Biofuel co-op

heats up activities
By Scott Nicholson

High Country Biofuels is ready to pump up its operations, seeking a new processing and distribution site.

The cooperative has distributed biodiesel, a plant-derived liquid fuel, for a couple of years for about 50 members, working against a backdrop of falling petroleum prices and challenges with the fuel quality received from its supplier. One of the cooperative’s goals is to process the fuel locally, producing a vegetable-based fuel that is easier for vehicles to burn even in cold weather.

“We had recently started purchasing fuel from a processing center in Lenoir,” said Travis Triplett, secretary-treasurer for the cooperative. “With a change in processing, the cooperative can now get all-season fuel that doesn’t gel in cold weather.”

The group received a grant from the N.C. Division of Air Quality, buying a fuel truck and a small building that houses a storage tank. Cooperative members could show up and fill their tanks, essentially using the truck and storage tank as a “filling station.”

Now the cooperative is ready to take the next step and is asking the Watauga County commissioners for space at the solid-waste transfer station in Boone. The space will be used to construct a facility for processing and storage, initially working with waste vegetable oil from local restaurants but possibly evolving into an agricultural component.

“Now we’re putting in for a grant with the state that will enable us to build a processing facility, using local waste vegetable oil and maybe eventually some fuel from local crops, if we can get any local farmers to grow rapeseed,” Triplett said.

“We’re going back to the commissioners to ask for the use of a space at the (former) landfill to construct a building and put equipment in the building that would allow us to make our own biodiesel.”

The state grant application for $90,000 would be used to buy separation tanks and a system for introducing methanol to vegetable oil. “It’s not complicated, but it takes some work to get set up,” Triplett said, with the production mirroring a process already underway at Appalachian State University.

Triplett said the decline in gasoline prices had led to decreased attention for biodiesel, even though interest continued because of the focus on “green industries.”

“Somebody has to be committed to burning the biodiesel in their vehicle and be willing to pay the price,” Triplett said. “Last year, we were selling at about 70 cents more (per gallon) than petro-diesel and you have to be committed to that.”

Triplett said once the local processing center was established, the per-gallon price would be competitive with typical at-the-pump diesel. Biodiesel was alreaday competitive last year when petroleum prices surged to around $4 per gallon.

ASU is set up for processing local crops because it has a press that removes oil from the seeds, which is a step the cooperative plans for the future. Triplett acknowledged that farmers would need opportunity for profit before they jumped into fuel-crops production.

“Eventually it will be good to get the local farms involved,” she said. “That’s the battle, because it has to be economically feasible for the farmer. We would buy the crops and use them to make biofuel, which would then be used locally.”

The top plant stocks for biodeisel fuels are soybean, rapeseed, safflower and peanuts. Waste oil from the deep fryers of local restaurants will be the initial source of biofuel processing.

In addition to distributing its own fuel to cooperative members, the group’s goals include educating the general public about biodiesel and other alternative fuels, encouraging community interest and involvement in all forms of sustainable energy, decreasing dependence on foreign sources of petroleum and being conscientious stewards of the environment.

Triplett said the cooperative planned to offer a portion of its fuel to the county for use in publicly owned vehicles. While ethanol can be used in gasoline-powered vehicles, Triplett said the group is keeping its focus on biodiesel.

The fuels have fewer greenhouse-gas emissions and pollutants, and also have excellent lubricating properties for engines. Since biodiesel can be blended with petroleum diesel, Triplett said many municipalities are using a small portion of biodiesel in their fleets.

“We’re selling 100 percent stuff,” Triplett said. “You can make your own blends at whatever blend you want to use and it will still help the environment.”

Triplett said the cooperative dispensed 2,800 gallons in 2007 and in 2008 that was down to 500 gallons because of the changes in the Lenoir processing material. By keeping the production close to home, it could eventually provide economic benefits through a distribution and production system.

The state grant, if approved, would allow a part-time employment position to operate the processing center, with cooperative members also providing volunteer labor.

High Country Biodiesel Cooperative is scheduled to discuss the facility during Tuesday night’s commissioner meeting at the Watauga County Administrative Complex in Boone.