Policy News

Members of the US House of Representatives have sent an open letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) questioning how it intends to protect small engine consumers from high ethanol blends. In the letter, 45 Representatives from both parties ask EPA administrator Gina McCarthy how the EPA plans to prevent consumers from accidently misfuelling with E15 and higher blends of ethanol. The…
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Scientists from ten institutions worldwide are challenging the notion that growing bioenergy crops hinders food production, which they see as harmful to new projects Traditionally in the “food v. fuel” debate, bioenergy crops have been blamed for food shortages as the land used for growing them could have been instead harnessed for food production. But a new report, titled Reconciling…
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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing comprehensive steps to address methane emissions from both new and existing sources in the oil and gas sector.   In a statement, the EPA said this news was “a further step in the Obama Administration’s commitment to take action on climate change and protect public health”. For new, modified and reconstructed…
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The World Trade Organisation (WTO) has ruled in favour of Argentina in its row concerning the anti-dumping duties imposed by the EU since 2013 on the biodiesel imported from the country. According to a panel report published on Tuesday, WTO upheld Argentina's claim that the reason stated by the EU authorities during their anti-dumping investigation for disregarding Argentine producers' costs of…
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Ethanol remains as one of the important elements keeping the economy of the US State of Iowa afloat, despite it taking a slight hit in 2015, a new study has found. According to a research published by the Iowa Renewable Fuels Association (IRFA), the decline is due to the reductions ethanol faced in the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). The study, authored by John Urbanchuk of ABF Economics…
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The US Supreme Court on Tuesday barred President Obama’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) from taking effect until legal challenges against the legislation are solved. In a tight vote of 5-4, the court decided to put the plan on hold after receiving a request from 27 US States, led by Texas and West Virginia, and several businesses to block the CPP. The regulation is intended to lower US power plant…
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A group of US states opposing the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan have gone into court to delay the enforcement of the new regulations. Led by West Virginia and Texas, 25 states have asked the Supreme Court to stop the greenhouse gas reduction rulings from taking effect until after the states’ legal challenge is resolved. The call came after a Washington appeals court denied a…
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China’s Ministry of Commerce (MoC) launched on Tuesday anti-dumping and countervailing duties investigations on US dried distillers grains with solubles (DDGS) imports. The move comes after complaints from Chinese producers that DDGS from the US were sold at prices “below normal value” which hurts domestic industry, according to China’s state news agency Xinhua. Further…
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California has not taken full advantage of opportunities to increase its in-state production of biofuel, despite state policies that encourage biofuel consumption, according to a report by the Climate Change and Business Research Initiative at the UCLA and UC Berkeley law schools.  Coming on the heels of new Environmental Protection Agency rules on biofuels requirements, the…
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The global biofuels industry is calling on the world leaders attending the COP21 summit in Paris to replace at least 15% of the global oil use in transport with biofuels by 2030. The statement was issued by five biofuel and biotech organisations that represent over 330 companies who produce 90% of the world’s biofuel supply. Global transport emissions have increased to cover 14% of the…
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Spain has set a mandate for a biofuel blending target of 8.5% in its petrol and diesel supply by 2020. In a statement, the Spanish ministry of Industry, Energy, and Tourism says to reach the target, the country will start by requiring a 4.3% blend from next year, which will be scaled up by the end of the decade. Spain aims to produce 20% of its electricity from renewables by 2020, in line with EU…
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The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released the final volume requirements for bioethanol under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) for the years 2014, 2015, and 2016. In addition, the final volume requirements for biodiesel for 2014 and 2017. The EPA has increased the required levels from its earlier suggestion in June, and hopes that the rule will boost renewable fuel production and…
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The Indian transport minister, a long-time proponent of biofuels, is encouraging India’s industry to take up biofuels more widely. Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari advises the construction and transportation sectors to use biodiesel to keep air pollution in check as the Indian government sets a target to expand its road system by 60,000km. ‘The industry should be…
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Bangladeshi Minister of Agriculture Matia Chowdhury has criticised large multinational corporations for promoting biofuels. The minister spoke at a keynote on the 40th anniversary of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Washington, D.C., US. Chowdhury pointed out that diverting more land to be used for maize cultivation results in a reduced soyabean and wheat…
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