Stan Feldman
2008-06-06 04:45:06 UTC
BARTA widens search for fuel
Transit agency officials are in talks with a firm that has technology to
produce renewable bioderived diesel from food-processing waste products.
By Darrin Youker
Reading Eagle
6/3/2008 11:56:00 PM
- BARTA's push to find an alternative fuel for its buses is growing.
Officials of the transportation agency are in talks with a New York firm
that has developed a technology to produce renewable bioderived diesel fuel
from food-processing waste products.
They also are reaching out to other public transportation systems to see if
there's any interest in jointly building a plant to produce the fuel.
Last month, BARTA board member Ronald Seaman suggested that the agency look
into developing a small plant to convert waste cooking oil into biodiesel
fuel.
But as Seaman and BARTA Executive Director Dennis D. Louwerse explored the
issue, they learned there is a lot of new research into finding renewable,
homegrown fuels.
"It has just kept growing by leaps and bounds," Seaman said.
State Rep. Thomas Caltagirone, a Reading Democrat, told BARTA about the New
York firm, Changing World Technologies.
Changing World Technologies built a plant four years ago in Carthage, Mo.,
that takes turkey waste from a nearby Butterball Turkey Co. plant and
produces 500 barrels of diesel fuel a day, company spokeswoman Julie Gelfand
said.
The process mimics the natural one by which fossil fuels are created,
Gelfand said. Carbon-based waste such as innards, blood and feathers are
subjected to heat and pressure to create fuel oil that is used to fire the
boilers of several nearby factories.
Changing World Technologies also has a facility in Philadelphia and it
produces fuel oil from sludge from four sewer plants, Caltagirone said.
Caltagirone said he learned of Changing World Technologies four years ago
and has been trying to lure the company to area.
A bill he introduced last year would give the company a 75-cent per gallon
credit for making bioderived diesel fuel in Pennsylvania. The state House
passed the bill but not the Senate.
According to Caltagirone, Changing World Technologies is making the fuel at
its Carthage plant for 80 cents a gallon, far below the current cost of
diesel.
Caltagirone said a similar plant in southeastern Pennsylvania is a
possibility and that it could use waste generated by food processors to
create a fuel for public transportation agencies. He suggested BARTA take a
look at a regional approach to such a facility.
"We can break the stranglehold on foreign oil," he said.
David Kilmer, executive director of Red Rose Transit Authority in Lancaster,
said finding an alternative source of fuel is on the minds of many
transportation agencies' officials. Fuel costs now take up more than 15
percent of Red Rose's budget, he said.
"It used to not be such a big factor," Kilmer said.
Seamen of the BARTA board said he would like to set up a meeting with
officials of public transportation systems in southeast Pennsylvania to
gauge interest in developing an alternative fuels plant.
"It becomes more and more encouraging every step of the way," Seaman said.
"This is more than just helping BARTA."
. Contact reporter Darrin Youker at 610-371-5032 or
***@readingeagle.com.
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=94186
***********************************************************
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Transit agency officials are in talks with a firm that has technology to
produce renewable bioderived diesel from food-processing waste products.
By Darrin Youker
Reading Eagle
6/3/2008 11:56:00 PM
- BARTA's push to find an alternative fuel for its buses is growing.
Officials of the transportation agency are in talks with a New York firm
that has developed a technology to produce renewable bioderived diesel fuel
from food-processing waste products.
They also are reaching out to other public transportation systems to see if
there's any interest in jointly building a plant to produce the fuel.
Last month, BARTA board member Ronald Seaman suggested that the agency look
into developing a small plant to convert waste cooking oil into biodiesel
fuel.
But as Seaman and BARTA Executive Director Dennis D. Louwerse explored the
issue, they learned there is a lot of new research into finding renewable,
homegrown fuels.
"It has just kept growing by leaps and bounds," Seaman said.
State Rep. Thomas Caltagirone, a Reading Democrat, told BARTA about the New
York firm, Changing World Technologies.
Changing World Technologies built a plant four years ago in Carthage, Mo.,
that takes turkey waste from a nearby Butterball Turkey Co. plant and
produces 500 barrels of diesel fuel a day, company spokeswoman Julie Gelfand
said.
The process mimics the natural one by which fossil fuels are created,
Gelfand said. Carbon-based waste such as innards, blood and feathers are
subjected to heat and pressure to create fuel oil that is used to fire the
boilers of several nearby factories.
Changing World Technologies also has a facility in Philadelphia and it
produces fuel oil from sludge from four sewer plants, Caltagirone said.
Caltagirone said he learned of Changing World Technologies four years ago
and has been trying to lure the company to area.
A bill he introduced last year would give the company a 75-cent per gallon
credit for making bioderived diesel fuel in Pennsylvania. The state House
passed the bill but not the Senate.
According to Caltagirone, Changing World Technologies is making the fuel at
its Carthage plant for 80 cents a gallon, far below the current cost of
diesel.
Caltagirone said a similar plant in southeastern Pennsylvania is a
possibility and that it could use waste generated by food processors to
create a fuel for public transportation agencies. He suggested BARTA take a
look at a regional approach to such a facility.
"We can break the stranglehold on foreign oil," he said.
David Kilmer, executive director of Red Rose Transit Authority in Lancaster,
said finding an alternative source of fuel is on the minds of many
transportation agencies' officials. Fuel costs now take up more than 15
percent of Red Rose's budget, he said.
"It used to not be such a big factor," Kilmer said.
Seamen of the BARTA board said he would like to set up a meeting with
officials of public transportation systems in southeast Pennsylvania to
gauge interest in developing an alternative fuels plant.
"It becomes more and more encouraging every step of the way," Seaman said.
"This is more than just helping BARTA."
. Contact reporter Darrin Youker at 610-371-5032 or
***@readingeagle.com.
http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=94186
***********************************************************
Stans Railpix railphotoexpress.com Store !!
http://www.cafepress.com/stans_railpix
www.zazzle.com/stanrail
Stan'S Railpix;-A-Rail-Photo-Gallery !!
http://www.trainweb.org/railpix
Will remain a FREE site with 2426+1/2 images posted.
***********************************************************