Showing posts with label 2006 Digests. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2006 Digests. Show all posts

January 2, 2007

Biomass: Year-in-Review

Jetta Wong of Renewable Energy Access has done a nice job characterizing the strong advance made by biomass into the national dialog on renewable fuel options in 2006. She has also listed many specifics about the gaps between authorization and funding by the federal government, new bioenergy legislation under consideration by the U.S. Congress, the initiative shown by individual states to take the lead in renewable energy, and the surge in biomass/biofuels conferences.

Below is the introduction to the article. Click on the article title to read the entire entry.

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Biomass: Year-in-Review
by Jetta Wong, Agriculture & Energy Policy Analyst

The biomass industry made tremendous gains in 2005, but even those knee-deep in biomass could not have foreseen such amazing strides made in 2006. Even with appropriation woes, large venture capital investments, new leadership, increased acceptance from the environmental community, national security threats and unstable energy markets sparked the country's enthusiasm for biomass. The industry's capacity to ramp up production and the ability of this renewable resource to provide a considerable quantity of power, not just liquid fuel, has made biomass a significant player in the U.S. energy future.

With dozens of biomass conferences and events across the country, it is no wonder that in 2006 more than 50 biomass-related bills were introduced. Increases to the national RFS, incentives for alternative fueling stations and flex-fuel vehicles and extensions of biomass-related tax incentives were highlighted in these bills.


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January 1, 2007

Inside Renewable Energy Podcasts

On March 21, 2006 Renewable Energy Access launched a new service called Inside Renewable Energy that features weekly podcasts. Their first offering explains what the service is about: Podcast Launch: Inside Renewable Energy. While the range of stories cover all forms of renewable energy, I will post those titles that have most relationship to the subject of my blogs - biomass and bioenergy.

Hosted by Stephen Lacey, each includes a weekly update of general renewable energy news items. There is other content than just what the titles suggest. To enjoy the full content of the service, please visit the site weekly. There you will find Program Notes for each broadcast as well as an opportunity to post listener comments.

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March 9, 2007
A Review of the Power-Gen Conference
Here is an audio collage of the Power-Gen Renewable Energy and Fuels Conference held in Las Vegas, Nevada this past week....

March 1, 2007
Citrus Waste to Ethanol
Florida is ripe with waste that could add significant resources to the cellulosic ethanol industry -- citrus peels, membranes and seeds....

January 18, 2007
Agriculture and Food Industry Waste to Energy
Anaerobic digestion is the decomposition of organic matter. When this organic matter breaks down in an environment without oxygen, it creates...

January 4, 2007
A Look Back at 2006
2006 was a great year for renewable energy around the world. Here on the Inside Renewable Energy podcast we've provided our...

December 14, 2006
The Year for Renewables on Wall Street
Our financial contributor Rob Wilder, who is CEO and Founder of Wilder Shares, talks about the ups and downs for renewable...

November 16, 2006
Why Mass Storage Is So Important for Renewables
A common criticism of renewable resources such as wind and solar is that they are intermittent -- meaning that storage is...

September 28, 2006
The Challenges for Cellulosic Ethanol, A Wind Turbine for the Urban Environment
Speaking on Capitol Hill last week, representatives for the ethanol industry told members of Congress that cellulosic ethanol is ready to...

August 24, 2006
How to Prepare Your Home for Renewables, Turning Brownfields Green with Biofuel Crops
Energy efficiency is the most important thing to address when integrating renewables into your home. Indeed, there are many steps you...

August 3, 2006
Will Ethanol Challenge Food Supply?, Texas Overtakes California in Wind Energy Capacity
Grain-based ethanol has become one of the most popular forms of renewable energy in recent years. As politicians and private investors...

May 25, 2006
Wood Pellet Industry Expands As Oil and Gas Prices Escalate, REA.com Editor Jesse Broehl on the Month's Big Stories
Peterborough, New Hampshire [RenewableEnergyAccess.com] With the price of oil and gas increasingly out of reach for the average consumer, the wood...

March 23, 2006
Biofuels, Ethanol, Switchgrass, Power-Gen Renewable Energy & Fuels
The inaugural edition of Inside Renewable Energy takes a look at the present and future of biofuels. Dan Kammen, Professor of...


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December 31, 2006

December 2006 Digest

December 2006 saw major developments in the commitment of whole industries to a new paradigm shift to renewable energy.

On the heels of last month's release of the forest products industry report called the Forest Products Industry Technology Roadmap several wood chip refinery press releases and wood industry reference sites became articles in the blogosphere. There were also two auto shows in Los Angeles that touted a new commitment to renewable energy propulsion systems including hybrids, electric cars, solar-powered, fuel cells, PHEVs, and flex-fuel vehicles.

The big news here is that the BIOstock Blog has a sponsor - Price BIOstock Services of Monticello, Arkansas. Originators of the BIOstock Services concept, The Price Companies has joined other industry leaders in recognizing the value of informing the general public of breaking information concerning emerging technology trends.

Here are their most significant developments of December 2006, organized by Blog...

BIOstock Blog--------------
• New Hampshire Renewable Power Plant Burns Wood Chips
• U.S. D.O.E. Information on "BIOstock" & Legislation
• HAWAII: Powering Paradise with biofuels
• Global BIOstock/BIOfuels Database
• Bioenergy Gateway: Energy from Wood
• Woody Biomass-to-Ethanol Demonstration Plant Contracted
• FLORIDA: Citrus Peels as BIOstock
• CANADA: Wood chips biorefinery venture announced
• Price BIOstock Services is a BIOstock Blog sponsor

BIOconversion Blog--------------
• Sugar Fermentation's Achilles Heel - Water
• James Woolsey on Biomass Conversion and PHEVs
• Decentralizing the BioFuels Industry
• NEW YORK: Cellulosic Ethanol Plant Demo Facility Contracted
• Xethanol's Cellulosic Ethanol Business Approach
• Bacteria - "Miniature Chemical Factories" Convert Waste to Ethanol
• Future Production of Liquid Biofuels
• Top Stories of 2006

BIOoutput Blog-----------------
• Carbon credits traded online
• "Mermaids' Tears" - Unrecycled plastic chokes the seas
• Alt Car Expo: A Day at the Beach
• A Tale of Two Auto Shows

New Feature
Each month we will provide a similar breakdown of December article titles from our favorite "companion" site - Biopact Blog. This list is kept current and is accessible in the right hand column of each of the three blogs.

Please forward a link to this digest to anyone you know who would be interested in keeping track of change that will affect us all. They can add their name to the mailing list on the BioConversion Blog.


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December 29, 2006

BIO Blogs' Top Stories of 2006

2006 - A Watershed Year for BIOfuels

This was a watershed year for the biofuels industry. Fears about war, global warming, and pocketbook issues will affect public opinion, action, and purchases for decades to come. Starting with the President's "addiction to oil" admission in his State of the Union address and the rising carnage in the Middle East, followed by the spring/summer oil price spike and "The Inconvenient Truth" of global warming, the gordian knot of interrelated problems seems insurmountable.

And yet, as former CIA Director James Woolsey contends, national security can be greatly enhanced in the short term by building a cellulosic ethanol industry based on biomass conversion to ethanol. This would simultaneously reduce our addiction to fossil fuels using cheap feedstock and reduce runaway greenhouse gas emissions, while increasing our national self-reliance on clean renewable energy. The only question is a matter of will - do we have the commitment and persistence to fight for a future virtually free of dependence on foreign oil? The consequences of sticking with the status quo are too onerous to contemplate.

Worldwide technological developments, governmental mandates, and capital investments have been startlingly brisk this year. And yet, we are only at the "bleeding edge" of market development. 2007 promises to see the early commercial-scale deployments of many emerging technologies.

Here are their most significant developments of 2006, organized by Blog...

BIOstock Blog
• Scientists set sights on biomass to reduce fossil fuel dependence
• Tires-to-Ethanol Facility Planned for New Jersey
• Using Algae to Recycle Flue Gas into Biofuels
• Reducing Biofuel Risk through Feedstock Diversification
• FLORIDA: County to Vaporize Trash
• Expanded Recycling - a Key to Cutting Fossil Fuels and Global Warming
• Forests: Carbon S(t)inks?
• Renaissance of the Forest Products Industry
• Cellulosic Ethanol from Woody Biomass
• FLORIDA: Citrus Peels as BIOstock

BIOconversion Blog
• DIGEST - California AB 1090 Issues and Support
• The Military Surcharge for Oil
• White House: The Advanced Energy Initiative
• RFA: Ethanol Industry Outlook 2006
• Ethanol Industry Braces for Growing Pains
• CALIFORNIA: Los Angeles Waste-to-Energy Plan Passed Unanimously
• Green Jobs for America: Two Reports
• Visionary Investors Cast Their Eye on Ethanol
• CALIFORNIA: Bioenergy Action Plan - Final Released
• CBS 60 Minutes: The Ethanol Solution
• CHINA: The Food vs. Energy Feedstock Conundrum
• Syngas Fermentation - The Next Generation of Ethanol
• U.S. D.O.E.: Roadmap for Developing Cleaner Fuels
• CALIFORNIA: Governor Announces BioEnergy Action Plan
• CALIFORNIA: Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006
• U.S. D.O.E.: 5-year Plan for Biomass Conversion
• Upgrading Existing Plants for Biomass Conversion
• Global BIOstock/BIOfuels Database
• Bioenergy Gateway: Energy from Wood
• Woody Biomass-to-Ethanol Demonstration Plant Contracted

BIOoutput Blog
• General Motors - Live Green/Go Yellow Campaign
• Plug-in Partners National PHEV Initiative
• MOVIE: Who Killed the Electric Car?
• Recycling’s “China Syndrome”
• Terra Preta: Black is the New Green
• Developing Ethanol's Side-stream Chemicals
• Impact of Global Growth on Carbon Emissions
• U.S. D.O.E.: Strategies for Reducing Greenhouse Gases
• BIOplastics: BIOdegradable by-products of BIOconversion
• "Mermaids' Tears" - Unrecycled plastic chokes the seas
• A Tale of Two Auto Shows

The final week of the year, BIOpact has written a Looking back on 2006 series of articles summarizing worldwide factors affecting development in the biomass conversion industry. It would be hard to find a more comprehensive view, broken down by geographic zone, summarizing the implications of global developments:
• Looking back on 2006
• The year in review: Asia
• The year in review: Africa
• The year in review: Latin America

Grist, the clever and controversial environmental news and commentary website, has put together a special series of stories on biofuels called Fill 'er Up. While I tend to be much more upbeat than the Grist writers, the stories are as thought-provoking - whereas the Gristmill Blog is as wild and wooly as the Grist readership.

The Renewable Energy Access has their own two yearend summaries. Renewable Energy Roadmap: Rural America Can Prosper addresses the impact reaching the 25x25 goal would have on farm income and jobs. They also offer an opinion of the Top Stories of 2006. However, most of these concern developments in solar energy.


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December 3, 2006

BIOpact: December 2006 Digest

Biopact Blog writes many stories that are relevant to the study of BIOstock, BIOconversion, and BIOoutput.

The final week of the year, BIOpact has written a Looking back on 2006 series of articles summarizing worldwide factors affecting development in the biomass conversion industry by geographic zone:
• Looking back on 2006
• The year in review: Asia
• The year in review: Africa
• The year in review: Latin America

Rather than summarize and reprint excerpts from this excellent source of information, a breakdown of each month's most relevant titles is provided in one updated article...

BIOstock...
• Japanese company to produce ethanol from oil palm waste
• Eight countries create sugarcane bioproducts
• Blood protein used to split water into O2 and H2?
• European forestry company (UPM) to become biofuels producer
• Transgenic switchgrass to double biomass yield
• Senegalese government to distribute 250 million jatropha plants
• Plant a tree and save the planet? Let's think again.
• We are all Sun worshippers
• Soil nutrition affects carbon sequestration in forests
• From black cloud to green gold: turning Egypt's rice residues into energy
• China restricts expansion of grain based biofuels, switches to biomass and alternative crops
• Investments in renewables top $100 billion in 2006

BIOconversion...
• Europe and Brazil produce ethanol in Africa
• Biofuels industry creates jobs
• CHINA: Ethanol preferred over methanol
• European regions commit to energy savings, renewables: energy action on the ground
• FAO adapts World Agriculture report to reflect effects of emerging biofuels industry
• A quick look at nanotechnology in agriculture, food and bioenergy
• Solid biomass production for energy in EU increases markedly
• Ethanol boosts farmland prices in the US

BIOoutput...
• Sugar cane has "enormous potential for green chemistry"
• INDONESIA: Electricity from pure plant oil
• Problems with undersea CO2 sequestration?
• Biofuels or Hydrogen - which fuels are more promising?
• Plastics are "poisoning the world's seas"
• The bioeconomy at work: flexible bioplastics
• Why electric cars and plug-in hybrids mean a boost to bioenergy
• The bioeconomy at work: bioplastic fuel lines to handle aggressive biodiesel
• The bioeconomy at work: France's BioHub project
• The bioeconomy at work: UK finances development of biodegradable plastics for car components
• http://biopact.com/2006/12/glycerin-as-biogas-feedstock.html

November 29, 2006

November 2006 Digest

Broadening the Scope - Focusing on Potential

The BIOconversion Blog - while keeping an eye on biofuel and biomass conversion technologies, facility deployments, and international issues - welcomes two new siblings! The BIOstock Blog covers biomass feedstock questions - what feedstocks are being used, how they are being transported, and what pre-processing technologies are being developed. The BIOoutput Blog focuses on the output of biomass conversion technologies - emissions, biofuels, electricity, green chemicals - and new uses for them.

The Digest will list the titles from all of them so don't worry about receiving 3 digests per month (whew!). However, those who use newsfeed software should link to all three because, in general, the articles will not be duplicated between sites. Here are this month's articles:

General Topics--------------
• Forest Industry: Bio-Solutions to Climate Change
• Harvesting Green Power
• Forests: Carbon S(t)inks?
• Investor's Roundup of Leading Cellulosic Ethanol Companies
• Expanded Recycling - a Key to Cutting Fossil Fuels and Global Warming
• Cellulosic Ethanol RD&D - Mascoma Corp. Raises $30 Million
• The Social Costs of the Status Quo
• U.S. D.O.E.: 5-year Plan for Biomass Conversion
• Renaissance of the Forest Products Industry
• Cellulosic Ethanol – Snake Oil for the new millennium?
• Upgrading Existing Plants for Biomass Conversion
• BIOplastics: BIOdegradable by-products of BIOconversion
• Colusa Completes Successful Rice Straw Harvest
• Cellulosic Ethanol from Woody Biomass
• Green Chemistry from Sugar Cane

Around the Nation--------------
• California Energy Commission PIER Grants for Biofuels RD&D
• CALIFORNIA: Cities favoring Gasification over Combustion
• CALIFORNIA: Enforcing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Limits

Around the World-----------------
• BIOstock of the Southern Hemisphere
• Impact of Global Growth on Carbon Emissions

Please forward a link to this digest to anyone you know who would be interested in keeping track of change that will affect us all. They can add their name to the mailing list on the BioConversion Blog.


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October 31, 2006

October 2006 Digest

"Clearing the air" with biomass conversion technologies.

With the passage of the landmark Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 California is poised to take the lead in the national effort to cut greenhouse gas emissions while reducing our dependence on fossil fuels. But will Governor Schwarzenegger be able to use a carbon credits program to implement the legislation? What technologies will come into play? Will Proposition 87 spur development or just add more bureaucratic inertia? It has been an important month for renewable energy - here are some top stories:

General Topics--------------
• Greenhouse Gases as Feedstock?
• Terra Preta: Black is the New Green
• Impact of Global Growth on Carbon Emissions
• Geoplasma Answers Trash Vaporization Questions
• Inventing the BIOstock Services Concept
• Welcome Earthbeat Radio listeners!
• U.S. D.O.E.: Strategies for Reducing Greenhouse Gases
• Ethanol Stocks: Survival of the Fittest

Around the Nation--------------
• CALIFORNIA: Enforcing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Limits
• CALIFORNIA: L.A. Solid Waste Task Force fights for Conversion Technology Reforms in Sacramento
• CALIFORNIA: Air Resources Board tackles Global Warming
• CALIFORNIA: L.A. Politicians Talk Clean Air
• CALIFORNIA PROP 87: Bureaucracy vs. Private Enterprise
• TEXAS: Fossil Fuels... and Fossil Thinking

Around the World-----------------
• L.A. and U.K. Discuss Sustainable Energy

Please forward a link to this digest to anyone you know who would be interested in keeping track of change that will affect us all. They can add their name to the mailing list on the BioConversion Blog.


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September 30, 2006

September 2006 Digest

It has been five years since the alarms rang.

When the Twin Towers were hit many naive assumptions about the limits of zealot behavior were crushed. As they fell, worldwide compacts on human decency (the lives of the innocent) and cultural advancement (the growth of individual freedom and material currency) were shattered. The truth behind our renewed sense of vulnerability became uncomfortably clear - we aren't living in a balanced world.

The political and religious battles will rage on, financed in part by our payments to the region because of our over-dependence on fossil fuels. How do we reduce the intense, cross-cultural friction that exposed this tectonic shift in human relations? What can we do to convert the "feedstocks" of looming catastrophe into new energy and light?

Witness the rustling of positive change all over the world. Energy production is decentralizing, venture capitalists are marshalling their resources, political partisans are finding common cause, a visionary consortium is matching the dovetailing needs of under- and over-developed regions of the world, waste and pollution are being addressed with new biotechnology.

Here are September's stories that give us pause, hope, and direction:

General Topics--------------
• Microdiesel: Bacteria engineered to produce biodiesel
• Advancements in "BioConversion"
• Developing Ethanol's Side-stream Chemicals
• Decentralized Renewable Energy Builds Communities
• 9/11 Observance - Where do YOU stand?
• Both Reds and Blues Go Green on Energy
• Reducing Biofuel Risk through Feedstock Diversification
• Khosla Revs All Cylinders to Back Ethanol
• Energy Venture Capital Funding Jumps in 2006

Vehicles--------------
• Hybrids Plus claims 100+ MPG

Around the Nation--------------
• CALIFORNIA: National Latino Congreso Endorses Conversion Technologies
• CALIFORNIA: Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006
• FLORIDA: County to Vaporize Trash
• IOWA: Ethanol, today and tomorrow

Around the World-----------------
• WORLDWIDE: The Poor as Producers

Please forward a link to this digest to anyone you know who would be interested keeping track of change that will affect us all. They can add their name to the mailing list on the BioConversion Blog.


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August 31, 2006

August 2006 Digest

The time has come for all stakeholders of environmental, energy, and waste disposal initiatives to come together to support the permitting and deployment of conversion technology (CT) facilities. As reported in MSW Management magazine, CTs offer society:
• Increased Recycling.
• Generation of Renewable Energy.
• Reduced Landfill Impacts.
• Offsets To Fossil Fuel Usage.
• Lower Air Emissions.
• Reduced Carbon Emissions.

Rarely are politicians offered such a cornucopia of positive impacts from the implementation of a single, advanced technological solution. Last March, the L.A. City Council voted unanimously to support RENEW L.A. - a 20-year plan to divert waste from landfills using CTs. Let your representatives in your community know that you expect them to act with one voice to support CTs.

Here is a Digest of articles posted on the BioConversion Blog during the month of August, 2006:


General Topics--------------
• Conversion Technologies are Available Today
• The Benefits of Conversion Technologies
• BioConversion Stakeholders’ Gallery
• Recycling’s “China Syndrome”
• U.S. D.O.E. - $2 Billion in Loan Guarantees for Renewable Energy
• Ethanol Costs will Go Down
• U.S. D.O.E.: Funding Awards for Biofuels Research
• Celunol's "wet" biomass conversion process
• Coordinating International Bioenergy Research
• Biofuel Production from Brownfields?
• Organic Carbon Sinks -Terra Preta
• Plasma Gasification and Incineration Compared
• U.S. D.O.E.: Ethanol Growth Faster than Expected

Around the Nation--------------
• CALIFORNIA: Identifying the New Environmentalists
• CALIFORNIA: AB 32 - Capping Greenhouse Gas Emissions
• PENNSYLVANIA: Co-locating Corn and Cellulosic Ethanol Plants
• ILLINOIS: Governor's Energy Plan to create 30,000 Jobs

Around the World--------------
• SOUTH AFRICA: Beating Poverty with Biofuel Jobs
• AFRICA: "Green OPEC" to produce biofuels
• AUSTRALIA: New Ethanol Blending Mandate
• CANADA: Municipal Solid Waste Disposal Options
• JAPAN: Cellulosic Ethanol Initiative Launched

Please forward a link to this digest to anyone you know who would be interested keeping track of change that will affect us all. They can add their name to the mailing list on the BioConversion Blog.


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July 31, 2006

July 2006 Digest

Despite being the world's leading consumer of ethanol (95% of which is imported), California cultivates very little corn. The corn that will be sugar fermented into ethanol at new in-state biorefineries will be trucked in from surrounding states. So the growth of ethanol production in California is dependent on localized deployment of biorefineries whose cellulosic feedstocks include not only agricultural and forestry waste but also unrecycled urban waste.

This sets the stage for the waste stream turf war between the entrenched recycling industry, landfill operators, and the broad-based conversion technology coalition headed by the L.A.-based BioEnergy Producers Association.

Two conferences held in Los Angeles recently provided an inside look at this turf war and are reviewed in a separate section of this month's digest.

Here is a Digest of articles posted on the BioConversion Blog during the month of July, 2006:


REVIEW: Two L.A. Alternative Energy Conferences------------
• The Future of Alternative Fuels in California
• Southern California Emerging Waste Technologies Forum
  
General Topics--------------
• "Super Ethanol" Attracting Investment Attention
• U.S. INFO: Seeking Money to Accelerate Energy Innovation
• U.S. D.O.E.: Roadmap for Developing Cleaner Fuels
• Research Tool for Assessing International Energy Agreements
• Spinning “Gold” Out of Trash
• Could Ethanol Boom Hurt the World's Poor?
• Ethanol Net Energy Balance - A Response to Dr. Pimental
• MIT: Redesigning Life to Make Ethanol

Vehicles-------------------
• Ford Should Build Flexible Fueled, Plug in Hybrids

Around the Nation--------------
• CALIFORNIA: Governor Announces BioEnergy Action Plan
• CALIFORNIA: The Future of Alternative Fuels in CA?

Around the World--------------
• BRAZIL: Impact of the Ethanol Gold Rush
• INDONESIA: $22 Billion on Biofuels by 2010
• ASIA: Linking Asian Climate Change to Energy Future
• EUROPE: Report on Bioenergy and the Environment


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June 21, 2006

June 2006 Digest

The resolution of the world's energy problems will require not only the heavy lifting of engineering R&D and deployment, but also regulatory and incentive policy reform, and major investment secured by governmental guarantees.

Here is a Digest of articles posted on the BioConversion Blog during the month of June, 2006.
 
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General Topics--------------
• New NASDAQ Index for Tracking Clean-Energy Companies
• Using Algae to Recycle Flue Gas into Biofuels
• Syngas Fermentation - The Next Generation of Ethanol
• BioEnergy Int'l Licenses Biocatalyst Technology to Purac
• Ecological Community Loan Pool
• Euro Environmentalists Warn Cure Worse than Disease
• Worldwatch: We really are in the middle of a paradigm shift.

Mass Media Reviews--------------
• MOVIE: Who Killed the Electric Car?

Around the Nation--------------

California
• CALIFORNIA: San Diego Gas & Electric Adds Renewable Energy via Biomass

Minnesota
• MINNESOTA: Law Endorses Flexible Fuel PHEV

Around the World--------------
• INDIA: Mandatory Ethanol Blending Now Likely
• JAPAN: From E3 to E10 by 2020
• LAMNET: Latin America Thematic Network on Bioenergy
• AFRICA: BioPact Promotes European/African Energy Collaboration


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May 30, 2006

May 2006 Digest

As May closed this year, construction of the 100th American ethanol refinery was completed with many more on the way. But how soon will the next generation of refineries use cellulosic biomass as their primary feedstock in place of corn kernels or sugar cane? Proliferating stories about wood, bagasse, switchgrass, and citrus offered a cornucopia of feedstock options - each appropriate to different regions of the world.

May also saw the hyping of alternative fuels in mainstream media. 60 Minutes, Dateline, and Larry King Live all carried stories on ethanol citing the advantages of cellulosic feedstock over corn. Al Gore's An Inconvenient Truth about global warming and greenhouse gases also hit select theaters in New York and Los Angeles to enthusiastic openings.

Here is a Digest of articles posted on the BioConversion Blog during the month of May, 2006.
 
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General Topics--------------
• BRI Energy - Converting Blended Feedstock into Ethanol
• IRS Publishes Tax Credit for E85 Pumps
• Debunking Switchgrass "Rural Legends"
• Renewable Electricity Standards Compared by State
• NY Times: "Miles per Cob" - Redefining CAFE Standards
• World Bank Uses Brazil as Funding Benchmark
• Professor Kammen - The Future of Cellulosic Ethanol
• Renewable Energy Programs & Tariffs - Regulator's Handbook
• Biofuels: Think Outside the Barrel
• Creating a Decentralized Energy Network
• Converting Landfills to Energy - Landfill Gas
• Microbiologists Engineer Bacteria to Produce Ethanol

Vehicle Technology---------------
• CALIFORNIA: Greenhouse Gas Legislation for Vehicles
• PHEVs storm Capitol Hill

Mass Media Reviews--------------
• CBS 60 Minutes: The Ethanol Solution
• MSNBC Dateline: Vinod Khosla on Cellulosic Ethanol
• CNN Larry King Live: "Kick the Oil Habit"
• MOVIE: Al Gore's "An Inconvenient Truth"

Around the Nation--------------
• Renewable Electricity Standards Compared by State

California
• CALIFORNIA: CEC Addresses Clean Cities Congress
• CALIFORNIA: Greenhouse Gas Legislation for Vehicles
• Californians for Clean Energy Campaign

Florida
• FLORIDA: Citrus as Feedstock - a Farm-to-Fuel Update
• FLORIDA: Commission Issues Mandate Supporting Renewable Generating Facilities

Louisiana
• LOUISIANA: Cellulosic Feedstock Conversion Deployments

Oregon
• OREGON: Cellulose Inventory Report

New York
• NEW YORK: Bio-Fuels Production Tax Credit

Iowa
• IOWA: Governor Signs E85 Bill

Around the World--------------
• CHINA: The Food vs. Energy Feedstock Conundrum
• FRANCE: Converting Woody Biomass into Ethanol
• World Bank Uses Brazil as Funding Benchmark

Venture capitalist Vinod Khosla made a splash with an exclusive interview on Dateline, a keynote address at MIT, and a co-authored article in the NY Times. Expect to hear more from him as the Californians for Clean Energy Campaign initiative heats up this summer.


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April 30, 2006

April 2006 Digest

This April, the ethanol distribution infrastructure buckled as many oil refiners decided en masse to switch from petroelum-based MTBE additives to ethanol to meet seasonal blend requirements. It was abruptness of this quick demand decision that caused high prices of gasoline as lack of blended product led to shortages in several American east coast states.

When prices topped $3.00 for Regular the hard reality and future implications could not be ignored. Mass transit started looking better and better to consumers while politicians scrambled to appear that they had a "better way" to minimize the problem. They earned a cynical response.

Here is a Digest of articles posted on the BioConversion Blog during the month of April, 2006.
 
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General Topics--------------
• UC/Berkeley Study: Reducing U.S. Oil Dependence
• ACE's State-by- State Ethanol Handbook
• Green Jobs for America: Two Reports
• Visionary Investors Cast Their Eye on Ethanol
• ACORE's Biomass Coordinating Council Workshop (BCC)
• Earth Day 2006 - Clean Energy: Time to Get Practical
• The Next Green Revolution
• U.N.'s FAO to manage International BioEnergy Platform
• FAQ: BioConversion Blog

Vehicle Technology---------------
• Plug-in Partners National PHEV Initiative

Book Reviews--------------
• A Thousand Barrels a Second by Peter Tertzakian
• Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday

Around the Nation--------------
• CALIFORNIA: Bioenergy Action Plan - NEVC Recommendations
• CALIFORNIA: Cal/EPA Climate Action Team Report Released
• CALIFORNIA: Are New Taxes a Viable Option?
• CALIFORNIA: Bioenergy Action Plan - Final Released
• CALIFORNIA: Gov. Directs State Agencies to Expand 'Bio-Fuels'
• CALIFORNIA: Gov. Schwarzenegger's Biofuels Executive Order
• FLORIDA: Farm to Fuel Program
• WASHINGTON: Washington State Approves New Biofuels Requirement

Around the World--------------
• U.N.'s FAO to manage International BioEnergy Platform
• China, Ethanol, and the NY Times
• BOOK: Mao: The Unknown Story by Jung Chang and Jon Halliday
• Central America: Biofuel Investment Update
• AFRICA: Growing Biofuel

Worldwide trends for renewable fuel development have never been better. With high gas prices, the motivation and earnings potential are strong. But, as Alex Steffen writes in "The Next Green Revolution" article for Wired magazine, education of some reactionary environmentalists needs to take place. Their strident demonstrations against progressive technological change frustrate investors, labor unions, and local governments and prolong the threatening and toxic status quo.

Noticably frustrated by the slow rate of change is California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger whose Bioenergy Action Plan has led to enactment of Executive Order S-06-06 which directs state agencies to take major steps toward the widespread use and production of biofuels. We'll keep an eye on how this impacts pending state legislation.


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