On May 7, 2014, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report on "Alternative Jet Fuels: Federal Activities Support Development and Usage, but Long-Term Commercial Viability Hinges on Market Factors." GAO found that [a]chieving price competitiveness for alternative jet fuels is the overarching challenge to developing a viable market." To this end, according to stakeholders consulted for the report, both federal activities -- including policy stability -- and...
May 16, 2014
EPA’s Jim Jones And DTSC’s Dr. Meredith Williams Share Insights At Safer Consumer Products Summit
The 4th Annual Safer Consumer Products Summit was held May 6-8, 2014, in Santa Clara, California, and with the first draft Priority Products (PP) having been announced by California's Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) in March 2014, the regulators, manufacturers, brand owners, and retailers gathered for the Summit were able to engage in substantive and practical discussion and learn from case studies on California's implementation of the Safer Consumer Products Regulations...
Last week, Purdue University (Purdue) President Mitch Daniels, and U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), agreeing to work together on the development of alternative energy sources, including biofuels, for use by the U.S. Navy. As part of the agreement, Purdue has committed to establishing the Purdue Military Research Initiative. This initiative will cover the cost of graduate education for up to ten active duty members of the military pursuing studies in...
May 16, 2014
DOE Inspector General Report On Loan Guarantees
On May 7, 2014, the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Inspector General (IG), Gregory H. Friedman, issued an audit report on "Implementation of Recommendations from the January 2012 Independent Consultant's Review of the Department of Energy Loan and Loan Guarantee Portfolio." A copy of the report is available online. In the fall of 2011, following the high-profile bankruptcies of alternative energy companies that had received DOE loan guarantees, including Solyndra, Inc....
Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) advocacy is continuing at a steady pace in anticipation of the expected imminent release of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) 2014 final RFS rule. Some biofuels advocates believe that they are making an impact with their stepped-up advocacy, as they believe the Administration will adjust the total renewable and advanced biofuel targets upwards from its proposed reductions to those categories of renewable fuels. The final rule is expected to be issued...
On May 6, 2014, INVISTA, a large U.S. headquartered integrated producer of chemical intermediaries, polymers, and fibers, and owner of the LYCRA Brand, announced the introduction of the "only commercial offering of a bio-derived spandex available globally and for use in a wide variety of apparel fabrics and garments." The company explains that "[a]pproximately 70 percent by weight of the new LYCRA® bio-derived spandex fiber comes from a renewable source made from dextrose...
May 9, 2014
Staff Changes at DTSC, Presentation on Safer Consumer Products Regulations at Conference
The California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) announced that Director Debbie Raphael will be leaving her position on May 30, 2014, to lead San Francisco's Department of the Environment. Raphael's replacement has not yet been announced. In Raphael's place, Dr. Meredith Williams, DTSC Deputy Director, gave the keynote address at the 4th Safer Consumer Products Summit in Santa Clara, California, sponsored by B&C. Dr. Williams discussed DTSC's decision-making...
May 9, 2014
GCRP Issues Third National Climate Assessment
This week, the U.S. Global Change Research Program (GCRP), a collaboration of 13 federal agencies and myriad academia, issued its third National Climate Assessment. The 841 page report and a summary of its highlights are available online. This report is significant because compared to previous reports it more definitively attributes human activity as the cause of increased climate change, which is causing more severe weather. The report asserts that climate change is here now and will have more...
The U.S. Senate is expected to consider its version of tax extender legislation, S. 2260, the "Expiring Provisions Improvement Reform and Efficiency (EXPIRE) Act," as early as next week. On April 3, 2014, the Senate Finance Committee approved its version of the EXPIRE Act. The EXPIRE Act includes extensions through December 31, 2015 (and retroactive to January 1, 2014), of the following key biofuels incentives that have expired: the Alternative Fuel Refueling Property Credit; the...
Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) has created an online hub for news, information, and commentary on Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) reform that is available at www.TSCAreform.org. B&C's lawyers, scientists, regulatory specialists, and business consultants relentlessly participate in and track developments regarding ongoing TSCA reform efforts and related state regulatory initiatives such as California's Safer Consumer Products Regulations and related developments...