Originally published February 6 2006
Washington State wants to move toward biodiesel
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
An editorial in the Seattle Times covers recent legislative rumblings for biodiesel in Washington State, including efforts initiated by Gov. Christine Gregoire and a bipartisan group of state senators.
In these usually rough-and-tumble weeks of pre-legislative session posturing, there's one issue where not only bipartisan consensus, but enthusiasm, is emerging: biodiesel --- and state efforts to encourage its use and production.
While the Legislature all but ignored the possibilities last year, now everyone from Senate Republicans to House Democrats to the governor are pushing legislative agendas that advance biodiesel's use and production in Washington state.
The proposals are not panaceas for oil-supply problems, but could help Washington spawn a clean-fuels industry that benefits the entire region.
Christine Gregoire proposed creating a market for biodiesel by requiring that all diesel sold in the state contain 2 percent fuel created from farm crops, such as canola or mustard seeds.
Republican Rep. Jan�a Holmquist of Moses Lake is expected to introduce a bill setting the same standard but one that is phased in only as state production can ramp up.
Her similar bill last year never made it out of committee, but she's optimistic now.
Democratic Rep. Hans Dunshee, D- Snohomish, wants the Legislature, within the session's first days, to approve grants or a low-interest loan program for crushers to draw the oil out of the seeds.
Some tussling is guaranteed over any minimum biofuel content in diesel products --- oil companies won't like it; also, over whether it should be established immediately, attracting biofuel from other states or over time, so Washington growers can provide all of it.
That would translate to about 160,000 acres of production, but only about 10,000 acres are now in crops suited for biodiesel.
The good news is that lawmakers seem ready to act on an issue that fits Washington's environmental ethos, while providing an economic opportunity for its agriculture industry.
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