East Valley Tribune article on AZ BioDiesel. Read more here.

View the video interview here.

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Senator Chuck Grassley Exposes 'Smear' Campaign on Food and Fuel. Read More Here.

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BioDiesel Board May 2008 Bulletin. Click Here to read.

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AZ BioDiesel and AZ Green Dining featured on News Channel 3 with Brad Perry. View video here.

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Z'Tejas featured on Channel 15 News on their decision to go "Green". View video here.

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AZ BioDiesel featured in the Phoenix Business Journal: From fat to fuel: Eateries help grease wheels of sustainability movement

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Z'Tejas featured in the Phoenix Business Journal for their decision to go green! Read more here.

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East Valley Tribune article on AZ BioDiesel. Read more here.

View the video interview here.

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Senator Chuck Grassley Exposes 'Smear' Campaign on Food and Fuel. (From the National BioDiesel Board email update)

On the Senate floor yesterday, Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA) expressed outrage over the orchestrated anti-biofuels campaign. "It turns out that a $300,000, six-month retainer of a beltway public relations firm is behind the smear campaign, hired by the Grocery Manufacturers Association," said Senator Grassley. "They've outlined their strategy of using environmental, hunger and food aid groups to demonstrate their contrived 'crises'. I think it is important for policy-makers and the American people to know who's behind this effort."

Senator Grassley concluded his lengthy statement with, "It's time we clear the air, look at the facts, and recognize once again that everything about our domestic renewable fuels industry is good, good, good." Read his full comments.

Senator Grassley released the Grocery Manufacturers Association's request for proposal, as well as the strategy documents from their public relations firm, Glover Park Group.

Click here for a Roll Call article about the campaign.

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Study Confirms Biodiesel Safe for Underground Tanks. Read press release here.

Also see "22 BioDiesel Myths Dispelled"

Dan Rees, President of AZ BioDiesel was interviewed by KFNN 1610 AM on Tuesday February 26th; listen here.

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AZ BioDiesel featured in an article in the Arizona Republic. Click here to view the article.

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Pres. Bush Calls Biodiesel Most Promising Fuel to Meet RFS Requirements

President Bush yesterday at the Washington International Renewable Energy Conference (WIREC) called biodiesel the most promising renewable fuel for helping to meet renewable fuels standards. Today, the WIREC conference wraps up its four-day conference in Washington, D.C.

"The legislation requires fuel producers to supply at least 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel in the year 2022," said Pres. Bush.  "In other words, these just aren't goals, these are mandatory requirements.  I'm confident the United States can meet those goals, and I know we must, for the sake of economic security, national security, and for the sake of being good stewards of the environment. Biodiesel is the most promising of these fuels."

Read more on how biodiesel was highlighted http://nbb.grassroots.com/08Releases/WIREC_Bush  at the conference.

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AZ BioDiesel as a "Whos Who" in BioDiesel. Check out the post at Desert Biofuels Initiative.

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BioDeisel In the News through 02/18/2008

Click here for media highlights including a US News and World Report feature on farm profitability that recognizes biodiesel. Media also covered biodiesel feedstock opportunities from mustard seed, corn processing and coffee. New biodiesel uses gaining media recognition include the Staten Island ferries, a Tacoma Washington recycling fleet and Philadelphia utility, as well as a USA Today feature on Keene, NH. State biodiesel support in MO, SD and the Florida Governor's greenhouse gas scorecard were recognized by media. Biodiesel production was featured in AL, AZ, CA, IN and ND.

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We need your help now! Restaurants are under siege!

The large grease trap/collection companies are attacking restaurants for giving AZ BioDiesel their used fryer oil.  Theses companies are raising their prices on other services to strong-arm them into giving them their grease so they can continue to ship it out of state.

Please let these restaurants know that your patronage will more than offset any cost increase that they may incur for other services.  On average the cost increase is $10-$30 per month.

Print this flyer and let your AZ Green Dining participating restaurant know that you support them.

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Safeway announces biodiesel use throughout fleet

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National Biodiesel Conference & Expo Scores Touchdown!

Sustainability and feedstock development were the buzzwords at the fifth annual National Biodiesel Conference & Expo in Orlando, Fla. this week. A diverse cross section of biodiesel stakeholders from around the world attended the event Feb. 3 – 6.   Industry leaders predicted that biodiesel will grow to a billion gallons a year in this country in the next few years and turned their attention to sustainability issues and developing the next generation of biodiesel. About 3,600 people attended the conference.  

As always, the conference served as a platform for plenty of biodiesel news…the rest of this newsletter will be dedicated to some of the highlights.  And don’t forget to check out the Biodiesel Blog here, http://blog.biodieselconference.org/.  You can read a daily account of the conference, view and download photos, watch videos and listen to audio interviews.  

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February 7th, 2008: Biodiesel Yields Even Higher Energy Balance

A new analysis shows that the energy balance of biodiesel is a positive ratio of 3.5-to-1.  For every unit of fossil energy needed to produce the fuel over its life cycle, the return is 3.5 units of energy, according to new research conducted at the University of Idaho in cooperation with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). The announcement of the increase—up from 3.2—was made today at the National Biodiesel Conference & Expo in Orlando.

The Department of Energy National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) and USDA had produced the first comprehensive life cycle inventory which can be found here, http://www.biodiesel.org/resources/reportsdatabase/reports/gen/19980501_gen-339.pdf,  for biodiesel in 1998. That landmark research found a 3.2 energy balance for biodiesel, while petroleum diesel yielded 0.83 units of energy per unit of fossil energy consumed. The many changes that have occurred in the U.S. biodiesel and agricultural industries since the 1990s prompted researchers at the University of Idaho to update the study in cooperation with the USDA.  Both the 1998 and 2007 study are based on biodiesel production from soybeans, which according to U.S. Census data is responsible for more than 80 percent of 2007 estimated biodiesel production.  Biodiesel’s energy balance improved in the 2007 study even though the new analysis is more comprehensive than previous work, and even extends to the energy required to manufacture the farm machinery used to produce soybeans.

“The bottom line is that the energy balance of biodiesel has definitely improved in the last decade,” says University of Idaho Department Head of Biological and Agricultural Engineering Jon Van Gerpen.  “The increase in soybean yields and a decrease in herbicide use greatly contributed to the increased energy balance. Meanwhile, energy used for crushing soybeans is significantly lower than what was reported in the NREL study.”

For more on this study, read the news release, “Biodiesel Yields Even Higher Energy Balance,” http://nbb.grassroots.com/08Releases/EnergyBalance/.  Although the University of Idaho study has not been published yet, you can view presentation slides from the conference here, http://www.biodiesel.org/resources/PR_supporting_docs/Energy%20Balance.ppt.
 

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February7th, 2008 - Study Shows Biodiesel Industry Steps Up to Fuel Quality Challenge

The aggressive fuel quality outreach program put into place by the National Biodiesel Board (NBB) has demonstrated positive results.  A new study by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) shows the biodiesel industry has achieved a high degree of success in meeting national fuel quality standards.  

According to the results, which NREL Senior Chemist Teresa Alleman presented at the National Biodiesel Conference & Expo, the in-spec samples represent 90 percent of the biodiesel produced in the U.S. last year.  This demonstrates a significant improvement in fuel quality since a previous NREL survey in 2006.

NREL, a Department of Energy laboratory based in Golden, Colo., collected the samples from biodiesel producers between April and October 2007.  The plants made biodiesel from different vegetable oils and fats, and ranged in actual production from 3,000 to 30 million gallons per year.  NREL then tested each sample for the most critical parameters required by ASTM D 6751, the national standard for biodiesel.

“In the summer of 2006, our Board of Directors put into place a strong fuel quality policy with the goal of increasing the level of in-specification biodiesel in the U.S. to 100 percent,” said Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB).  “The NBB’s outreach efforts with enforcement agencies and our investment in the BQ-9000 program have yielded terrific results, and we’ll continue to push for 100 percent.”

The study showed that plants certified under BQ-9000, www.bq-9000.org, the industry’s voluntary quality control program, faired the best.  BQ-9000 producers consistently hit the mark, no matter how large or small the plant.

 
For more, read the news release,  http://nbb.grassroots.com/08Releases/NRELstudy/.

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Biodiesel News through Jan. 15 - Highlights of news coverage in the last week include major announcements from around the world. Today, Richard Branson announced Virgin Atlantic‚s planned biofuels air flight. The European Union has made announcements about their plans for sustainability and what that means for feedstocks. International media also looked at the German biodiesel bankruptcy concerns and whether Afghan poppy production could be used for biodiesel. In Detroit, Republican candidates toured new biodiesel powered vehicles at the Auto Show where GM announced a biodiesel powered Hummer. In New Orleans, Carnival will be greener with biodiesel-powered floats. The American Petroleum Institute continues to rattle its saber on the Renewable Fuels Standard.
                                View .pdf of news highlights here

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January 1, 2008, County Puts Brakes On Vegetable Oil Use - view this article here.
 

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Alternative Fuel Creates Tax Woes for Couple - listen to this report at NPR.org. Click here.

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