The BIO World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology, being held May 12-15, 2014, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is the world's largest industrial biotechnology event for business leaders, investors, and policy makers in biofuels, biobased products, and renewable chemicals. BRAG and B&C will present a practical workshop to fully inform, equip, and assist renewable chemical producers in finding the path of least resistance on the road to commercialization. "Commercializing Renewable...
On April 29, 2014, in a 6-2 ruling, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld EPA's view in EPA v. EME Homer City Generation L.P., U.S. Nos. 12-1182 and 12-1183. The opinion is available online. The decision reverses a 2012 ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, holding that EPA's Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (CSAPR) exceeded EPA's authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The CSAPR -- issued under the Obama Administration...
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has reportedly received the final rule on "RFS Pathways II and Technical Amendments to the RFS2 Standards" (RFS Pathways II rule) from EPA. This is the last step in the process before EPA publishes the final rule. EPA's summary of its proposed RFS Pathways II rule is available online. A copy of the 38-page proposed rule, which was published in the Federal Register on June 14, 2013, is also available online. The Biobased and...
May 2, 2014
House Energy And Commerce Subcommittee Holds Hearing On Revised Chemicals In Commerce Act
On April 29, 2014, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Subcommittee on Environment and the Economy held a hearing on the revised version of the Chemicals in Commerce Act (CICA2). Details of the hearing provided by the Subcommittee, including its background memorandum, are available online. Subcommittee Chair John Shimkus (R-IL) issued the original version of CICA in March 2014. CICA2 was released on April 22, 2014. Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.'s (B&C®) detailed...
April 25, 2014
TSCA Reform: Do It Now, Or It May Never Be Done
The Environmental Law Institute's (ELI) May/June 2014 issue of ELI Forum features articles from five notable experts representing government, industry, and policy viewpoints on the issue of TSCA reform. Titled "TSCA Redux: Rejuvenating a Timeworn Statute," the publication includes Lynn L. Bergeson, Managing Partner of B&C; Richard A. Denison, Lead Senior Scientist, Environmental Defense Fund; Kathy Kinsey, Deputy Secretary for Regulatory Programs and Operations, Maryland...
April 25, 2014
Industry And Policymakers To Hold Summit On California SCPR
With the March 2013 release of its first draft list of Priority Products (PP) (more information is available in the Bergeson & Campbell, P.C. (B&C®) memorandum), the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) has opened the floodgates for scrutiny, controversy, and debate on their game-changing Safer Consumer Products Regulations (SCPR). EPA's Jim Jones, DTSC's Meredith Williams, industry leaders, and policy experts will gather at the 4th Safer Consumer Products...
April 25, 2014
Biobased Material Of The Year 2014 Award Winners Announced
Awards recognizing innovative applications and markets in the European biobased chemicals and materials industry were handed out at the 7th International Conference on Biobased Materials in Cologne, Germany, on April 10, 2014. First prize went to Qmilch Deutschland GmbH (DE) for Qmilk, a biopolymer fiber made from milk protein. The full list of winners is available online.
A newly released analysis on the global chemical industry is predicting strong growth for the biobased sector. Consistent with findings released recently from Lux Research and RnR Market Research, Frost & Sullivan's analysis from "Scorecard for the Global Chemicals Industry" reports that the share of biobased chemicals is expected to grow to about 15 to 18 percent of global chemical sales by 2025. As new feedstock supplies and greener processes begin to shape the new chemicals...
April 25, 2014
EPA Questions Results Of DOE-Funded Study Finding GHG Emissions From Cellulosic Fuels
EPA is vigorously questioning results of a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)-funded study that concludes ethanol produced from crop residues such as corn stover can have higher lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than conventional gasoline, arguing that the findings are based on an "extremely unlikely scenario" of unsubstantiated agricultural practices. RFA is also highly critical of the new study, claiming its "methodology is fundamentally flawed and its conclusions are highly...
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently released its document "OECD Guidance for Characterising Oleochemical Substances for Assessment Purposes," which is available online. The document seeks to present a "harmonised approach" for characterizing UVCB (substances of unknown or variable composition, complex reaction products or biological materials) oleochemical substances that are derivatives from animal and vegetable oils and fats. In June...