1 US EPA Says it is Auditing Biofuel Producers' used Cooking Oil Supply

Brittany Boxall edited this page 2025-01-12 09:47:30 +08:00

By Leah Douglas

Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has actually introduced investigations into the supply chains of a minimum of 2 eco-friendly fuel producers in the middle of market issues that some may be utilizing deceptive feedstocks for biodiesel to secure financially rewarding government aids.

EPA representative Jeffrey Landis informed Reuters that the agency has actually introduced audits over the previous year, however declined to recognize the business targeted due to the fact that the examinations are continuous.

The of biodiesel from sustainable active ingredients, like used cooking oil, can make refiners a slew of state and federal environmental and environment aids, consisting of tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But worries have actually been mounting that some materials labeled as utilized cooking oil are really less expensive and less sustainable virgin palm oil, a product that is associated with logging and other ecological damage.

The problem entered into focus following a surge in used cooking oil exports from Asia over the last few years that analysts have actually stated involves unrealistically high volumes relative to the quantity of cooking oil used and recuperated in the area. The European Union is also examining feedstocks over the scams issues.

The EPA audits began after the company upgraded domestic supply-chain accounting requirements in July 2023 for eco-friendly fuel producers looking for to earn credits under the RFS, he stated.

"EPA has actually carried out audits of sustainable fuel producers given that July 2023 that includes, amongst other things, an evaluation of the areas that utilized cooking oil used in eco-friendly fuel production was collected," he stated. "These examinations, nevertheless, are continuous and we are not able to go over ongoing enforcement examinations."

U.S. senators from farm states have actually required more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, saying federal firms need to be as rigorous in verifying imports as they are auditing domestic supply chains.

"The Biden administration has produced vigorous standards to confirm, not just trust, American producers, and it is imperative that the exact same analysis is applied to imported feedstocks," 6 U.S. senators, led by Roger Marshall and Sherrod Brown, wrote in a June 20 letter to federal firms.

Another letter from 15 senators to the Treasury Department on July 30 urged the administration to omit imported feedstocks like UCO from an additional clean fuel tax credit program passed in the Inflation Reduction Act. (Reporting by Leah Douglas in Washington Editing by Richard Valdmanis and Matthew Lewis)