Set against the backdrop of the U.S. Capitol and the Nation's Memorial Day parade, a new tell-all book was released recently. Gasolinegate: What's in Our Gasoline is Killing Us is a first-of-its-kind expose about the 40-year struggle to break U.S. dependence on oil and gasoline, and the negative impacts on public health and the economy.
Through dozens of interviews and firsthand accounts, authors Burl Haigwood and Doug Durante document the inaction of the EPA and obstruction by the oil industry, which resulted in a stranglehold on the motor fuel market that endangers public health every day. Throughout the book, the authors document and explain how and why the public got duped into believing gasoline is safe and there were no viable alternatives. Gasolinegate, published by New Degree Press, is available at Amazon, Kobo, and public libraries.
The Nebraska Legislature on May 30 voted 46 to 0 to approve the Adopt the E15 Access Standard Act, a bill that aims to expand access to E15 within the state and increase tax incentives for fuel retailers that sell higher ethanol blends.
“Historically, giving retailers targeted fuel tax credits has been more successful at driving increased ethanol volume than nearly every other program offered,” said Ron Lamberty, ACE CMO, ahead of the bill signing ceremony which he attended with other industry supporters and Nebraska legislators. “We hope other states follow Nebraska’s example and use this legislation as a template to encourage more retailers to offer cleaner, more affordable, higher ethanol blends. We also encourage Congress to take note of growing support for E15 and pass the Consumer and Fuel Retailer Choice Act to ensure permanent, nationwide access to E15.”
The Illinois legislature in May also passed legislation that aims to boost the state’s corn industry by increasing the level of ethanol that must be blended into transportation fuel in order to be eligible for a fuel sales tax exemption. The bill was signed into law by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker.
Whitefox Technologies announced in June that Redfield Energy LLC, has decided to implement a Whitefox ICE Plus membrane dehydration system at its ethanol plant located in Redfield, South Dakota. This project is Whitefox’s first ICE Plus project in the U.S. It represents a major milestone towards delivering Net Zero benefits, while also debottlenecking the plant’s ability to deliver additional ethanol capacity. The project is estimated to be operational in Q3 2024.
Eric Baukol, CEO of Redfield Energy said, “It’s an exciting time to be in the industry. If you had 10 CEOs in a room, they might map out many different versions of the future for their biorefineries as far as which markets and products they intend to compete in. All of these versions of the future start with efficiencies and a drive toward making our Net Zero pledge a reality, and we feel we’re making a great step forward in that regard with this Whitefox project.”
The Whitefox ICE Plus system is designed to work with Redfield’s existing dehydration technology and will provide an additional 12 percent capacity taking the plant to 70 MMgy from Day 1, sized to get the plant to 90 MMgy over time. The solution is, coupled with the ability to integrate and conserve a significant amount of energy, up to 5,000 BTU per gallon of ethanol produced. The Whitefox ICE Plus solution uses the same membrane technology associated with Whitefox ICE, which is currently being deployed in 11 U.S. Ethanol plants.
Adkins Energy and CapCO2 Solutions are building the first facility to convert ethanol plant waste CO2 to Green Methanol. Green methanol is highly valuable, emerging as an essential fuel for decarbonizing both the shipping industry and a wide variety of commercial chemicals and consumer products, according to the company.
“I am delighted that Adkins has an opportunity to lead the industry to its next major product,” said Adkins CEO William Howell. “Adkins has grown by focusing on how ethanol and its byproducts can lead the industry and support the farmers that grow our grain and the communities around our plant. Green methanol is the next step in that growth and leadership.”
“We are adapting methanol technology and working with agriculture industry stakeholders to meet the needs of the ethanol industry,” said CapCO2 Solutions CEO, Jeff Bonar. “We are proud to be working with RealCarbonTech.com to leverage their breakthrough, patented technology to deliver new futures to the ethanol industry.”