Texas Biodiesel

Texas has become the leading state for biodiesel capacity. The states plants report they could produce 96 million gallons of biodiesel should demand rise. The states biodiesel industry has garnered headlines for its growth, such as when Austin Biofuels and Triple S Petroleum opened 33 new B20 pumps. In the wake of this activity, the state will host its first Texas Biodiesel Conference and Expo. The Biodiesel Coalition of Texas (BCOT) will hold the event September 27-29 in Austin. The conference will cover the latest regulatory, agricultural and technical developments in the Texas biodiesel industry. Joe Jobe, CEO of the National Biodiesel Board (NBB), as well as other industry experts, will address the conference. A trade show is included.

Texas has some of the worst smog problems in the United States. In order to combat smog, the Texas Low Emission Diesel (TxLED) program was created to regulate NOx and VOC emissions from diesel. TxLED regulates B20 because it meets the program's definition of diesel fuel. Pure biodiesel does not fall under TxLED's jurisdiction because it does not meet that definition. The TxLED program has a required composition that diesel fuel must meet. There is currently no biodiesel fuel that is TxLED-certified. Now that the decision has been delayed, the industry has another year to develop a fuel that can meet TxLED requirements.

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The headline refers to environmental officials in Texas who decided to delay a proposed biodiesel fuel ban, pending further studying of the biofuel's emissions. The main suspect is NOx emissions, which the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality is worried might be higher than those allowed under a 2005 law when blends higher than B20 are used. As WIRED points out, different studies have shown different NOx emissions from biodiesel. The TCEQ voted on Dec. 23rd to put off a decision for another year. Call it a Christmas present to the biodiesel industry Texas, since the state is the second largest consumer of biodiesel in the country (behind Iowa).