Portland leads nation, revs up biodiesel rule

Five percent mandate goes into effect, with ‘Jubitz exception’

By todd murphy

The Portland Tribune, Aug 14, 2007, Updated Oct 30, 2009 (10 Reader comments)

Portland’s diesel fuel goes biodiesel Wednesday.

That is the deadline the City Council set more than a year ago in requiring that virtually all diesel fuel sold in Portland be at least 5 percent biodiesel.

“We are the first and only local government in the country to do this,” said Michelle Crim, a program manager in the city’s Office of Sustainable Development.

Biodiesel is an increasingly popular alternative fuel that is either partly or wholly made from biological sources, such as mustard seed or canola oil.

Most studies and experts say that burning fuel that is partly or mostly biodiesel produces significantly fewer hydrocarbons, carbon monoxide and particulate matter than burning petroleum diesel.

It also helps combat global warming, because the plants used to make it take carbon dioxide — which helps contribute to global warming — out of the atmosphere.

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