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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on November 4, 2022, that it will hold the first of a two-part webinar series on November 17, 2022, on EPA’s new standardized process to assess risk and apply mitigation measures, as appropriate, for mixed metal oxides (MMO), including new and modified cathode active materials (CAM). As reported in our October 11, 2022, memorandum, in October 2022, EPA announced an innovative effort intended to help make its review of new MMOs,...

By Lynn L. Bergeson  On January 11, 2022, Michigan State Senator Kevin Daley (R, 31st Senate District) introduced a bill focused on growing alternative fuel production in Michigan and providing cleaner and cheaper options for Michigan drivers using biofuels produced with renewable energy from Michigan farms. Senator Daley highlighted that “Biofuels are a major economic engine for rural communities across Michigan, and they help position our state to rely less on foreign...

By Lynn L. Bergeson  On January 13, 2022, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO), in collaboration with the Algae Foundation and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, opened the AlgaePrize competition for high school through graduate students in the United States. This new prize focuses on the development, design, and invention of algal technologies to help reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions through algae commercialization. During the...

By Lynn L. Bergeson   On June 15, 2021, the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) announced that it will host a webinar with EERE’s Deputy Assistant Secretary (DAS) for Renewable Power, Alejandro Moreno, on June 17, 2021, at 4:00 p.m. (EDT). The one-hour webinar will cover activities, programs, and initiatives proposed in EERE’s budget request. EERE requested $4.7 billion in an effort to lead the transition of the...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. On April 27, 2021, DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) issued a Federal Agency Call (FAC) titled “Assisting Federal Facilities with Energy Conservation Technologies (AFFECT 2021),” soliciting $13 million for new energy projects that will help federal facilities to improve the efficiency of their operations and reduce their carbon footprints.  These efforts come with the hope that DOE will...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers are leading analyses of recycling, repairing, and reusing solar photovoltaic (PV) installations in support of NREL’s mission to incentivize a circular economy for energy materials.  According to NREL, the increase in the installation of PV systems is leading to environmental and supply chain concerns because the technology relies on imports and mining of raw...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On April 8, 2021, from 12:00 to 1:30 p.m. (EDT), the Environmental Law Institute (ELI), in partnership with BioCycle and the American Biogas Council, will host a webinar titled “Food Scrap Recycling: Opportunities and Realities of Anaerobic Digestion.” The webinar will focus on anaerobic digestion and its ability to create biogas and digestate that can be used as renewable energy products. Registration is required via this link....

By  Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. Researchers at Swansea University’s Energy Safety Research Institute have developed a new method that produces spheres that have strong capacity for carbon capture and work at a large scale. Described as “[a] fast, green and one-step method for producing porous carbon spheres, which are a vital component for carbon capture technology and for new ways of storing renewable energy,” the method was developed by a...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On October 19, 2020, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced that, in 2019, renewable energy consumption levels in the United States increased for the fourth year in a row, reaching a record 11 percent of total energy consumption. Wood and waste energy, wood pellets, and biomass waste from landfills accounted for approximately 24 percent of U.S. renewable energy use. According to EIA, industrial, commercial, and electric power facilities use wood and...

By Lynn L. Bergeson On September 23, 2020, the U.S. House of Representatives agreed by a record vote of 229-187 to the passing of a bill titled “Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act.” The bill aims to increase energy efficiency and renewable energy to address climate change. The Clean Economy Jobs and Innovation Act creates R&D programs to reduce fossil fuel production through various energy sources. It also incentivizes innovation through grant programs in energy...