Sustainable Bioenergy, Farms, and Forests - August 1, 2014

A weekly look at sustainable bioenergy, farm, and forest policy issues

 

 

 

 

Congress Offers No Relief for Drought and Wildfire Stricken States Prior to Recess

The Senate recessed on Thursday evening, leaving the House still debating a supplemental appropriations bill on border control measures.  The House debate is a symbolic measure, since any bill will not be picked up by the Senate until after both chambers reconvene.  The only major items passed before recess were the stop-gap measure to provide funding for the Highway Trust Fund through May 2015 and a significant veteran’s health care bill. After the five week recess, the mid-term elections will be the main agenda, and many doubt the ability of the 114 Congress to make substantive progress on a bevy of long-term issues facing the administration until the lame duck session.  Meanwhile, several western states are in the most severe drought of the last 50 years – and despite discussion on Capitol Hill over the last few months regarding the need to immediately address increasing wildfire and drought in the West, no substantive measures were passed before the August recess.

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Despite Setbacks, Biofuels Industry Hopeful at 2014 DOE Biomass Conference

At the Department of Energy’s two-day conference Biomass 2014: Growing the Future Bioeconomy, technologies, feedstocks, and innovation in the bioenergy sector were on display.  Attendees celebrated three U.S. advanced cellulosic biofuel refineries that are close to commercial production, several public-private partnerships that have spurred research and development of biofuels, and young scientists who are the future of renewable fuels breakthroughs.  Despite a lot of talk about the proposed cuts to the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), as well as a backlog of pending pathways for feedstocks to qualify as renewable fuels, attendees seemed confident that the bioeconomy would lower greenhouse gas emissions, provide local jobs, boost rural economies and lessen U.S. dependence on petroleum.

 

 

To Contact the Editor: Jessie Stolark at [email protected]

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