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

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By Leah Douglas

Aug 7 (Reuters) - The U.S. Epa has released examinations into the supply chains of at least two eco-friendly fuel manufacturers amidst industry issues that some may be utilizing fraudulent feedstocks for biodiesel to secure lucrative government aids.

EPA spokesperson Jeffrey Landis informed Reuters that the firm has released audits over the past year, however declined to recognize the business targeted because the investigations are ongoing.

The production of biodiesel from sustainable ingredients, like used cooking oil, can earn refiners a variety of state and federal environmental and environment aids, including tradable credits under a program administered by the EPA called the Renewable Fuel Standard. But worries have actually been mounting that some products identified as used cooking oil are in fact more affordable and less sustainable virgin palm oil, a product that is connected with deforestation and other ecological damage.

The concern came into focus following a rise in used cooking oil exports from Asia in current years that have stated includes unrealistically high volumes relative to the quantity of cooking oil used and recuperated in the area. The European Union is also examining feedstocks over the scams issues.

The EPA audits began after the firm upgraded domestic supply-chain accounting requirements in July 2023 for sustainable fuel manufacturers seeking to earn credits under the RFS, he said.

"EPA has actually conducted audits of renewable fuel manufacturers because July 2023 which consists of, amongst other things, an evaluation of the locations that utilized cooking oil utilized in sustainable fuel production was collected," he said. "These examinations, however, are continuous and we are unable to talk about ongoing enforcement investigations."

U.S. senators from farm states have called for more oversight of biofuel feedstocks, stating federal firms should be as extensive in verifying imports as they are auditing domestic supply chains.

"The Biden administration has developed vigorous requirements to verify, not simply trust, American producers, and it is necessary that the exact same analysis is used to imported feedstocks," 6 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 urged the administration to exclude 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)