US EPA Looks to Get New Biofuel Feedstocks to Market Quicker with Streamlined Review

by Jasmin Melvin (S&P Global Platts) More than 30 biofuels-related reviews pending before agency; Would amount to nearly 800 million gal/year of advanced biofuels -- The US Environmental Protection Agency Jan. 21 announced plans to streamline reviews of new chemicals that could be used to produce biofuels and in turn displace dirtier transportation fuels.

The initiative, under the Toxic Substances Control Act, aims to support the Biden administration's overall push to confront the climate crisis as well as the congressionally mandated goal of the Renewable Fuel Standard program to replace a portion of US petroleum-based transportation fuel, heat oil and jet fuel consumption with biofuels that are projected to have fewer lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions.

RFA CEO Geoff Cooper said it "clearly shows the great potential of low-carbon ethanol to serve as a key building block for other renewable chemicals and sustainable products in the future."

The EPA's new chemicals program manages the potential health and environmental risks posed by chemicals new to the marketplace. It allows the agency to set conditions, including a ban on production if necessary, on the use of new chemicals and requires any company that plans to manufacture or import a new chemical for commercial purposes to provide notice to the EPA before initiating such activity.

These pre-manufacture notices (PMNs) include information such as the chemical's structure and formula, intended use, production volume, byproducts, disposal practices and any existing test data on effects to human health or the environment.

EPA risk assessors review this information and the agency ultimately decides whether the new chemical or significant new use present an unreasonable risk and if a company can move forward with manufacturing or processing.

As such, the agency has formed a dedicated team to review PMNs for biobased or waste-derived feedstocks intended to be used to make transportation fuel substitutes. READ MORE

Excerpt from Environmental Protection Agency: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a new effort under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to streamline the review of new chemicals that could be used to displace current, higher greenhouse gas emitting transportation fuels.

Through this effort, the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention’s (OCSPP) New Chemicals Division (NCD) has implemented a robust, consistent, and efficient process to assess the risk and apply mitigation measures, as appropriate, for substitutes to petroleum-based fuels and fuel additives that use biobased or waste-derived sources to produce biofuels. This effort supports the goals under EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program, which has Congressional mandates to replace or reduce quantity of petroleum-based transportation fuel, heat oil, or jet fuel with biofuels that are projected to have lower lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions. This effort also supports EPA’s 2021 Climate Adaptation Action Plan which describes steps the agency will take to address the impacts of climate change on communities across the country, as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s actions to confront the climate crisis.

“Tackling our nation’s climate crisis is a comprehensive and collaborative effort across all of EPA,” said Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention Michal Freedhoff. “Using sound science to streamline the review of more environmentally friendly chemical substitutes will help advance the Agency’s climate goals and protect human health and the environment.”

EPA has received over 30 biofuel premanufacture notices (PMNs) that collectively describe plans for close to 800 million gallons per year of production of advanced biofuels, that could contribute to annual volume mandates under the RFS program and help support the goals of energy security through increasing domestic production within the U.S.

Under this effort, NCD formed a dedicated team to collaborate on the review of premanufacture notices (PMNs) for biobased or waste-derived feedstocks used to make transportation fuel substitutes with the goals to use the best available science while creating a consistent and efficient review process. NCD has developed a standardized process for the way biofuel PMNs are reviewed. For example, the same dedicated team will be conducting reviews for all biofuels PMNs, which will help ensure the assessments and determinations are consistent and aligned with requirements. Further, NCD will generate one report for biofuels PMNs that combines the six different risk assessments typically conducted for PMNs, which will help provide a clearer summary explanation of how EPA conducted its assessment and made its determination.

For risk management actions, NCD will apply appropriate mitigation measures to address any potential for unreasonable risk identified in an efficient and consistent manner within TSCA consent orders and significant new use rules (SNURs).

OCSPP is launching outreach and training for interested stakeholders in the biofuels sector to review TSCA requirements, outline the streamlined approaches for risk assessments and risk management actions, and provide information on how to navigate the new chemicals PMN process.

OCSPP is holding a kick-off meeting on February 9, 2022, to provide an overview of this initiative and answer questions from stakeholders. Register for the meeting.

Other planned outreach and training related to this biofuels initiative includes webinars on:

Additional outreach and training sessions, including training opportunities applicable to all new chemical submitters, may be added based on stakeholder interest and feedback.