US taps biofuel for heat
Wednesday, 5 December 2007
WESTWOOD, Massachusetts, Dec 4 (Reuters): The yellow furnace in the basement of Richard Grady's Massachusetts home puts the retired engineer at the forefront of an environmental revolution. It's stoked by fuel derived from soybeans.
Grady and a growing number of homeowners in the US Northeast are taking a stand against record oil prices, American dependence on Middle East oil and climate change by turning to biofuels to heat their houses during winter.
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is trying to speed up the trend, having proposed a bill on November 5 that would require all home heating oil and diesel fuel contain at least 5 per cent of the cleaner-burning fuel by 2013, a big step in the US Northeast, where 32 per cent of homes use oil to stay warm in winter.
Grady and a growing number of homeowners in the US Northeast are taking a stand against record oil prices, American dependence on Middle East oil and climate change by turning to biofuels to heat their houses during winter.
Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick is trying to speed up the trend, having proposed a bill on November 5 that would require all home heating oil and diesel fuel contain at least 5 per cent of the cleaner-burning fuel by 2013, a big step in the US Northeast, where 32 per cent of homes use oil to stay warm in winter.