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

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By Leah Douglas

Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Epa has actually released investigations into the supply chains of at least 2 sustainable fuel producers in the middle of industry issues that some might be using fraudulent feedstocks for biodiesel to secure rewarding federal government aids.

EPA spokesperson Jeffrey Landis told Reuters that the firm has actually released audits over the previous year, but declined to identify the business targeted due to the fact that the investigations are continuous.

The production of biodiesel from sustainable components, like utilized cooking oil, can earn refiners a slew of state and federal environmental and climate subsidies, consisting of tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But fears have been mounting that some supplies identified as utilized are in fact less expensive and less sustainable virgin palm oil, an item that is connected with logging and other environmental damage.

The issue entered into focus following a rise in utilized cooking oil exports from Asia recently that experts have actually stated includes unrealistically high volumes relative to the quantity of cooking oil used and recuperated in the region. The European Union is likewise investigating feedstocks over the scams issues.

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

"EPA has performed audits of renewable fuel producers considering that July 2023 that includes, to name a few things, an examination of the places that utilized cooking oil used in sustainable fuel production was collected," he said. "These investigations, however, are ongoing and we are unable to discuss ongoing enforcement examinations."

U.S. senators from farm states have called for more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, stating federal agencies ought to be as rigorous in confirming imports as they are auditing domestic supply chains.

"The Biden administration has developed vigorous standards to validate, not simply trust, American manufacturers, and it is essential that the same analysis is applied to imported feedstocks," 6 U.S. senators, led by Roger Marshall and Sherrod Brown, composed in a June 20 letter to federal firms.

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