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January 05, 2005

Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce article on Biodiesel

Thanks Rob for the tip!

> Trying to make biodiesel a cash crop
> Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce
>
> January 4, 2005
>
> By DIPIKA KOHLI
> Journal Staff Reporter
>
>
> King County has teamed with University of Washington professors and a > Yakima farmer to get a biodiesel project up and running. A grant for > $75,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture is helping make it a > go.
>
> At the demonstration site in Prosser, Benton County, byproducts from > wastewater treatment in King County are fertilizing test plots of > canola, a crop whose crushed seeds yield oil for biodiesel.
>
> Like ethanol, its better known corn-based cousin, biodiesel is a mix > of vegetable oil and fossil fuels that's used to power cars and > trucks. European gas stations have sold biodiesel for more than a > decade, but high production costs in the United States have kept it > out of more than just a few cars here. But as oil prices hover around > $50 a barrel, the incentive for biodiesel grows.
>
> Exhaust from vehicles that use it smells like french fries, said King > County's Doug Howell, who works on regional environmental policy.
> "People like that." Some are using it to run their Mercedes and > Jettas.
>
> King County plans to use the project to move biosolids - the > byproducts of wastewater treatment processes here - to the Yakima > Valley.
>
> Sally Brown and Chuck Henry, two professors from the University of > Washington, applied for a $75,000 research grant from the USDA so they > could bring biosolids to the farm of a friend, Ted Durfey. Brown said > Durfey grows organic cherries, pears and grapes at his farm in > Sunnyside.
>
> For the professors' demonstration project, Durfey planted 30 types of > canola last year. Seeds were harvested, heated and pressed to see > which kind yielded the most oil. One goal was to show farmers there > how much better crops can grow when biosolids are applied.
>
> "We know it works better," said Brown, who has done lab research to > support her conclusion. "They need to see it to believe it."
>
> People worry contaminants in biosolids will get into the food chain, > she said. "Citizens there think they're going to die if biosolids are > involved." Teaching them that biosolids can be safe is part of the > project, too.
>
> Another goal is to get farmers to recognize canola as a cash crop. If > more grow canola, more seeds will then be available for biodiesel.
>
> Peggy Leonard works in the county's wastewater treatment division and > oversees its biosolids program. She said the big picture idea is to > create a sustainable, closed-loop system: biodiesel made from canola > seeds can be used to fuel the trucks that bring the biosolids to plots > where canola is grown.
>
> "We have a beautiful system here," said Howell. "We just have to make > it large scale."
>
> Getting people to make the fuel a little closer to home means first > finding people that want to use it.
>
> It's easier to start biodiesel programs for governments than to try to > bring private industries on board, Howell said. "Market penetration > for biodiesel into the private sector is going to be a tough nut to > crack."
>
> Earlier this year, King County Metro Transit started a two-year pilot > program to use a 5 percent biodiesel blend in 325 of its 1,200 buses.
> Blended fuel is expected to cost the transit agency an extra 6.3 cents > per gallon.
>
> It might cost less if biodiesel didn't have to be shipped by railcar > from as far as Iowa, said Howell.
>
> People who are interested in making biodiesel need raw materials, and > also don't want to have to go so far.
>
> John Plaza is the founder of Seattle Biodiesel, which plans to > manufacture and sell biodiesel. "Ideally we want to use oil that is > grown and crushed in the Pacific Northwest," he said, "with Washington > as our main source of crop."
>
> Howell cites a few other groups interested in making biodiesel, such > as the Spokane Conservation District. Baker Commodoties in Tukwila has > been looking for real estate for the last year and a half to make > biodiesel from its waste vegetable oil. Creston in Lincoln County is > looking for a facility in which to crush canola.
>
> And though "backyard brewers" who cook up biodiesel in their garages > aren't certified, international standards are now in place, another > sign a biodiesel market is beginning to emerge, said Howell.
>
>
> A recently passed bill that allows a federal tax credit for > manufacturers and distributors could be "the 800 pound gorilla" to > jumpstart a new market.
>
>
> Material from the Associated Press was used in this report.

Posted by Martin at January 5, 2005 01:22 AM

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