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

By Leah Douglas

Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has introduced investigations into the supply chains of at least 2 sustainable fuel manufacturers in the middle of market issues that some might be utilizing fraudulent feedstocks for biodiesel to protect rewarding federal government subsidies.

EPA representative Jeffrey Landis informed Reuters that the company has actually released audits over the previous year, however decreased to determine the companies targeted due to the fact that the investigations are continuous.

The production of biodiesel from sustainable active ingredients, like used cooking oil, can make refiners a multitude of state and federal environmental and environment aids, including tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But fears have actually been installing that some supplies identified as utilized cooking oil are in fact less expensive and less sustainable virgin palm oil, a product that is related to deforestation and other ecological damage.

The problem came into focus following a rise in used cooking oil exports from Asia in recent years that analysts have said involves unrealistically high volumes relative to the amount of cooking oil utilized and recuperated in the area. The European Union is also examining feedstocks over the fraud issues.

The EPA audits started after the company upgraded domestic supply-chain accounting requirements in July 2023 for eco-friendly fuel manufacturers seeking to make credits under the RFS, he stated.

"EPA has carried out audits of eco-friendly fuel manufacturers given that July 2023 which includes, to name a few things, an examination of the areas that used cooking oil utilized in renewable fuel production was collected," he stated. "These investigations, however, are continuous and we are not able to discuss ongoing enforcement investigations."

U.S. senators from farm states have called for more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, saying federal companies must be as rigorous in confirming imports as they are supply chains.

"The Biden administration has actually developed vigorous standards to confirm, not simply trust, American producers, and it is imperative that the same analysis is used to imported feedstocks," six U.S. senators, led by Roger Marshall and Sherrod Brown, wrote in a June 20 letter to federal companies.

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