Biofuels Archives - Green Businesses

Virgin Atlantic Makes History with Sustainable Fuel Flight from London to New York

Virgin Atlantic Makes History with Sustainable Fuel Flight from London to New York Virgin Atlantic has soared into the aviation history books with its recent groundbreaking flight from London to New York. What makes this journey stand out is the innovative use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), marking a significant step toward reducing the airline industry's carbon footprint. Departing from London Heathrow Airport, the flight was powered by a blend of traditional jet fuel and SAF derived from sustainable feedstocks. This milestone flight not only showcased Virgin Atlantic's commitment to sustainability but also highlighted the potential for greener alternatives within the aviation sector. The use of sustainable aviation fuel is a game-changer for an industry grappling with environmental concerns. Unlike conventional jet fuel, SAF significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions, offering a more environmentally friendly option for air travel. By incorporating this alterna…

A Climate Awakening

This year has been the hottest year on record and this has been a trend for the past 3 consecutive years. Fire season has moved from summer to February in many wildfire hotspot locations. For 3 days last week, I was trained by Al Gore on the current state of the climate and how to become a leader in the topic – a Climate Reality Leader. 972 people being in Denver, CO wanting to learn, network, connect, motivate and take action had me certain that the most successful people would see the possibility of tackling this pertinent issue head on. With 97% of scientists aware that the climate is changing due to human causes, climate change is no longer a liberal or conservative issue. Al Gore calls it the Sustainability Revolution. Like the Industrial Revolution and the Digital Revolution, sustainability is finding its way into every industry and its making business more efficient and cost-effective, and with it comes a better quality of life. Yet deniers still wave their hands …

In Case You Needed Another Reason To Visit Aruba

Aruba, like many countries, is heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels for energy. Currently, nearly 85% of the energy is generated by heavy fuel oil but that is going to change. Aruba pledged to transition to 100% renewable electricity by 2020, particularly variable wind and solar. This 19 mile long island launched it’s Green Gateway Initiative in 2011 at the UN Rio+20 Conference on Sustainable Development. With the support of Carbon War Room, an international nonprofit, Aruba created its plan of action beginning with wind farm development, a waste-to-energy plant, and a Airport Solar Park. They are taking the Smart Growth Pathway that addresses many different areas of an expanding economy, such as; eco-tourism, incentives for household retrofitting and commercial energy efficiency, the sustainable agriculture practice known as controlled environment agriculture, urban planning that supports this transition, and investments in innovation. This plan focuses on three comp…

BioGas Provides Germany with Steady, Stinky Energy

So when the sun isn’t shining and the wind isn’t blowing, solar and wind energy may be nonexistent, but renewable energy can still be economically produced from the smelliest of sources. The more the stink, the greater the energy–Biogas energy. Local farmers use the waste their animals produce and send it into a biogas facility on their farm that produces electricity. They can also add corn and the fermentation substrate is then sprayed on the fields as fertilizer. This closed-loop system provides steady and sustainable energy to supplement the energy needs of larger but less predictable outputs from solar and wind sources.

Next Power Plants co-Founder, Hendrik Samisch networks over 1,000 renewable energy plants comprised of individual farms in Germany through a data grid and a bank of computers that make up a powerful virtual power plant that trades annually over $100 million euros of electricity in biogas energy.

Watch the …

New Study: Bioenergy May Be Bad News for Forests, Climate

Resource: Global Forest Reporting Network BioFuels like Ethanol have more than just an image problem (Growing food vs growing fuel). Now a new report from the World Resources Institute finds that dedicating land to the production of biofuels may undermine efforts to achieve a sustainable food future, combat climate change, and protect forests. The problem, of course, is that if you dedicate land to growing crops like sugarcane, corn, soybeans, or wood solely for the production of biofuels, you can’t use that land to grow food--or as a carbon sink. We already use a whopping three-fourths of the world’s vegetated land for crops, livestock grazing, and wood harvests, according to the WRI paper. And the remaining land really should be left as is, since it protects clean water, supports biodiversity, and stores carbon. Watch this video about new biofuels made from cellulose with the help of a bacteria under the development of AE Biofuels, which acquired Zemetis in 2011.

Better Biofuels Coming Along, But Slowly

Pete Danko for Earthtechling Advanced biofuels aren’t where U.S. lawmakers expected them to be, but that failure is in the rear-view mirror. The question now is about the road ahead, and the pro-renewables group E2 is forecasting steady growth – but whether that growth will come fast enough to meet the growing requirements of the U.S. renewable fuel standard seems doubtful. Advanced biofuels are important because unlike corn-based ethanol and soy-based biodiesel, cellulosic and hydrocarbon-based fuels made from nonfood feedstocks as well as waste materials and algae might be able to directly replace gasoline and other fuels in gas tanks and refineries without warping food markets. Ineos Florida plant during construction (image via Ineos Bio) E2, in its 2013 Advanced Biofuels Market Report [PDF], sees “technical” compliance with the U.S. RFS possible in 2016 with some growth and with refiners using accumulated credits to offset production shortfalls, but mandates fu…