Highest Biodiesel Honors Awarded Today at National Conference
"Eye on Biodiesel" awards applaud industry pioneers and public faces

SAN FRANCISCO – The annual awards for champions of environmentally friendly biodiesel fuel were presented at the sixth annual National Biodiesel Conference & Expo, which wrapped up in San Francisco today. Two seafaring captains, musician Melissa Etheridge, San Francisco's mayor, a soybean farmer who was the first to lead what is now the National Biodiesel Board, and three individuals who worked tirelessly to usher in biodiesel fuel adoption and standards, will be taking honors home. The NBB's 2009 "Eye on Biodiesel Award" categories and their winners are:

Influence – Melissa Etheridge. Female rock icon and Grammy and Academy Award winner Melissa Etheridge tours around the world, powered by biodiesel when she can. Etheridge said she liked using biodiesel in her tour vehicles so much that she sold her personal cars to buy a diesel SUV, which she calls the "Bio-Beast." "Biodiesel inspires me and I believe it will inspire others, especially once they get that you don't have to make any changes to the engine to use it," said Etheridge. "I think America is going to come back as an energy leader through renewable, sustainable fuels like biodiesel."

Inspiration – Bryan Peterson and Pete Bethune. Fourteen years ago Bryan Peterson made his way around the world in a small boat powered by a little-known fuel at the time – biodiesel. He completed the 35,000 mile, 2 year trip in a boat called Sunrider. Peterson's successful adventure generated some of the earliest news on biodiesel, and it paved the way for a world record last year. New Zealander Pete Bethune made headlines for breaking the world speed record for circumnavigating the globe in his Earthrace expedition in 60 days. Both men's biodiesel message circumnavigated the globe with them.

Initiative – San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Spot a city bus, a fire truck, or a double-decker tour bus in the conference host city, and chances are pretty good that it is running on biodiesel blend. In this largest known city in the world to use B20 fleet-wide, its mayor has had a lot to do with that. In 2006, he issued an Executive Directive designed to increase the pace of municipal use of biodiesel. Today, virtually all of the City’s 1,500 diesel vehicles run on B20.

Industry Partnership – Ronald Hayes/State of Missouri and Randy Jennings/State of Tennessee. The two have both worked in conjunction with the National Conference on Weights and Measures Fuels and Lubricants Committee, and with ASTM International to create and enforce standards for biodiesel fuel. This includes the long-awaited blended spec, for blends of B6 – B20. They also worked on developing test methods for the specification and labeling requirements. Hayes serves as the chair for the NCWM. "We helped develop the specification that most states now adopt," said Hayes, Director, Weights and Measures, Dept. of Agriculture.

"Our objective all along has been to assist in the commercial sustainability of biodiesel by assuring the end user of a quality product," said Jennings, Tennessee's Biofuels Administrator in the Dept. of Agriculture.

Impact – Randall von Wedel. Von Wedel was instrumental in helping to bring biodiesel to the West Coast. Since the early '90s, he has opened California's first retail pump, implemented biodiesel in fleets such as Berkeley University's, advised San Francisco on its biodiesel program, implemented quality control programs for fleets, and helped pioneer marine uses of biodiesel, to name just a few of his endeavors. Von Wedel and his company, CytoCulture, provide testing and quality assurance consulting to fleets around the country. He continues to be a passionate, tireless advocate for the growth of biodiesel.

In addition, the NBB presented the Pioneer Award - a special honor to an individual or group who has served the industry – to Kenlon Johannes, the first Executive Director of the National SoyDiesel Development Board, which later would become the NBB. "I had an empty file cabinet drawer at the NBB office and was ecstatic when we put the first hanging file folder in it with a biodiesel producer's name on it," said Johannes. "I don’t know if I fully envisioned what the industry would become; I was too busy building support for the effort. But, I never wavered from thinking that what we were doing was right, what we were doing would work, and that we would move forward." Johannes, a soybean farmer when he represented the board, continues to promote biodiesel through the Kansas Soybean Commission.

"To mirror the theme of this year's conference, 'Leading. Change. Now.,' each of these leaders is furthering our mission of public education on biodiesel's societal benefits, and opening doors for the growth of the fuel. They have helped to bring positive change in the U.S.," said Joe Jobe, NBB CEO. "Champions such as these have either brought a public face to the fuel's effectiveness, or have eliminated barriers for greater acceptance of the fuel."

Based in Jefferson City, Mo., NBB, is the national trade association of the biodiesel industry. Last year's 700 million gallon production of this fuel reduced greenhouse gas emissions the equivalent of removing 980,000 vehicles from U.S. roads.

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