Seattle Tries Grease-Based Biodiesel for City Fleet; Soy Diesel Not Green Enough
By John O'Dell June 22, 2009
Seattle, one of the country's major municipal purchasers of biodiesel - used for the fire trucks, pickups and other diesel-burning vehicles in its city fleet - is thinking of switching from plant-based fuel to one made from waste grease.
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Biodiesel made from used cooking grease is being tested in Seattle's city fleet.
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The city, noted for green initiatives that include a world-class mass transit system and a determination to foster use of electric and hydrogen vehicles, is concerned that soy-based biodiesel isn't all that good for the environment, according to a recent report in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
Not all alternative fuel are the same, city fleet director Brenda Bauer told a reporter for the city's major newspaper. "We are trying to stay ahead of the curve in terms of finding fuels that are responsible fuels that will help us reduce our petroleum consumption."
Crop-based biofuels, including diesel made from soy oil, have been heavily criticized for the amounts of land, water and energy use in their production.
By using locally produced biodiesel made from used cooking oils and other waste grease - let's call it greasel fuel - the city could be further reducing its carbon footprint.
The city uses about 73,000 gallons of biodiesel a month and will temporarily stop using the soy-based stuff while its tests grease-based fuel to see if it will work as well.
Although it has less of an environmental impact, the fuel isn't without problems of its own, one being the increase in "grease rustling" that's been experienced in communities where "greasel" fuel use has made grease-collecting into a profitable business.
Another is that greasel tends to coagulate and not run through fuel lines very well when temperatures fall - and it can get fairly chilly in Seattle.
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