| Biobased and Renewable Products Update |
|
June 20, 2019 |
Federal
DOE Announces Waves To Water Prize Competition
On June 13, 2019, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)
announced the launch of the first stage of the Waves to Water Prize.
A competition seeking to accelerate the development of wave energy powered
desalination systems and address water security, the prize consists of four stages.
The first concept stage is now open for applications until September 11, 2019. U.S.
Under Secretary of Energy, Mark W. Menezes, stated that “[t]he start of the
Waves to Water Prize marks an important step toward driving growth and progress
in the marine energy sector as well as spurring innovation to develop
desalinization technologies that will have a global impact.” DOE is offering
winners up to $2.5 million in prizes for the advancement of their solutions.
From concept, to technical design, to creating a prototype, the competing
systems will produce clean water using only waves as power sources. This first
stage includes $200,000 in prizes with up to $10,000 for up to 20 winners. Led
by DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Water Power
Technologies Office, the competition seeks interdisciplinary solutions that are
modular and easily transportable, ultimately serving clean water needs for
remote communities or disaster relief scenarios. Guidelines for application
submissions can be found here.
U.S. Senators Introduce
Bipartisan Act Aiming To Increase Small Refinery Exemptions Transparency
On June 14, 2019, U.S. Senators Deb Fischer (R-NE) and
Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) introduced the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) Integrity
Act of 2019. This Act aims at increasing transparency and
predictability to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) small
refinery exemption process under the RFS program. Requiring small refineries to
petition for exemptions by June 1 of each year, according to the two leaders,
this legislation would hold EPA accountable for exempted gallons in the annual
Renewable Volume Obligation (RVO) it sets every November. It is known that,
since 2018, many complaints have been made regarding President Trump’s EPA
liberally providing exemptions to refineries with no back-up information or
congressional oversight. This Act attempts to address this issue by making key
information associated with exemptions made publicly available. Additionally,
if passed, the Act would require EPA to report to Congress on the methodology
it uses when granting these small refinery exemptions.
EDF Publishes Report On
Trump EPA’s Implementation Of The Lautenberg Act
The Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) announced on June
17, 2019, a report entitled Toxic
Consequences: Trump’s attacks on chemical safety put our health at risk.
EDF notes that “[c]oncern over toxic exposures and a lack of confidence in the
badly outdated chemical safety system” led to Congress passing the Frank R.
Launtenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (Launtenberg Act) to
reform the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). The bipartisan bill “finally”
gave EPA “the power to strengthen health protections for American families and
the environment.” EDF claims that the Trump Administration “is seeking to
dismantle the new authorities and mandates under the law with the goal of
shifting policies to serve the chemical industry’s agenda,” however. According
to EDF, EPA has taken the following actions that undermine the Launtenberg Act:
- Approving new chemicals without
regard for the law or public health;
- Ignoring real-life exposures
when evaluating risks of existing chemicals; and
- Blocking or weakening bans of toxic chemicals.
EDF concludes that “without a drastic change to EPA’s current direction on chemical safety, we will be forced to endure the toxic consequences of its mistakes for decades to come.”
International
EU TEG On Sustainable Finance Publishes Proposal
For EU Green Bond Standard*
In June 2019, the European Commission (EC) Technical
Expert Group (TEG) on Sustainable Finance, published its Report on EU Green Bond Standard.
The report proposes the creation of a European Union (EU) Green Bond Standard
(EU-GBS) to address barriers to market development of green financial products.
Also proposing the establishment of a framework to facilitate sustainable
investment — “Taxonomy Regulation” — TEG makes ten recommendations in its GBS
Report to:
- Create a voluntary EU-GBS;
- EU-GBS should have four core
components — (1) alignment of Green Projects with the EU Taxonomy, (2)
Green Bond Framework, (3) reporting, and (4) verification by accredited
verifiers;
- Encourage set-up of a voluntary
interim registration process for verifiers of EU Green Bonds for an
estimated transition period of up to three years;
- Encourage investors to use
EU-GBS requirements in their green fixed-income investment strategies and
communicate their preference actively to green bond issuers and
underwriters;
- Welcome political compromise on
the sustainability-related disclosure regulation;
- Consider promoting greening the
financial system;
- Consider development of
financial incentives supporting the EU Green Bond market;
- Encourage bond issuers to issue
their green bonds in accordance with EU-GBS requirements;
- Promote adoption of EU-GBS
through the EU Ecolabel for financial products; and
- Monitor impact on the alignment of financial flows with the EU Taxonomy’s Environmental Objectives, considering further supporting action.
Other
News
| ■ | Digital Journal, “New Microorganism Helps Produce Alternative Fuels” |