Biobased Products News and Policy Report – Update from Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.

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Biobased and Renewable Products Update
April 12, 2022

Federal

Research

U.S. Senators Introduce Bill To Replace Russian Oil With U.S. Biofuels

On March 9, 2022, U.S. Senators Joni Ernst (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the Home Front Energy Independence Act that would ban Russian oil and replace it with the use of biofuels produced in the United States. This bill combines parts of past bills that would make ethanol 15 (E15) available year-round, establish an E15 and Biodiesel Tax Credit, direct the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to finalize the E15 labeling rule, and provide biofuel infrastructure and compatibility with retailers:

Several Senators co-sponsored the bill, including Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), and Roger Marshall (R-KS0. Senator Klobuchar stated that this bill will help to hold Vladmir Putin accountable for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while also investing in affordable, readily available biofuels produce in the United States.

EPA Announces Disclosure Of Information Claimed As CBI Under The RFS Program

On March 10, 2022, EPA issued a notice of disclosure to all obligated parties under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program that have petitioned for a small refinery exemption (SRE) or that have submitted certain RFS compliance reports. EPA will disclose information that is claimed to be, or has been determined to be confidential business information (CBI) from May 21, 2021, through December 31, 2023, to the Government Accountability Office (GAO). These records include:

  • All materials submitted by small refineries as part of petitions;
  • Any documentation that the Department of Energy (DOE) provided to EPA stating DOE’s petition findings and scores and any EPA responses thereto;
  • Any EPA record addressing the subject of the exemption petitions; and
  • EPA’s final exemption decisions sent to refineries.

GAO will destroy, delete, or return to EPA all CBI claimed documents at the conclusion of its review.

House Committee Holds Hearing On Bioenergy RD&D For The Fuels And Chemicals Of Tomorrow

On March 16, 2022, the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee on Energy held a hearing on “Bioenergy Research and Development for the Fuels and Chemicals of Tomorrow.” According to the hearing charter, the purpose of the hearing was to examine the status of bioenergy research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) activities carried out by DOE. The hearing also considered advancements in bioenergy research and the potential role of this resource in a cleaner energy transition. Lastly, the hearing was intended to help inform future legislation to support and guide the United States’ bioenergy RD&D enterprise. Read more in Bergeson & Campbell, P.C.’s (B&C®) March 18, 2022, memorandum, “House Committee Holds Hearing on Bioenergy RD&D for the Fuels and Chemicals of Tomorrow.”

DOE Announces $34.5 Million Funding Opportunity For Improved Bioenergy Recovery And Conversion

On March 22, 2022, DOE announced a $34.5 million funding opportunity to improve the science and infrastructure for converting waste streams into bioproducts and biofuels that can benefit the local energy economy. DOE Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Kelly Speakes-Backman, stated that “through this investment, we see an opportunity to support the bioeconomy and the equitable transition to a clean energy economy.” The FY22 Waste Feedstock and Conversion R&D Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) encourages the development of improved organisms and inorganic catalysts to support the next generation of low-carbon biofuels and bioproducts. This FOA has four topic areas:

  • Community Scale Resource and Energy Recovery from Organic Wastes;
  • Municipal Solid Waste Feedstock Technologies;
  • Robust Catalytic Processes; and
  • Robust Microbial Cells.

DOE will accept concept papers for this FOA until 5:00 p.m. (EDT) on April 18, 2022. Applications are due by 5:00 p.m. (EDT) on June 7, 2022. Additional information on this FOA is available here.

EPA Holds Webinar On Biofuel PMNs: New Chemical Risk Assessment And Applications Of The Tools And Models

On March 23, 2022, EPA held a webinar on “Biofuel Premanufacture Notices: New Chemical Risk Assessment and Applications of Tools and Models.” As reported in B&C’s January 24, 2022, TSCAblog® item, in January 2022, EPA announced an effort to streamline the review of new biobased or waste-derived chemicals that could displace current, higher greenhouse gas (GHG)-emitting transportation fuels. EPA states that, to support this effort, it is offering outreach and training to stakeholders interested in biofuels. According to EPA, the bi-weekly webinar series includes reviewing requirements under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), outlining the streamlined approaches for risk assessments and risk management actions, and providing information on how to navigate the new chemicals premanufacture notice (PMN) process. EPA provided background and outlined the following challenges for each risk assessment conducted:

  • Chemistry Assessment:
     
    • Fuel stream and related substances are broad in number and scope, especially with the addition of current biobased and waste feedstock blends; they can be class 1, class 2, or chemical substances of unknown or variable composition, complex reaction products, and biological materials (UVCB) substances;
       
    • Many petroleum-derived fuel streams are on the original TSCA Inventory, and there are very little data associated with them; and
       
    • Complete characterization of the new chemical substance is often unavailable;
       
  • Environmental Fate and Transport Assessment:
     
    • Analysis of constituents may not represent the properties of the new chemical substance;
       
  • Engineering Assessment: Environmental Releases:
     
    • EPA’s release assessment analyzes each manufacturing, processing, and use operation and determines the sources/activities that can result in releases to the environment. These release estimates are used to estimate exposure estimates for ecological and human receptors;
       
    • Examples of release data: (1) Measured release data; (2) Measured release data for a “surrogate” chemical; (3) Modeled release estimates;
       
    • Release estimates have limitations — examples:
       
      • Lack of appropriate model/method to estimate releases from specific industrial activities (e.g., storage tank emissions); and
         
      • Limitation in certain release models (e.g., limited to a vapor pressure threshold of 35 torr);
         
  • Engineering Assessment: Occupational Exposures:
    ​
    • Occupational exposure assessment estimates the magnitude, frequency, and duration of exposures to the new chemical substance at the workplace;
       
    • Worker inhalation and dermal exposures are expected throughout the lifecycle of the new chemical substance (e.g., manufacturing, processing, use); and
       
    • Exposure models do not account for some engineering controls (e.g., vapor capture/reduction);
       
  • Exposure Assessment: General Population and Consumer Exposures:
     
    • Occupational exposure assessment estimates the magnitude, frequency, and duration of exposures to the new chemical substance for the general population and consumers via inhalation and drinking water pathways;
       
    • The confidence of the exposure estimates are affected by:
      ​
      • Assumptions, limitations, and areas of uncertainty in the fate and engineering analyses; and
         
      • Inherent uncertainties of the exposure parameters and assumptions for the estimation of the general population and consumer exposures;
         
  • Hazard Assessment:
     
    • Data on the new chemical substance or an analogous biofuel are preferred, but few submissions include toxicological or composition data;
       
    • EPA often lacks acute/chronic environmental test data on the new chemical substance and the analogous substances; and
       
    • There are challenges in performing read-across approaches and route-to-route extrapolations with analogous substances of variable composition.
       

For biofuel PMNs, EPA has started generating one report that combines the results of each of the above assessments. The final webinar in the series was held on April 6, 2022, on new chemicals risk management actions, including TSCA Section 5 orders and significant new use rules (SNUR).

OSTP Publishes RFI Regarding Sustainable Chemicals

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) published on April 4, 2022, a request for information (RFI) from interested parties on federal programs and activities in support of sustainable chemistry. 87 Fed. Reg. 19539. OSTP notes that “[t]he term “sustainable chemistry” does not have a consensus definition and most uses of the term indicate that it is synonymous with “green chemistry.”” OSTP requests information on the preferred definition for sustainable chemistry. OSTP also seeks comments on how the definition of sustainable chemistry could impact the role of technology, federal policies that may aid or hinder sustainable chemistry initiatives, future research to advance sustainable chemistry, financial and economic considerations, and federal agency efforts. OSTP states that it will use comments provided in response to the RFI to address Subtitle E of Title II of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (Subtitle E), which includes the text of the bipartisan Sustainable Chemistry Research and Development Act of 2019. Subtitle E directs OSTP “to identify research questions and priorities to promote transformational progress in improving the sustainability of the chemical sciences.” Comments are due by 5:00 p.m. (EDT) on June 3, 2022. Additional Information is available in the B&C’s April 6, 2022, memorandum.

Events

Register Now For “FIFRA Hot Topics” On Wednesday, April 20, 2022, From 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. (EDT)

Register now to join B&C for “FIFRA Hot Topics,” a complimentary webinar covering key priorities of Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) and what companies should know to avoid market delays. With year one of the Biden Administration’s term in the history books, we have a clearer sense of how EPA is proceeding on all fronts. EPA’s OPP is focusing on long-standing challenges, especially a renewed effort to meet Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultation requirements and determining how best to meet core pesticide registration review obligations in 2022. These program priorities must reflect special considerations for environmental justice and climate change, advance critical science and policy issues, develop a fifth Pesticide Registration Improvement Act (PRIA) implementation framework, and display a renewed commitment to working collaboratively with state partners and other stakeholders to implement the program.

Speakers include:

Other News

•Reuters, “‘Biggest Green Deal Since Paris’: UN to Approve Plastic Treaty Roadmap”
•USDA Agricultural Research Service News, “Sorghum: A Sweet Proposition for Sustainable Biofuel”
•FOODnavigator.com, “Scientists Develop Edible, Biodegradable, Anti-Microbial Plastic for Food Packaging”