All Knowledge & Insights By Date

? Biomass Magazine, "ASABE Announces New ISO Standard for Solid Biofuels" ? Globe Newswire, "Cristal Union And Global Bioenergies Have Formed a Joint Venture to Build and Operate France's First Bio-Sourced Isobutene Production Plant" ? ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, "Bio-Based Thermosetting Epoxy Foams: Mechanical and Thermal Characterization" ? Plastics Today, "Biobased Production Capacity Poised to Soar, Says Nova-Institute Report" ?...

On May 20, 2015, the House voted to pass the America COMPETES Reauthorization Act of 2015 (H.R. 1806) (COMPETES), a research funding bill that was originally enacted in 2007 to further U.S. scientific and technological advantages. The new version of COMPETES increases funding for nuclear energy and fossil fuel research programs, while cutting clean and renewable energy programs. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy will have funding reduced by 30...

Pictured left to right: TJ Augustine, Technology-to-Market Advisor, ARPA-E; Matthew Putman, Founder and CEO, Nanotronics Imaging; Chandra Brown, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing, International Trade Administration; Doug Jamieson, Chairman and CEO, Harris & Harris Group; Matthew Portnoy, Director, Division of Special Programs, Office of Extramural Research, NIH; Lynn L. Bergeson, Owner and Managing Partner, Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.; John Williams, Director of Innovation,...

On May 19, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it issued a conditional registration for a nanosilver-containing antimicrobial pesticide product named "NSPW-L30SS," or "Nanosilva."

? PR Newswire, "Dyadic Receives Funding for New Advanced Biofuels Program" ? Phys.Org, "Bio-based insulation materials may be the construction industry's best kept secret" ? Better Biomass, "Eneco's biomass plant receives Better Biomass certificate" ? Cornell Chronicle, "Book details how biofuel policies affect food prices" ? Biodiesel Magazine, "Biodiesel helps power Volvo Ocean Race" ? Forbes, "Alaska Air To Operate Flights On...

On May 18, 2015, the American Council On Renewable Energy (ACORE) issued a white paper arguing that "Co-location Requirements under the RFS Impede Advanced Biofuels Development." The paper was sent to EPA. It requests that EPA clarify its definition of feedstock material under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) so that biofuels producers that pre-process their feedstocks away from final refineries are no longer prohibited from generating renewable identification numbers (RIN)...

On May 14, 2015, Bank of America (BoA) announced that it has issued a $600 million bond to fund renewable energy and energy efficiency projects. This is the second time that BoA has offered green energy bonds. In 2013, BoA issued $500 million in green bonds after pledging to commit $50 billion over ten years to advance renewable energy and promote energy efficiency projects. The new $600 million bond will advance low-carbon solutions by lending, investing, facilitating capital, and providing...

The 19th Annual ACS Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference is the longest running green chemistry conference in the United States, inviting scientists, business decision-makers, students, and advocates to come together, compare findings, and discuss the science of the future. Keynote speakers include Angela Belcher, Ph.D., W.M. Keck Professor of Energy, MIT; U.S. Senator Chris Coons (D-DE); Frances Arnold, Ph.D., Dickinson Professor of Chemical Engineering, CalTech; and Deborah Mielewski,...

On May 11, 2015, Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) introduced S. 1282 -- a bill to amend the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to require the Secretary of Energy to consider the objective of improving the conversion, use, and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) produced from fossil fuels in carrying out research and development (R&D) programs under that Act. The bill represents a broad recognition of the importance of algae and other biobased carbon utilization platforms that can...

On May 19, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it issued a conditional registration for a nanosilver-containing antimicrobial pesticide product named “NSPW-L30SS,” or “Nanosilva.”  This is the second nanosilver registration issued by EPA and reflects the Agency’s growing expertise in addressing, processing, and approving nanopesticide registration applications.  According to EPA, the product will be used as a non-food-contact preservative to protect...

Lynn L. Bergeson has once again been awarded a Band 1 ranking, the highest attainable, among Washington, D.C. environmental lawyers by Chambers USA Guide 2015. This is Ms. Bergeson's tenth consecutive year of being ranked by Chambers USA as one of the best lawyers in America. In the commentary accompanying her 2015 ranking, Chambers asserts "Lynn Bergeson of Bergeson & Campbell PC has developed an enviable reputation in the chemical regulation area and frequently advises on matters...

In the second installment of this series, I wrote about how the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) regulates products across a manufacturing process, from feedstock to product. In this last installment, I present options for updating TSCA and the related implementing regulations to put novel, biobased chemistry on an even footing with incumbent products and processes that were grandfathered in as part of the original TSCA Inventory. The key is to find a way to level the field...

On April 28, 2015, the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works held a hearing to consider the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (S. 697). Since then, S. 697 has gained additional backing from both Republicans and Democrats. These events are important because they demonstrate significant bipartisan support for reform of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), and suggest TSCA reform actually may be in our future.

On May 8, 2015, in El Comite Para El Bienestar De Earlimart v. EPA, a Panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit denied a petition for review filed by several groups that the court describes as “community organizations” who challenged the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) 2012 approval of California State Implementation Plan (SIP) elements under the Clean Air Act (CAA), including its related approval of certain fumigant regulations.  This challenge was...

? ePURE, "UK Supreme Court ruling on air quality - reaction from The European renewable ethanol industry" ? Novozymes, "Novozymes to supply enzymes to St1 Biofuels in Finland" ? Paper Foam, "Paperfoam wins Dieline award" ? PhysOrg, "For biofuels and climate, location matters" ? Washington Examiner, "Is EPA's biofuel policy eroding the industry?" ? Bloomberg Business, "Gevo Shares Double After Airline Agrees to Purchase Biofuel" ?...

2015 BIO Rosalind Franklin Award Recipient Announced On May 8, 2015, BIO announced that Dr. Jennifer Holgrem, CEO of LanzaTech, will receive the 2015 BIO Rosalind Franklin Award, honoring an outstanding woman in the field of industrial biotechnology. Dr. Holgrem has led LanzaTech to develop the first alternative jet fuel made from industrial waste gases and has defined the genetic blueprint of gas fermenting organisms and demonstrated that they can be engineered to produce novel, commercially...

B&C has posted an overview of the key findings in the American Sustainable Business Council (ASBC) and the Green Chemistry & Commerce Council (GC3) report, Making the Business & Economic Case for Safer Chemistry.

In a May 8, 2015, letter, Senators Ed Markey (D-MA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) requested that EPA reconsider its decision to treat biomass as having zero emissions under the proposed Clean Power Plan (Plan). The Senators point out "wood-burning power plants emit around 3,000 pounds of carbon dioxide per megawatt-hour," and would not assist in achieving the carbon reductions intended by the Plan. The letter also states: "The EPA should not approve biomass combustion as a...

The White House is reviewing EPA's proposed rules to set the 2014, 2015, and 2016 Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requirements. The proposals are not currently publicly available, but EPA has committed to propose them by June 1, 2015, and to promulgate the 2014 and 2015 rules by November 30, 2015. EPA is required by law to issue the following year's RFS requirements by November 30 of the previous year. The interagency review of the RFS rule is occurring amid complaints that delays in...