The Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule and the Renewable Fuel Standard were two topics Environmental Protection Agency nominee Michael Regan addressed during his confirmation hearing before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Wednesday. Sen. James Inhofe (R-OK) called WOTUS the “one that everyone ought to be concerned about because that’s the number one issue.” Regan, who …
Vilsack Ready to Return to Old Job in New Times
Former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack appeared before the Senate Agriculture Committee Tuesday to be questioned about his goals if confirmed to return to his old job as the new Secretary of Agriculture. Joking that he realized it was Groundhog Day and he was “back again,” Vilsack noted that “this is a fundamentally different time.” In his opening statement, Vilsack outlined …
ZimmCast 664 – Beltwide & Biodiesel Conferences
Hello and welcome to the ZimmCast. In this week’s program we’ll hear interviews from the Beltwide and Biodiesel conferences that took place virtually this month. You can find a lot more interviews and session audio from these events in our virtual newsrooms for them on AgNewsWire.com. Before sharing a couple of interviews that Cindy and I did I just wanted …
2021 National Biodiesel Conference is a Wrap
The first ever (and hopefully last) virtual National Biodiesel Conference and Expo wrapped up last week after showing that the biodiesel and renewable diesel industry is indeed on the “RISE”. The National Biodiesel Board (NBB) hosted more than 550 biodiesel and renewable diesel producers, distributors, retailers, and other industry advocates virtually to share the direction of the industry now and …
Biodiesel and Renewable Diesel Rise to Meet New Opportunities
The biodiesel and renewable diesel industry kicked off the 2021 Virtual National Biodiesel Conference and Expo Tuesday with an optimistic outlook for the future of America’s sustainable petroleum diesel replacement. The theme of this year’s conference is “Rise 2021” and in his annual state of the industry address, National Biodiesel Board CEO Donnell Rehagen pointed to several factors contributing to …
Mixed Bag of Last Minute EPA Proposals for Biofuels
With just days before a new administration takes office, the Environmental Protection Agency on Friday issued a mixed bag of last minute proposals for biofuels producers. First, in Friday’s Federal Register, EPA proposed to extend compliance deadlines for 2019 and 2020 renewable volume obligations, stating that the agency would “take no position on the availability of SREs for the 2019 …
Biodiesel Conference Goes Virtual Next Week
The virtual 2021 National Biodiesel Conference & Expo officially launches next Tuesday, January 19th, with a full agenda on-line to allow participation from anywhere. The theme of this year’s conference is “Rise” and National Biodiesel Board (NBB) Chief Operating Officer Doug Whitehead says it reflects the resilience of the industry. “We’re rising up to meet the challenges of yesterday, today, …
Study Finds Gas Car Ban Would Hurt Agriculture
The Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) has just released a study on the impacts of increased electric vehicle penetration on U.S. biofuels, agriculture and the economy. Proposals to ban internal combustion engine vehicles by 2035 and 2050 served as the economic models for the study, along with a base case provided by the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Annual Energy Outlook. The …
2021 American Farm Bureau Convention Goes Virtual
It is starting to look like most conventions kicking off 2021 will be going virtual. The American Farm Bureau Federation announced today that its 102nd Annual Convention will be held virtually following the cancellation of all events through Jan. 31, 2021, at the San Diego Convention Center where the convention was scheduled to take place. The AFBF virtual convention will …
Farm & Biofuel Groups Challenge Retroactive RFS Waivers
Nine leading biofuel and farm organizations sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler Tuesday asking him for answers on what is seen as a new effort to undermine the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). During a Senate hearing last month, administration officials confirmed their consideration of retroactive small refinery exemptions (SREs) covering previous years. The “gap-filings” are …