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Isanti has gained state-wide attention for its Ever Cat Fuels biodiesel facility project. Mayor George Wimmer announced Isanti won the Economic Development Association of Minnesota Business Recruitment award during the May 6 Isanti City Council meeting. Community Development Director Carla Vita said the business recruitment award is presented annually by EDAM, who received two to three times the amount of normal submissions. The city was notified it had won the award May 1 and will be presented the honor during a ceremony June 18, held during EDAM’s summer conference at Ruttger’s Bay Lodge in Deerwood, Minn. “This is a great...

Diesel owners who switch to cooking grease can run afoul of the law. Just ask the governor. Dave Eck, a Half Moon Bay mechanic, had attracted a media spotlight with his fleet of vehicles fueled by used fryer grease from a local chowder house. So when Sacramento called, he figured officials wanted advice on promoting alternative fuels. Not at all. The government rang to notify Eck that he was a tax cheat. He was scolded for failing to get a "diesel fuel supplier's license," reporting quarterly how many gallons of grease he burns, and paying a tax on each gallon....

US Senator Pete Domenici (R-NM), ranking member of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, introduced the American Energy Production Act of 2008 (S.2958) to increase domestic production of oil and natural gas and to fund the development of oil shale and coal-to-liquids technology. Eighteen other senators co-sponsored. Included in the bill is language for a coal-derived fuels mandate. The bill would open up the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) as well as the Atlantic and Pacific regions of the Outer Continental Shelf for exploration and production; and lift the one-year moratorium on developing oil shale in Colorado, Wyoming...

Continental has introduced a new piezo injector with direct drive and closed-loop needle control, enabling engine developers to further reduce consumption and emissions. The new injector offers further potential savings by simplifying other emissions-related components such as sensors and control algorithms, according to Continental. “Even vehicles in higher weight categories will now meet the Euro 6 emissions standard without nitrogen oxides aftertreatment,” said Wendelin Klügl, Senior Vice President, Powertrain System & Technology at the 29th International Vienna Motor Symposium. A piezo injector uses a piezo actuator, consisting of a stack of more than 300 wafer-thin ceramic platelets, to control the...

Iowa With the rapid expansion of ethanol and biodiesel production in Iowa, there are questions about possible uses for what remains after these alternative fuels leave the plant. So far, the use of ethanol by-products in animal feed has received most of the attention. But researchers at Iowa State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Services also are studying a biodiesel by-product in swine and poultry feed. Biodiesel often is made from soybean or vegetable oil, with crude glycerin the resulting by-product. This compound, which currently is used in such things as hand lotions, cosmetics and shampoo,...

AUSTIN, Texas — A newly created microbe produces cellulose that can be turned into ethanol and other biofuels, report scientists from The University of Texas at Austin who say the microbe could provide a significant portion of the nation's transportation fuel if production can be scaled up.Along with cellulose, the cyanobacteria developed by Professor R. Malcolm Brown Jr. and Dr. David Nobles Jr. secrete glucose and sucrose. These simple sugars are the major sources used to produce ethanol. "The cyanobacterium is potentially a very inexpensive source for sugars to use for ethanol and designer fuels," says Nobles, a research associate...

It's beginning to look like the near-term technology for making diesels clean enough to meet 2010 emissions rules will involve urea. Or perhaps we should say, MORE urea-Mercedes alone currently offers four diesel models in North America, including the E320 sedan, that currently rely on a urea-based emissions system. You have probably heard that urea is a way of carrying ammonia, which can be used to catalyze NOx. Selective Catalyst Reduction (SCR) systems are now being developed that use urea to generate ammonia, which in turn cuts NOx. As the dieselization of North America progresses as predicted, there's going...

Company is One of Only Two Producers of the Alternative Fuel in DFW EULESS, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Direct Fuels, the largest independent regional fuel distributor and specialty refiner in North Texas, has opened a biodiesel production facility at its refinery in Euless, Texas. This makes the company one of two producers of biodiesel in North Texas, yet the only one located at a fuel terminal so biodiesel can be blended directly into petroleum diesel, as per customer need. Direct Fuels has implemented a production technology that allows significant flexibility in terms of the choice of feedstock used to produce the biodiesel. Initially,...

Seaboard Foods, a U.S. pork producing company, has announced the official start up of its subsidiary biodiesel plant – High Plains Bioenergy. The facility, located in Guymon, Okla., conducted start-up procedures in March. The first product shipment was delivered during the second week of April, according to company spokesman David Eaheart. The plant is expected to produce 30 MMgy annually, although Eaheart wasn’t sure if the plant would reach nameplate capacity by the end of this year. The project has cost Seaboard more than $40 million to date. Final cost totals have yet to be released. High Plains is colocated...

A nasty little biodiesel conflict is brewing, fueled by foreign oil, paid for by U.S. citizens and playing a part in the decline of Europe’s biodiesel infrastructure. My company, Euro Marketing Tools, sits squarely in the middle of the conflict, and we have a worm’s-eye view of the issues as we work on projects in the United States and Europe. The so-called “splash-and-dash” issue involves the swift passage of biodiesel from all over the world through U.S. ports to pick up a couple of gallons of diesel fuel and collect up to $9 million in federal blending credits per load....

For most of the past century, diesel engines have been associated with smoky, smelly trucks and buses. Now there's a surprise: A new generation of diesel-powered passenger cars is delivering punchy performance and emission levels so low they pass muster in all 50 U.S. states. Boasting good fuel efficiency, the new "clean diesels" may well overtake hybrids in the market for eco-cars. Built mostly by overseas carmakers, improved diesels already account for more than 50% of new-car sales in Europe. North America is the next target. Volkswagen (VLKAY), BMW, Mercedes-Benz (DAI), Honda (HMC), Kia, Mahindra, and others have announced nearly...

The new four-cylinder diesel family offers improved performance, torque, emission properties and fuel economy. Mercedes-Benz has introduced a new generation of four-cylinder diesel engines with improved performance, torque, emission properties and fuel economy. The new engine family will supersede four different powerplants. The new engine will debut in the C-Class this fall, but will eventually be fitted in a number of variants across a wide range of model series, including the Mercedes-Benz Sprinter. Mercedes-Benz says it also earmarking the engine family for use in hybrid vehicles. In its most powerful variant, the new 2,143 cc four-cylinder unit delivers up...

Paul Reinking, foreground, tests a biodiesel-reactor system recently installed at Middletown Biofuels in Dauphin County. Allen Legrande is plant manager. Reinking works for the equipment's manufacturer, Ohio-based Arisdyne Systems. Photo/Amy Spangler Central Pennsylvania's biodiesel industry has a faint pulse, but it's still alive. Producers of the alternative fuel said they've found ways to hang on for several more months in hopes that prices for raw materials will continue to drop and the state Legislature will approve subsidy bills to help the industry stay afloat until it becomes profitable. Last month, some producers said they were in dire straits and...

The North-East was rocked last night by the news that D1 Oils is pulling outof the region. Deputy Business Editor Deborah Johnson investigates BIOFUELS producer D1 Oils yesterday announced it is planning to close its North-East refinery as it battles to revive the loss-making business. D1, hailed as one of the pioneers of the Teesside process industry, said its hand has been forced by spiralling production costs and pressure from cheap imports of biodiesel. Forty jobs will be lost if the goahead is given for the Middlesbrough plant - previously D1's global headquarters - to close. A 30-day consultation process...

Rumors are rumors. Usually there's a grain of truth that gets rolled into something much larger, even though all that's true is the grain that started it. Recently, reports circulated across north-central Indiana that biodiesel plants were making cooking oil instead of soy biodiesel. The not so subtle insinuation by the time the rumor reached Indiana Prairie Farmer was that biodiesel sales were so sluggish and the industry was in such trouble that they were turning to cooking oil instead. Based on reports made for Indiana Prairie Farmer by Darrell Boone, a writer from Wabash, after investigating, it appears the...

Plant physiologist Glen Kertz believes algae can some day be competitive as a source for biofuel. ANTHONY, Texas (CNN) -- Texas may be best known for "Big Oil." But the oil that could some day make a dent in the country's use of fossil fuels is small. Microscopic, in fact: algae. Literally and figuratively, this is green fuel. "Algae is the ultimate in renewable energy," Glen Kertz, president and CEO of Valcent Products, told CNN while conducting a tour of his algae greenhouse on the outskirts of El Paso. Kertz, a plant physiologist and entrepreneur, holds about 20 patents....

Arlington, Virginia - Hillary Clinton has proposed an aggressive plan to reduce our reliance on foreign oil, address global warming, and promote alternative energy. Setting ambitious targets, the plan will reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 80 percent from 1990 levels by 2050, and cut foreign oil imports by two-thirds from 2030 projected levels, more than 10 million barrels per day. Her plan focuses on improving energy efficiency, moving to clean, renewable sources of energy, creating green manufacturing. By transitioning from a carbon-based economy to a green, energy efficient economy, Hillary’s plan will help unleash a wave of private sector innovation...

Jatropha curcas, a tree-shrub that shows promise as a new biodiesel crop in the U.S. that could one day power engines and generators The roots for a new energy crop in Southwest Florida have been planted. In LaBelle, a company called My Dream Fuel LLC is cultivating Jatropha curcas, a tree-shrub that shows promise as a new biodiesel crop in the U.S. that could one day power engines and generators. Nearly 1 million seedlings are in the ground at a nursery in Hendry County and promoters are looking for farmers – here and across the country – to raise...

Cleans out the tailpipe and the wallet Will Americans finally warm to diesel cars? EARLY last year, this column predicted that a new generation of lean and clean diesel cars would soon be heading for American shores (“Rudolf’s revenge”, February 9th, 2007). On cue, Mercedes-Benz, BMW and Volkswagen have started to introduce American versions of their latest diesel models that are clean enough to be sold even in environmentally conscious California. Japanese and American carmakers aren’t far behind. Diesels are seen as an answer to soaring oil prices. While ludicrously low by European and Japanese standards, pump prices across...

MORGAN HILL, Calif. - Police said Wednesday an Illinois man was arrested after he allegedly stole more than 300 gallons of kitchen grease from a Burger King restaurant in Morgan Hill, Calif. .... they received a call from two people at 2:40 p.m. Tuesday who observed David Richardson, 49, pumping the inedible grease from an on-site storage tank into his restaurant oils truck. While he was siphoning the grease into his truck, the restaurant manager approached him and he handed her a blank service contract, police said in a statement. According to the manager, Richardson then quickly stopped siphoning and...

Transportation Gasoline Grows On Trees Apparently scientists (and some of our readers, surely) have known that we can grow oil for years, and not in the grow-corn-make-oil kind of way. The Brazilian Copaifera langsdorfii can be tapped (ala maple syrup) for a natural diesel fuel that requires only simple filtering before being poured into a truck. (This picture is of the tree's cells.) The catch? The diesel only has a shelf-life of about 3 months.So how many trees would it take to match the oil output of, say, Saudi Arabia? Check our stats after the jump. Saudi Arabia Oil Output...

If your diet consists entirely of bacon, you probably haven’t noticed that food prices in the United States are rising. Practically everything else is going up, and the respite for lovers of pork bellies is temporary. Last week, the American Farm Bureau Federation, an organization of farmers and ranchers, announced the results of its quarterly Marketbasket Survey, and the outlook for producers and consumers is not great. Every quarter since 1989, the federation has conducted an informal survey to determine the price of a basket of 16 basic food items an average American would purchase at a local grocery store....

From his Cessna a mile above the southern Amazon, John Carter looks down on the destruction of the world's greatest ecological jewel. He watches men converting rain forest into cattle pastures and soybean fields with bulldozers and chains. He sees fires wiping out such gigantic swaths of jungle that scientists now debate the "savannization" of the Amazon. Brazil just announced that deforestation is on track to double this year; Carter, a Texas cowboy with all the subtlety of a chainsaw, says it's going to get worse fast. "It gives me goose bumps," says Carter, who founded a nonprofit to promote...

Tim Dutrow transforming used vegetable oil into cost-effective fuel. SANTA ROSA BEACH — Tim Dutrow brews biodiesel for his Volkswagen in his back yard. Dutrow, 44, got interested in alternative fuels a few years ago as a way to help the environment, but mainly to keep money out of the pockets of Middle East nations. “I save some money, quite a bit, but that’s not why I do this,” he said. “We are in bed with people that don’t care about us. We are really over a barrel with them.” Dutrow went to several workshops in 2006 and surfed the...

Audi TT 2.0 TDI quattro. Audi is introducing the Audi TT 2.0 TDI Coupe quattro and Audi TT Roadster 2.0 TDI quattro—the first series-production sports cars to feature diesel engines. The two-liter engine generates 125 kW (170 hp) of power and 350 Nm (258.15 lb-ft) of torque, with fuel consumption of 5.3 liters and 5.5 liters per 100 km (44.4 mpg and 42.8 mpg) on the TT Coupe and TT Roadster respectively. This corresponds to CO2 emissions of 140 g/km and 145 g/km. The TT Coupe quattro with the 2.0 TDI accelerates from zero to 100 kph (62 mph)...

The 2008 Duramax Diesel 6.6L V-8 Turbo. General Motors Corp. (GM) will invest $69 million in its DMAX diesel engine plant in Moraine, Ohio to manufacture a new Duramax 6.6-liter V-8 turbo diesel engine that will meet 2010 emissions standards. DMAX Limited is a joint venture between GM and Isuzu Motors Limited and was established as a diesel engine company in 1998. The 2010 model year 6.6-liter V-8 Duramax diesel will use a selective catalytic reduction NOx after-treatment system with a diesel particulate filter to help achieve the 2010 Tier 2 Bin 5 and LEV 2 emissions standards, and...

Daimler will introduce its new Mercedes-Benz Vision GLK Freeside concept vehicle, a diesel-powered compact luxury SUV, at the upcoming North American International Auto Show in Detroit, 13-27 January 2008. A production version of the GLK Freeside is scheduled to launch in the fall of 2008. The GLK Freeside is powered by a 2.2-liter, four-cylinder BLUETEC diesel, combined with a seven-speed automatic transmission and the new 4MATIC all-wheel drive. The rear camshaft-drive engine delivers 125 kW (170 hp) of power and features a fourth-generation common rail direct injection with an injection pressure of 2000 bar and a two-stage turbocharger system....

BORKEN, Germany -- The European Union's dream of using vegetable-based diesel fuel in cars to cut oil imports and the pollution that causes global warming is turning sour. The bloc made a big bet on biodiesel fuels in 2003, agreeing that its governments would phase in tax breaks and rules to encourage their production and use. The bet seemed to make sense. Most Europeans drive diesel cars, making ethanol -- the U.S. clean fuel of choice for gasoline-powered cars -- impractical. Biodiesel can be mixed with regular diesel fuel and, when blended, doesn't need any special pumps or engine-design changes....

The European Union's dream of using vegetable-based diesel fuel in cars to cut oil imports and the pollution that causes global warming is turning sour. The bloc made a big bet on biodiesel fuels in 2003, agreeing that its governments would phase in tax breaks and rules to encourage their production and use... Mirroring the U.S. experience with ethanol, European companies rushed to make biodiesel out of a range of things, including rapeseed crops and used McDonald's frying oil. Low raw-material costs and generous tax breaks meant margins were high. By last year, Europe's annual capacity to make the fuel...

MTG is one of the pathways for converting syngas to transportation fuel. Both the Fischer-Tropsch and MTG processes are 3-step processes. Thermal efficiencies are essentially governed by the thermal efficiencies of the syngas production process and feed. Click to enlarge. Source: ExxonMobil and Uhde DKRW Advanced Fuels (DKRW) has selected ExxonMobil Research and Engineering Company’s (EMRE) methanol-to-gasoline (MTG) technology as part of DKRW’s coal to liquids (CTL) project in Medicine Bow, WY. DKRW recently stated that it has switched the initial finished product of its planned CTL plant from diesel to gasoline. The Medicine Bow project will gasify the...

WASHINGTON — When crafting the energy bill compromise headed for approval in the House today, lawmakers plucked out language intended to ax ConocoPhillips' plan to produce diesel fuel from Tyson Foods' leftover animal fat. But at the same time, lawmakers yanked a provision that would have extended a federal tax credit that makes the whole project viable. The partners are pushing ahead with their plans, while facing the possibility that the economics of their project could change dramatically by the end of next year. Lawmakers' failure to extend the tax credit with this legislation "does not necessarily put the project...

Royal Dutch Shell and HR Biopetroleum announced Tuesday they will build a testing laboratory on the Big Island to grow marine algae and produce vegetable oil for conversion into biofuel. Shell and Hawaii-based HR Biopetroleum have formed a joint company, Cellana, to develop the project. Construction of the facility is to begin immediately on land leased from the Natural Energy Laboratory of Hawaii Authority in Kona. The algae strains used will be native to Hawaii or approved by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture. The companies described the project as a "pilot" to test the viability of using algae for biofuels....

2nd thoughts on biodiesel Chevron Corp. has signaled it may stop investing in a biodiesel fuel plant in Galveston, clouding the future of an operation that had been counting on the oil company's backing to expand, according to people familiar with the situation. The oil giant's hesitation has created uncertainty for the plant's Houston-based owner, Standard Renewable Energy, which runs the plant through an affiliate called BioSelect Fuels. The companies are still negotiating, the sources said, and San Ramon, Calif.-based Chevron still may decide to increase its investment in the project. Chevron would say only that it remains a partner...

Editor's Note: This article is part of an occasional LiveScience series about ideas to ease humanity's impact on the environment. Biodiesel made from vegetable oil seems to have good green credentials. Several musicians fill their tour buses with it, and environmental entrepreneurs brew it themselves from recycled kitchen grease. However, expectations that this renewable fuel will deliver significant reductions in greenhouse gases may be too high. "The general belief is that biodiesel offers a huge benefit from a global warming standpoint," said Russell Heinen, vice president of SRI Consulting, which last month released a biofuel report for the chemical industry....

Sketch of the diesel Concept-RA Mitsubishi Motors Corporation (MMC) and Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. (MMNA) will premiere the Mitsubishi Concept-RA Tier 2 Bin 5-compliant diesel at the 2008 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit in January. Mitsubishi says that the vehicle is being shown in Detroit due to its close links with the Mitsubishi Eclipse, which has successfully sold in North America for many years. If the vehicle receives a positive response from Europe, it is likely to be launched into these markets “in due course”. The concept features the S-AWC vehicle dynamics control system driveline...

New 'FatBox' Device Produces Biodiesel from Solid Animal Fats Fat may no longer be a negative thing, at least when it comes to producing biodiesel. FatBox, a device developed by Pacific Natural Energy (PNE) may make fat a valuable resource. It has the ability to transform fat into fuel. The process uses raw animal fats, or feedstocks, that are loaded into the FatBox, which then liquefies them to be used in biodiesel production. It takes approximately 15 pounds of animal fats to yield one gallon of usable feedstock. Pacific Natural is also the developer of the BioBox which makes vegetable...

CHICAGO, July 12 — Biodiesel produced from soybeans produces more usable energy and reduces greenhouse gases more than corn-based ethanol, making it more deserving of subsidies, according to a study being published this month in The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study, done by researchers at the University of Minnesota and at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn., points to the environmental benefits of the biodiesel over ethanol made from corn, stating that ethanol provides 25 percent more energy a gallon than is required for its production, while soybean biodiesel generates 93 percent more energy. The study’s...

Alters Picture of Diesel Engine Benefits Black carbon—contained in soot from the combustion of biomass and fossil fuels—may be responsible for around 16% of the gross warming the planet is currently experiencing and may be the second-most significant global warming pollutant after carbon dioxide and ahead of methane, according to testimony provided by five scientists before the US House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform in October. Because of their increased fuel efficiency relative to gasoline-engined vehicles, diesels are seen as an improvement overs gasoline vehicles with respect to global warming issues. However, once soot warming is factored in, the...

Crude glycerin is a low-value byproduct of the growing biodiesel industry. But one company, Glycos Biotechnologies Inc., sees potential for the product as a feedstock for ethanol production. Last year, a way to connect the ethanol and biodiesel industries was revealed when it was determined that biodiesel could be a value-added product for ethanol plants through corn oil extraction technology. This year, researchers at Rice University in Houston have discovered yet another link. This new concept is centered on a technology that converts glycerin, a byproduct of biodiesel production, into ethanol. Ramon Gonzalez and Syed Shams Yazdani have identified the...

Green Flight International and Biodiesel Solutions partner to set a new precedent in the use of renewable fuels in transportation. RENO, NV. (October 5)… Aviation history was made earlier this week in the high desert at the Reno-Stead Airport when an L-29 military aircraft piloted by Carol Sugars and Douglas Rodante succeeded in completing the world’s first jet flight powered solely by 100% biodiesel fuel. The Czechoslovakian-made aircraft is rated to fly on a variety of fuels including heating oil, making it the preferred platform for testing biodiesel in jet engines. The experimental test flights were conducted starting with a...

Economics teaches us that there is no such thing as a free lunch. Anyone that tells you differently is probably trying to sell you something. In this case, the “something being sold” is bio-fuels. Bio-fuels, the transformation of corn, sugar, soybeans and other crops into motor fuels, have taken on a new sense of urgency due to, in part, the global warming consensus. Global warming advocates push regulations that mandate ethanol additives in cars, as well as other policies that encourage the U.S. to consume more bio-fuels. Furthermore, these policies are sold as a win-win policy that reduces the country’s...

Everyone seems to think that ethanol is a good way to make cars greener. Everyone is wrong SOMETIMES you do things simply because you know how to. People have known how to make ethanol since the dawn of civilisation, if not before. Take some sugary liquid. Add yeast. Wait. They have also known for a thousand years how to get that ethanol out of the formerly sugary liquid and into a more or less pure form. You heat it up, catch the vapour that emanates, and cool that vapour down until it liquefies. The result burns. And when Henry Ford...

(Business 2.0 Magazine) -- Way back in 2006, John "Bish" Neuhauser was the poster child of the biodiesel business. The shaggy-looking snow groomer for the Canyons ski area near Park City, Utah, starred in the acclaimed Sundance Film Festival documentary on global warming, "Everything's Cool," in which he made his own biodiesel out of restaurant grease and converted all of the resort's vehicles to run on it. In 2007, however, Neuhauser no longer has to brew his own fuel - he just drives to nearby Salt Lake City, where manufactured soybean biodiesel is now available at seven pumps. "Making it...

At the Frankfurt Motor Show, Honda gave its new advanced 2.2-liter diesel engine a name—the i-DTEC—and put two of them on display. One, the result of “phase one” development, complies with the coming Euro 5 emissions standards. This engine will debut in the new Accord range in Europe in mid-2008. The second “phase two” engine complies with the US EPA Tier 2 Bin 5 and future Euro 6 emissions standards through the use of a new NOx-reducing catalytic converter. (Earlier post.) With the reduction of engine-out NOx resulting from its combustion system (Premixed Charge Compression Ignition, PCCI), the engine...

Peanuts may be elbowing their way into the biodiesel fuel market. Agricultural Research Service scientists are searching for economically feasible peanut varieties for that very purpose. Agronomist Wilson Faircloth at the Agricultural Research Service National Peanut Research Laboratory in Dawson, Ga., and Daniel Geller, a collaborative engineer at the University of Georgia, are testing a peanut called Georganic. It’s not suited to current commercial edible standards for peanuts, but is high in oil and has low production input costs. Georganic — or similar varieties — will likely be the future of peanut biodiesel because it can be planted and grown...

Scientists at the Indian Institute of Chemical Technology have found a much better way to make biodiesel. Their new method could lower the cost and increase the energy efficiency of fuel production. Instead of mixing the ingredients and heating them for hours, the chemical engineers pass sunflower oil and methanol through a bed of pellets made from fungal spores. An enzyme produced by the fungus does the work -- making biodiesel with impressive efficiency. Last Monday, Ravichandra Potumarthi showed off his work during a poster session at the International Conference on Bioengineering and Nanotechnology. After returning to his lab in...

FALLBROOK ---- It's lean, it's green and it will power your machine. That, essentially, is Don Lougee's and Ed Hatcher's pitch to potential distributors of their diesel-fuel additive. Lougee sensed an opportunity two years ago when he saw a television documentary on home-based methods to produce biodiesel fuel. He had a diesel-powered Ford Excursion, and thought diesel recycled from used oil might help him save money. About the same time, Lougee and Hatcher became aware of tougher air-quality regulations that would require lower-sulfur blends of diesel in California by September 2006 ---- 97 percent lower. Sulfur compounds in the fuel,...

A demonstration in Fife on Wednesday from Green Power, a company that says it can turn garbage into fuel in three minutes, amazed many of the several dozen spectators and left at least a few wanting a better explanation of the science behind the technology. The Issaquah-based company wants to build its first U.S. plant in Fife on private property inside the Puyallup Tribe of Indians reservation. “Our goal is to take care of the waste problem and take care of the (high) fuel prices,” Michael Spitzauer, the company’s CEO, told reporters and onlookers after pouring some of the newly...

Despite my staunch belief that we do need to alleviate our dependence on fossil fuels, I cannot help but become irritated with the incessant din streaming from the mouths of farmers greenies and congressmen alike. You can't escape it, so why don't we all stop trying? From television commercials, to corporate branding and our elected puppets, everyone is deputizing alternative energy, and more specifically biofuels, as the be all and end all to our energy dilemma. Energy What many fail to realize, however, is the sheer immensity of this task. The amount of energy we collectively produce from fossil fuels...

....Earth Biofuels lost $25.5 million in the year's first quarter, and $67.5 million in all of 2006...... (See link for rest of story)