January 10, 2023

BETO Announces New Notice of Intent for Improving Bioenergy Feedstocks and Optimizing Production of

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) announced on December 15, 2022, that it intends to issue two funding opportunity announcements (FOA) in early 2023. According to BETO, these potential FOAs, “Reducing Agricultural Carbon Intensity and Protecting Algal Crops” (RACIPAC) and the “2023 Conversion R&D,” will enable the sustainable use of domestic biomass and waste resources to produce...
January 9, 2023

APHIS Announces Final Regulatory Status Review Guide

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced on December 22, 2022, that it posted its final Regulatory Status Review (RSR) guide. The RSR guide details the information requirements and process for submitting an RSR request under the revised biotechnology regulations at 7 C.F.R. Part 340. Under the revised regulations, developers may request a permit and/or an RSR of a plant developed using genetic engineering that APHIS has not...
January 9, 2023

APHIS Announces Final Regulatory Status Review Guide

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) announced on December 22, 2022, that it posted its final Regulatory Status Review (RSR) guide. The RSR guide details the information requirements and process for submitting an RSR request under the revised biotechnology regulations at 7 C.F.R. Part 340. Under the revised regulations, developers may request a permit and/or an RSR of a...
January 5, 2023

EPA Approves RFS Pathways for Certain Biofuels Produced from Canola/Rapeseed Oil

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   On December 2, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a final rule determining that renewable diesel, jet fuel, heating oil, naphtha, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) produced from canola/rapeseed oil via a hydrotreating process all meet the lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction threshold of 50 percent required for advanced biofuels and biomass-based diesel (BBD) under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program....
January 4, 2023

Public Comment Period Begins on EPA’s Biofuels and the Environment: Third Triennial Report to Congre

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   On January 3, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the release of a draft document entitled Biofuels and the Environment: Third Triennial Report to Congress (External Review Draft) for public comment. 88 Fed. Reg. 72. EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) and Office of Air and Radiation (OAR), in consultation with the U.S. Departments of Agriculture (USDA) and Energy (DOE), prepared the document....
December 28, 2022

EPA Extends Deadline to Apply for Potential Inclusion in Its Recommendations of Specifications, Stan

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on December 27, 2022, that it is extending the deadline for applications from managers of standards development organizations, ecolabel programs, and other similar organizations for assessment and inclusion in the Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP) program’s Recommendations of Specifications, Standards and Ecolabels for Federal Purchasing, a resource intended to help federal...
December 22, 2022

Comments on FTC’s Green Guides Due February 23, 2023

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   On December 20, 2022, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) requested public comment on its Guides for the Use of Environmental Claims (Green Guides). FTC intends the Green Guides to help marketers avoid making environmental marketing claims that are unfair or deceptive under Section 5 of the FTC Act. 87 Fed. Reg. 77766. FTC states in its December 14, 2022, news release that it seeks to update...
December 20, 2022

OSTP Publishes RFIs on Coordinated Framework for the Regulation of Biotechnology and National Biotec

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   As reported in our September 13, 2022, blog item, on September 12, 2022, President Joseph Biden signed an Executive Order creating a National Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Initiative (NBBI) to accelerate biotechnology innovation and grow America’s bioeconomy across multiple sectors in industries such as health, agriculture, and energy. On December 20, 2022, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) published two...
December 14, 2022

EPA Announces Proposed RFS for 2023-2025, Will Hold Public Hearing in January

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   On December 1, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a multi-part proposal that will build on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program and seek to advance the priorities of energy security, less pollution, and consumer protection. The RFS “Set” proposal requests public input on required volumes of biofuel for the next one to three years and on a series of modifications intended to strengthen...
December 12, 2022

ChemCatBio Will Hold December 14 Webinar on the Next Three Years of Catalyst R&D to Decarbonize Fuel

By Lynn L. Bergeson and Carla N. Hutton   The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office’s (BETO) Chemical Catalysis for Bioenergy Consortium (ChemCatBio) will hold a webinar on December 14, 2022, on what is ahead for the consortium. From 2020 to 2022, ChemCatBio’s research and development (R&D) focus was on improving carbon efficiency during catalytic conversion to drive down minimum fuel selling price. ChemCatBio states that now, with three more years of...