Domestic Fuel

Ft. Bragg might be the home of the U.S. Army’s Airborne soldiers (by the way, as a former Air Force guy, we land those planes … you don’t have to jump out!), but the North Carolina post soon could be known as the home to clean air, born of biodiesel!

The Fayetteville (NC) Observer reports that the Army recently highlighted biodiesel during Ft. Bragg’s recent Green Living & Design Tour:

Fort Bragg is now served by seven separate shuttle routes. The buses are powered by B-20 fuel, which is 20 percent biodiesel fuel and 80 percent petroleum diesel fuel, and are hybrid electric diesel buses. Emissions reduction is about 20 percent and may be as much as 70 percent with hybrid technology, according to the Fort Bragg green tour fact sheet…

The Directorate of Public Works hopes to use biodiesel in all of its vehicles, then spread it to all the directorates on Fort Bragg, Torres said.

The Army could have produced 12,000 gallons of biodiesel last year, if all of the used cooking oil would have been turned into the green fuel. Officials hope to acquire a newer, bigger processor soon.

Growth Energy has announced former congressman Jim Nussle as new president and chief operating officer of the ethanol organization, starting today.

Jim Nussle (pictured left) is a former eight-term Congressman from Iowa and served as Director of the Office of Management and Budget under President George W. Bush. He has served on the Board of Directors of Growth Energy since February 2009.

Growth Energy CEO Tom Buis says Nussle will provide immediate value to the organization. “Jim’s experience on Capitol Hill and his ability to manage large teams will be huge assets to Growth Energy,” Buis said. “As a former Iowa Congressman, he also possesses the knowledge of ethanol and agriculture that will allow him to hit the ground running and be a powerful advocate for America’s ethanol supporters.”

Nussle noted that he is looking forward to the opportunity to work full time on behalf of the ethanol industry. “While representing the 1st District of Iowa for 16 years, I witnessed the positive impact that ethanol production had on rural America,” Nussle said. “Over the past few years as a Director at Growth Energy, I’ve seen the benefits of ethanol to the entire country. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to work full-time on behalf of America’s ethanol supporters, so that our nation can benefit even more from this clean, green, renewable fuel.”

As President and COO, Nussle will be responsible for Growth Energy’s day-to-day operations, including revenue growth, budget, expenses, communications, and other non-lobbying associated activity.

*POST UPDATE* Interview with Jim Nussle

I just talked with Jim Nussle about his new role in Growth Energy as President and COO. We discussed his background, the new job, what he sees as the challenges facing the ethanol industry, the Obama administration’s support of biofuels and what a new Congress will mean for ethanol. Listen to that interview here: Jim Nussle Interview

Have you ever wished you could help mold the content of your favorite blog? Well, here is your chance. The bloggers of DomesticFuel want to learn more about its readers, so we can provide you with more informational and insightful information. All you have to do is take our quick 5 minute survey. Once completed, you can enter to win $250 in cash.

As with any contest, there are a few rules. Each month, one winner will be drawn from the entries received for all ZimmComm news website surveys. Non-winners from each month will roll over to the next month, so please only take the survey once. Ready to get started? Then click here to begin.

Speaking of molding content, here’s our poll question for this month. Do you think the Volumetric Ethanol Excise Tax Credit (VEETC), also known as the blender’s credit, should be extended? Why or why not? You can sound off by posting a comment to this story, or sending your response to DFPollQuestion@hotmail.com. Select answers will be used in an upcoming story for the blog.

Thanks for reading DomesticFuel and don’t forget to take our survey for a chance to win $250 in cash.

Many of you remember the solar panels that were installed on the White House during the 70s when our country was focused on reducing its dependence on foreign oil. Many of you will also remember when President Reagan removed the solar panels and moved our government’s focus away from energy independence.

The White House announced that it is moving forward with the installation of solar panels to the roof top of the White House as part of its efforts to raise awareness of National Energy Month. The solar panels will be installed in the spring and are an example to the nation that “American solar technologies are available, reliable, and ready for installation in homes throughout the country.” In addition to the efforts on the White House itself, there were also multiple announcements of approved solar farms on public lands.

In addition, here are some other federal efforts surrounding energy:

• Solar Power and the Clean Energy Economy. President Obama kicked off the month by highlighting a revolutionary new solar power plant in California that will employ 1,000 people and power nearly 140,000 homes.

• Cleaner Trucks, Buses and Vans. The Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency announced the first-ever proposed national standards for greenhouse gas emissions and fuel efficiency for heavy-duty trucks, vans and buses.

• Ramping Up Solar Power on Public Lands. In October, Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar announced a series of six new solar power projects on public lands including the first-ever solar power plant on public lands and the largest solar power plant in the world.

• 36 Billion Gallons of Biofuels. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack outlined the steps USDA will take to reach a national goal of producing 36 billion gallons of biofuel a year in the United States by 2022, with 21 billion gallons coming from advanced biofuel production.

• Historic Investments in High Speed Rail. U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced that 54 high-speed rail projects in 23 states will receive a combined total of $2.4 billion to continue developing America’s first nationwide program of high-speed intercity passenger rail service.

You can learn more about these efforts, along with others, by visiting the White House Blog.