Hawaii Governor Lingle Signs Bill To Encourage Biofuel Production

May 21, 2008 -- HONOLULU – Hawaii Governor Linda Lingle signed into law today a bill (HB3179 SD1 CD1) that will make it easier for biofuel producers to directly lease public lands. The measure is part of the Lingle-Aiona Administration’s efforts to increase Hawaii’s energy independence by encouraging the use of alternative renewable energy sources such as biofuels.

Farmland, Hawaii: Photo by Frank Peters (CC)

A law passed in 2002 authorized the Board of Land and Natural Resources to lease public land to renewable energy producers through direct negotiation. The current law, however, does not take into consideration that biofuel production does not require its production facility to be located at the same location as the fuel source. Due to different requirements for industrial and agriculture zoned districts, it is often advantageous to have biofuel production facilities in a different location from where the crops and other organic materials are grown.

The new law, signed by the Governor as Act 90, expands the definition of renewable energy producer to include growers and producers of organic materials used primarily for the production of biofuels. This allows the energy producer to enter into direct negotiations to lease public lands where they may grow their crops or raise livestock, then transport the materials to a biofuel conversion facility located in an industrial or commercial zone. The bill also clarifies that the byproducts from the organic materials may be used for other beneficial purposes such as mulch, feed or feedstock, and still qualify for the directly negotiated leases.

“This new law is another important part of our strategy to increase the use of renewable resources and create a more secure energy future for Hawaii,” said Governor Lingle. “This measure provides another incentive to grow more of the fuel we use so we can continue to reduce Hawaii’s reliance on imported fossil fuels.”

Governor Lingle signed the bill during a kickoff meeting for the development of Hawaii’s statewide bioenergy master plan. The main focus of today’s meeting was to solicit public input on the formation of the master plan and to identify the opportunities and challenges that need to be addressed to develop a renewable bioenergy program to help transition the state to energy self-sufficiency. The Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism is taking the lead on the master plan development as part of the Hawaii Clean Energy Initiative, an unprecedented partnership between the State of Hawaii and the U.S. Department of Energy, which aims to have 70 percent of Hawaii’s energy come from clean, renewable sources by 2030.

Additional information on the Administration’s energy efficiency efforts can be found on the Governor’s Web site at: http://hawaii.gov/gov/energy.

Source: Hawaii Governor

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