|
 |
|
|
|
Biodiesel is Now Available at Olympia Card-Lock Station |
|
|
|
Written On: March/April 2004 |
|
|
|
Written By: By Paul Schlienz |
|
|
|
As America works to overcome its dependence on foreign oil, biodiesel is catching hold as an alternative to fossil fuels. It even has the attention of President Bush and Congress who are stepping up funding for research and development.
So did Washington’s Legislature. In 2003, lawmakers passed a series of bills sponsored by Brian Sullivan (D-Mukilteo) encouraging the production and use of biodiesel through tax incentives and pilot projects.
Biodiesel is coming to service stations in the Olympia area later this spring, as well. Olympia fuel distributor Tom Allen, owner of the Acme Service Group, is converting his medium-grade gas pumps to biodiesel.
Acme’s conversion is not without risk.
“It’s still expensive,” Allen said, “and for us, we’re rolling the dice believing our customers will pay the extra costs.”
Diesel tops out at $1.75 per gallon now at Acme’s card-lock stations, while biodiesel goes for $2.97.
“The problem with biodiesel is that it’s an immature product,” Allen observed. Only now are people discovering it. The processes that are now used to make it were only developed in the early 1970s.”
Biodiesel is Similar to Regular Diesel
Biodiesel is a product that has a lot of the characteristics of regular diesel, but instead of being made out of petroleum, it comes from vegetable oil, usually from soybean, rape, or safflower. It is considered to be more environmentally friendly.
“Biodiesel can’t harm the environment for the long term,” said Sam Bryant, owner of Sound Biodiesel, an Oak Harbor-based biodiesel outlet. “If you have a biodiesel oil slick, you’re going to have problems the first day. It could kill sea birds, but over time it will wash on the shore and soak into the ground. Microbes that eat biodiesel will then consume something that was already food.”
“You can also use biodiesel for home heating and parts washing. It’s easy on the hands. Since it’s from clean sources, you can even eat it. It is similar to what you’re putting on your salad with balsamic vinegar,” Bryant concluded.
Uncle Sam Wants YOU to Convert to Biodiesel
The Federal Energy Policy Act of 1992 also encourages the use of biodiesel. This legislation mandated that a percentage of federal vehicle fleets, including that of the U.S. Postal Service, reduce petroleum consumption by 20 percent by 2005.
Biodiesel’s rise in popularity can clearly be seen in the Olympia area. Since December 2002, Intercity Transit, Thurston County’s public transit service has been using B20, a 20 percent biodiesel/80 percent petroleum diesel blend, to power its busses.
In January, the City of Olympia placed its fleet of 40 trucks, including garbage trucks and heavy-duty vehicles, on biodiesel. This conversion to biodiesel is expected to reduce emissions by 16 percent and eliminate 200 tons of greenhouse gasses per year.
“Olympia is a very environmentally-aware community,” Allen observed. “People here appreciate that biodiesel is not polluting the atmosphere and also that it is not coming from the Middle East.”
Biodiesel May Benefit Washington Farmers
Biodiesel may also benefit Washington farmers. Bart Nelson, president of Nelson Irrigation Corp., Walla Walla, believes biodiesel could be a vibrant industry in our state’s farm belt. Soybeans, corn, rape, safflower and other crops which can be processed into vegetable oil and biodiesel can be grown here in sufficient quantities to attract processing plants.
Agriculture suppliers like Nelson Irrigation, a manufacturer of agriculture irrigation systems, would benefit from new crops as well.
“Biodiesel is probably going to become more popular,” Allen said. “However, it’s probably not going to take over the market because it’s going to be a long time before it’s one-to-one competitive with regular diesel. Nevertheless, as people become more aware of its good effects on the environment, we’ll probably see more and more of it being used.”
|
|
|
|
