweeted by Carbon
August 06, 2015 Read Full Article
Perennial Biofuel Crops' Water Consumption Similar to Corn
(Michigan State University) Converting large tracts of the Midwest’s marginal farming land to perennial biofuel crops carries with it some key unknowns, including how it could affect the balance of water between rainfall, evaporation and movement of soil water to
July 07, 2015 Read Full Article
Cactus as Biofuel Could Help with Food-Versus-Fuel Fight
by Jack Busby (ChemistryWorld/Scientific American) Plants on arid land, rather than food crops like corn, could be turned into gasoline, new research shows New analysis from UK researchers suggests a previously overlooked group of plants could be key to providing sustainable bioenergy
July 01, 2015 Read Full Article
Key Excerpts Related to Fossil Fuels from Pope Francis' Encyclical on the Environment
by Joanne Ivancic (Advanced Biofuels USA) The following are key excerpts from Pope Francis' Encyclical, “Laudato Si,” or “Praised Be,” in which he calls for renewable fuel use, energy efficiency, transition from harmful, smoky cooking fuels that foster deforestation, and other
June 19, 2015 Read Full Article
COUNTERPOINT: Ethanol a Valuable Part of Energy Mix
by Barry Blitsteihn (Chronicle Herald) A corn field is harvested near Coy, Ark. in 2012. Three years later, “corn prices are in the basement, yet ethanol production is off the charts, so how can you blame ethanol for food shortages?,”
June 08, 2015 Read Full Article
Researchers Study Benefits of Double-Cropping Camelina, Soybeans
(The American Society of Agronomy/Biodiesel Magazine) In the U.S., federal mandates to produce more renewable fuels, especially biofuels, have led to a growing debate: Should fuel or food grow on arable land? Recent research shows farmers can successfully, and sustainably,
June 03, 2015 Read Full Article
State Releases Final Fracking Statement
by Scott Waldman (Capital New York) ... The Department of Environmental Conservation released the 2,000-page final Supplemental Generic Environmental Impact Statement for fracking, which opponents and proponents around the country have been awaiting since Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced a ban on fracking
May 14, 2015 Read Full Article
Whitefox Signs Agreement with Pacific Ethanol Inc.
(Whitefox) Whitefox (www.whitefox.com), the clean fuel membrane specialist, announced today that it has signed an agreement with California based Pacific Ethanol, Inc. (Nasdaq: PEIX) for the delivery of an industrial scale membrane system. The objective is to reduce the consumption
May 08, 2015 Read Full Article
Cool Planet Offers Help to California on Water Usage
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... Cool Planet, a California-based company that makes an organic, water-saving soil enhancer, was inspired by the order and is offering to help reach this goal by delivering a truckload of its water-saving CoolTerra product to reduce water usage
April 03, 2015 Read Full Article
Industry, Water Advocates Come Together on Bioenergy Bills
by Frank Jossi (Midwest Energy News) Environmentalists and bioeconomy advocates reached an agreement last week to modify a bill moving through the Minnesota legislature that they hope will create a new clean energy and green chemical industry in Minnesota. The BioEconomy
March 31, 2015 Read Full Article
RIT Prof's Reputation in Waste Reaches Trump Organization
by James Goodman (Democrat & Chronicle) Jeffrey Lodge is finding a niche at Rochester Institute of Technology as a go-to guy for finding new uses for waste. An associate professor of biological sciences, Lodge knows what it takes to break down
February 27, 2015 Read Full Article
Byogy Renewables and GEN 2 Energy Advance Value Chain to Produce Biofuels Competitive With Today's Oil Price
(Byogy/PR Newswire) Byogy Renewables, a biofuels producer based in San Jose, California, has executed a strategic partnership agreement with Gen 2 Energy, an alternative energy company from Ames, Iowa, to develop a more cost-effective biofuel production process. New yeast strains developed by
February 26, 2015 Read Full Article
Tulare County Collaboration Changing Cow Waste Into Clean Energy For Calgren
(Regenis) Sustainable energy production entered a new era in California today as a consortium of American companies joined together with state energy officials to launch the Calgren Ethanol Biodigester, which utilizes waste from dairy farms to power the production of
February 10, 2015 Read Full Article
National Academies Press Publishes "The Nexus of Biofuels, Climate Change, and Human Health"
by Robert Pool, Rapporteur; Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine; Board on Population Health and Public Health Practice; Institute of Medicine (National Academies Press) Liquid fuels are a major part of modern life. They supply energy for ground, water, and
February 09, 2015 Read Full Article
Argonne Model Analyzes Water Footprint of Biofuels
by Greg Cunningham (Argonne National Laboratory) A new version of an online tool created by the US Department of Energy’s Argonne National Laboratory will help biofuels developers gain a detailed understanding of water consumption of various types of feedstocks, aiding
January 16, 2015 Read Full Article
The Evolution of Minnesota’s Ethanol Industry Parts 1 and 2
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com) The Minnesota ethanol industry is evolving even in the face of growth challenges including continued uncertainty around the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). Since 2007 the industry has improved by leaps and bounds in terms of technological
December 16, 2014 Read Full Article
Milo Poised to Help Water Woes in Western Kansas
by Tim Unruh (Salina Journal) Grain sorghum could be among the keys to reducing the massive mining of water in western Kansas, once it’s deemed economically desirable. Long an ugly stepcousin in the family of Kansas staple crops, grain sorghum —
December 08, 2014 Read Full Article
Answers for Your Questions about the Bioeconomy, Biofuels, Renewable Chemicals and Bioproducts
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) ... With great sessions at conferences, delegates are usually keen to get a hold of the powerpoint decks. But how do you get a hold of the great Q&A that follows the presentations — or the
August 14, 2014 Read Full Article
AgriLife Research Study: Mesquite a Complementary Biofuel Feedstock
by Kay Ledbetter (AgriLife Today) As requirements grow for use of cellulosic biofuels to meet the energy needs of the nation, researchers look at potential feedstocks and any effects these alternative sources may have on greenhouse gas emissions. A recent Texas A&M
August 04, 2014 Read Full Article
McIntyre Announces Over $1.7 Million to Support New Biofuel Facility
(U.S. Representative Mike McIntyre) Project will create 65 jobs and support clean energy production U.S. Representative Mike McIntyre announced today that the City of Clinton has received $1,758,150 to construct water and sewer infrastructure to support the new Chemtex cellulosic biofuel
June 10, 2014 Read Full Article
Fortunately, Unfortunately: Pathways and Barriers to Algae Biofuels at Scale
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) Think algae biofuels are real and near? Or, think it’s a promotional scheme for attracting finance for nutraceuticals and academic bridges-to-nowhere? The barriers might be more, or less, daunting than you think. Let’s look at
May 27, 2014 Read Full Article
Addax Bioenergy Certified by Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials
(Sierra Express Media) Addax Bioenergy (SL) Limited has been fully and formally certified under the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB). This is said to quite an achievement and everyone involved has to be commended. RSB is recognized as being the
May 14, 2014 Read Full Article
Zimbabwe: Green Fuel, Zinwa Seal Deal
by Daniel Nemukuyu (AllAfrica.com) Macdom Investments, a sister company to Green Fuel, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Zimbabwe National Water Authority to ensure consistent raw water supply for sugarcane production in Chisumbanje. The sugar is for the Chisumbanje ethanol
May 07, 2014 Read Full Article
For the Greater Green: Algae-Based Advanced Biofuels Bring a Clean, Affordable Solution
by Paul Woods (Algenol/Renewable Energy World) ... When it comes to fuel production, climate change is a crucial issue that cannot be avoided. In the U.S., 3,600 million metric tons of CO2 are emitted from stationary sources alone, not to mention
April 25, 2014 Read Full Article
The California Drought Equation Stresses Need For Biofuels
by Peter Brown( Biofuels Magazine) Except for volume, biofuels and petroleum-derived products have reached parity in production efficiency and availability. What that means is that anything pulled from the earth can now be created from sources growing on the earth
April 15, 2014 Read Full Article
Gevolution 2014: Gevo’s Forward Progress, and Some Side-by-Side
by Jim Lane (Biofuels Digest) As Gevo reports its 4Q results and adds back some ethanol production, we look at the short-term gains and the long-term implications. Why ethanol, why now — what’s the latest news mean from this signature
March 28, 2014 Read Full Article
Research Cutting Biodiesel Water Usage
(Process Engineering) Scientists at the University of Porto are currently developing water-free methods to produce biodiesel using waste vegetable oils, animal fats and fatty wastes derived from industrial processes. Traditional methods of biodiesel production use large volumes of water to remove
March 25, 2014 Read Full Article
Algae Biomass Organization Hails New Publication that Identifies Most Promising Locations for Commercial Algae Production Projects
(Algae Biomass Organization) Analysis can reduce time, cost associated with site development The Algae Biomass Organization (ABO), the trade association for the algae industry, today (March 10, 2014) lauded a new publication from the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in partnership with
March 11, 2014 Read Full Article
Zimbabwe: Another Ethanol Plant for Zimbabwe
by George Maponga (AllAfrica.com) Zimbabwe Bio-Energy has announced plans to set up the country's third ethanol plant at Nuanetsi Ranch in Mwenezi, where the firm wants thousands of locals to start sugarcane plantations using water from Tokwe-Mukosi Dam. Tokwe-Mukosi will
March 05, 2014 Read Full Article
Why We Are Producing Biofuels
by Robert C. Brown and Tristan Brown (The Gazette) In the face of criticism about ethanol, delays in the commercialization of advanced biofuels and the recent development of domestic supplies of fracked gas and petroleum, some people are asking, “Why are
March 04, 2014 Read Full Article
Ethanol Is Asset to State, Nation
by Bill Jones (Fresno Bee/Pacific Ethanol) The Bee published a commentary on Feb. 14 by Tom Tanton titled "Making Ethanol is Wasting California's Water." The premise of the opinion piece was that the nation's Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) that sets
February 20, 2014 Read Full Article
Oklahoma State University Receives Grant to Investigate Redcedar, Biofuels and Water
(Oklahoma State University) Oklahoma landowners have been hearing for years that removing the eastern redcedar trees from their property is essential for proper land management. Aside from being an eyesore, the trees are extremely invasive, are an incredible fire danger, and large,
February 11, 2014 Read Full Article
Groundbreaking Algae Research Continues at Pecos: AgriLife Research Shares $8 Million Grant
by Steve Byrns (AgriLife Today) Pecos is usually egg-frying hot, bone dry and much of the groundwater is brackish, but Texas A&M AgriLife Research personnel know the area is prime real estate for conducting algae research, something they’ve been doing successfully
December 06, 2013 Read Full Article
Company Hopes to Tap into Sugar Cane, Sorghum for Fuel-Grade Ethanol
by James Palen (The Daily Transcript/San Diego Source) ... Brawley-based California Ethanol + Power is bringing the matter closer to home. The company has yet to build its first facility, but by possibly the first quarter of 2014, it looks to break ground on
November 27, 2013 Read Full Article
An Ethanol-Fueled Comeback for Sugar Beets
by Alice Daniel (California Report) California once grew a lot of sugar beets to supply the state's sugar mills. Most of those the mills are closed now, and farmers have turned to other row crops. But in the Central Valley, growers
September 23, 2013 Read Full Article
‘Sorghum Ethanol’ Is a Topic in Nebraska
by Ken Anderson (Brownfield Ag News) Sorghum Field Days are being held at six locations in Nebraska this week. One of the stops will be the John Dvoracek farm near Farwell, where there are more than 50 sorghum varieties planted
September 18, 2013 Read Full Article
Ethanol Improving While Oil Gets Worse
by Joanna Schroeder (DomesticFuel.com) The House and Energy Commerce Committee has released its third white paper on the Renewable Fuel Standard, “Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Environmental Impacts.” Executive Vice President of the American Coalition for Ethanol (ACE), Brian Jennings, responded with written
May 28, 2013 Read Full Article
Department of Energy Bioenergy Technologies Office Comments on Air Force Strategic Studies Quarterly Article: Energy Insecurity, The False Promise of Liquid Biofuels
(US Department of Energy/Department of Defense) General Comments Although the author has done an extensive literature reading in the biofuels area, the paper does not have any analysis of critical issues of energy systems including petroleum systems and biofuel systems. Instead,