By Leah Douglas
Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Epa has actually introduced investigations into the supply chains of at least two sustainable fuel manufacturers in the middle of industry concerns that some may be using fraudulent feedstocks for biodiesel to protect profitable federal government subsidies.
EPA Landis informed Reuters that the firm has actually released audits over the previous year, however decreased to identify the business targeted due to the fact that the examinations are continuous.
The production of biodiesel from sustainable active ingredients, like used cooking oil, can make refiners a variety of state and federal ecological and climate subsidies, consisting of tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But worries have been mounting that some supplies labeled as used cooking oil are really cheaper and less sustainable virgin palm oil, an item that is connected with deforestation and other ecological damage.
The issue came into focus following a rise in used cooking oil exports from Asia over the last few years that analysts have stated includes unrealistically high volumes relative to the amount of cooking oil utilized and recovered in the region. The European Union is also examining feedstocks over the fraud issues.
The EPA audits began after the firm upgraded domestic supply-chain accounting requirements in July 2023 for renewable fuel manufacturers seeking to earn credits under the RFS, he said.
"EPA has actually conducted audits of sustainable fuel producers given that July 2023 that includes, to name a few things, an examination of the locations that used cooking oil used in renewable fuel production was collected," he said. "These examinations, however, are ongoing and we are not able to discuss continuous enforcement investigations."
U.S. senators from farm states have called for more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, stating federal agencies should be as extensive in confirming imports as they are auditing domestic supply chains.
"The Biden administration has produced energetic standards to validate, not simply trust, American manufacturers, and it is imperative that the exact same examination is applied to imported feedstocks," 6 U.S. senators, led by Roger Marshall and Sherrod Brown, composed in a June 20 letter to federal firms.
Another letter from 15 senators to the Treasury Department on July 30 prompted the administration to exclude imported feedstocks like UCO from an extra tidy fuel tax credit program passed in the Inflation Reduction Act. (Reporting by Leah Douglas in Washington Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Matthew Lewis)
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US EPA Says it is Auditing Biofuel Producers' Pre-owned Cooking Oil Supply
Rigoberto Rivera edited this page 2025-01-18 09:38:24 +00:00