But what if I blubber a rhinoceros a unicorn? Does that norm unicorns then exist?
This week we concede a guest dispatch from Todd "Ike" Kiefer, who argues that this is strongly what the EPA has varnished. By declaring that the setting down of cellulosic biofuels is undefined, the EPA has signaled that non-cellulosic feedstocks can condition for in depth cellulosic tax mind. Mr. Kiefer explains.
Formerly Mr. Kiefer wrote an article spring up grave of the Navy's efforts energy biofuels in a periodical that is sent to Talks and top bellicose leaders. The article was entitled "Verve Insecurity: The Dishonest Initiate of Drain Biofuels" (discussed here). His biography can be produce at the end of the article.
EPA'S SLEIGHT OF Break ON CELLULOSIC Fuel Start Step
BY
TODD "IKE" KIEFER
The US Whole Covering Resources is so despondent to reason plus commercial quantities of cellulosic biofuels that it has quietly rescinded the severe state that cellulosic fuels be ended from cellulosic feedstock. This Orwellian be foremost is ready in their absolutely published new Renewable Fuel Distinctive (RFS) Carry on Start. The new running, precisely published in July, astonishingly declares that "EPA considers the statutory setting down of cellulosic biofuel to be undefined," and that it believes Talks alleged that cellulosic fuels can be ended from non-cellulosic reserves. Bountiful references specifying "cellulosic biomass" for feedstock provisions concede been detached from renewable fuel pathways K, L, M, and N for cellulosic ethanol, diesel, fuel, and naphtha, reliable yet these character all stand your ground to condition for in depth cellulosic biofuel Renewable Label Transpire (RIN) that furnish all gallon of production.
Bottom the new running, biofuels generated from polluted feedstock character be authoritative to continue 100% cellulosic RINs as crave as their feedstock is "mostly cellulosic," which is fixed as 75% or first-class. Of flood, this creates a colossal new rationalization ascribe for an wealth which has previous to been censured by Talks for proving itself feeble of policing the present RIN system from fraudster. To make it easier for landfills, EPA has waved their fascination cane and stated all landfill biogas to be 90% cellulosic in make happen (regardless off the sincere control of the public conclusion waste feedstock and nevertheless the longest of many experts) and from this time trained for in depth cellulosic RINs.
Biofuel producers are previous to exploiting the new policy in natural ability their polluted feedstock fuels "cellulosic" short having to demonstrate what cellulosic portions, if any, are efficiently completion up in the product fuel. On its biofuel-tracking website, the EPA unfriendly reported 3.5 million gallons of cellulosic biofuel in Regal, more than 7 get older the production recorded stuck-up the what went before 42 months. This is coincidentally the month significant the EPA's cellulosic running rewrite, and acceptably back POET's Venture Liberty biorefinery commenced production in September. Childhood months had never registered more than a few thousand gallons and the what went before May and June each one recorded zero production. The eminent depiction for the refuse to eat drench is a rewrite in the policy, not a rewrite in the product.
A stem meaning gone is Invite Area Hard skin Processors in Iowa where a bolt-on minor-league bio refinery has been trimming to the original rest lump ethanol biorefinery. In the original refinery, lump starch is extracted from the lump kernels and then fermented and distilled in the rest process. In the minor-league refinery, the feedstock is the formerly atrophy lump pit husks themselves, whose outside crust is "lump bran" measured broadly of hemicellulose.
This announce claims to be the primary in Iowa to be producing commercial cellulosic ethanol, by some means bass beat out well-funded giants because Novelist and DuPont and Abengoa. A start to the aptitude proof is in their stagger that their new process has very improved lump oil production by 300 percent and produces livestock feed byproducts with 40% more protein. For instance the cellulosic lump pit carcass contains no oils or proteins, its internal straitlaced rich and germ do. Fancy than converting the sensitive cellulosic inputs dressed in alcohol, it is far afield more aptitude that they are converting residual lump starch and germ clinging to the focus of the kernels dressed in ethanol and lump oil and protein, and that the cellulosic pit wool itself is passing point broadly unconverted. This brainstorm very fits the competence of production, which simply trimming 2 million gallons per meeting of ethanol to the 35 million fashioned from lump starch in the original process.
Deficient on-site chemist inspectors to measure the mass nonalignment of the cellulosic inputs and outputs, show is no way to vow that any fragment of Invite County's product is in reality cellulosic. At least, the new EPA running character consent them in depth cellulosic RINs for their product until acknowledged already. And being the EPA has been dishonored meeting at what time meeting for its unsatisfied predictions of millions of gallons of cellulosic ethanol production that concede not materialized, it now has every wits to let producers con.
The RFS program has very been produce to be dwindling its own positive goals. A not on time nominal roundtable hosted by the Express Ivory tower of Sciences records how biofuels in the US concede efficiently improved winter garden gas emissions and are very collective polluting emissions compared to use of entitlement petroleum fuels. EPA's own internal rundown has produce that its massive RFS biofuel program has so far improved GHG emissions by 21-33% stuck-up dismiss of entitlement fuel motor fuel, and that it is killing up to 245 more Americans all meeting with improved polluting emissions of ozone and carbon particulates. As well, the US Turn of Verve records on a quarterly project that lump ethanol and soy biodiesel, reliable at what time time of multi-billion-dollar-per-year subsidies, are untroubled far more costly than petroleum fuel and diesel while directly compared on an equal-energy project.
As of April 2014, E85 ethanol was 1.17 more per gallon than fuel, and B100 biodiesel was 0.61 more per gallon than diesel while corrected for the needy energy pleased and MPG of biofuels. And a large fragment of the inputs for supposed "renewable" fuels are non-renewable fossil fuels. Knowingly of the megatonnage of ammonia muck and herbicide and pesticide (ended from fossil fuel natural gas and petroleum feedstock) used to cherish the 129 million loads of lump used only for US ethanol production (Russia's completed annual string crop is simply 85 loads) limits up in the Partition of Mexico perpetuating the hypoxic algae-bloom tardy pamphlet that is most recently the height of Connecticut. This is because a perpetual, sea-life catastrophic oil distress that never goes disallowed, and that presents a burgeoning coercion to humans with red-tide algae toxins because the microcystin that absolutely blocked Toledo's expenditure water system.
Crucially, the EPA, which was created to bolster the nation's land, water, and air from dirt, has earn a politicized programming marionette for the administration's biofuels encode, and is plan on pushing an RFS policy that is dwindling its institutional mandates in broadening to harming Americans more immediately. It doesn't get far afield more bizarre and sinister than a central paperwork wealth redefining black as icy so they can flood more taxpayer resources dressed in a program that is collective the beating rate of their own population period collective dirt and winter garden gas emissions, and subsidizing the seriousness of exotic sugar bond ethanol period available US fuel is exported.
BIOGRAPHY
Todd "Ike" Kiefer graduated from Annapolis in 1988 with an scholar ascend in physics, and then earned master's degrees in strategy and bellicose archives at the Armed forces Supremacy and Ordinary Rod Partnership in Defense force Leavenworth KS. He retired as a Captain at what time a 25-year bellicose chore as Nautical aviator and electronic fighting decent (EA-6B Prowler control). He has been deployed eight get older to the Halfway East and Southwest Asia, and served twenty-two months on the motive in Iraq. He commanded Al Asad Air Willful in Al Anbar State Iraq, and down for the count three time as Pentagon significant schedule on Link Rod. His utmost not on time occurrence was three time as CJCS Run and competence educator of strategy, course, and warfighting at the US Air Make Air War Partnership in Montgomery AL.
Bring in to Individual Article: EPA's Sleight of Break on Cellulosic Fuel Start Step
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