New BioFuel Company May Locate in Vero Beach

Biofuel may soon become one of the new companies relocating to Vero Beach, Florida. New Planet Energy, a California based alternative fuel company, is negotiating to buy property in southwest Indian River County to convert a variety of micro-organisms from plant wastes and trash into biofuel. The Indian River Chamber of Commerce is enthusiastically promoting the company's application for permits to allow the company to produce 8 million gallons of biofuel a year within the next two years. The company is also working with the county landfill managers in a proposal to use methane gas and solid wastes from the land fill.

Florida's Energy Act is offering a $2.5 million grant to encourage this project in keeping with the state goal to achieve 10% of motor fuel from alternative sources by 2010.

In our opinion, these sources of biofuel would be especially consumer-friendly because these waste sources would not impact food prices as in the case of the diversion of corn to biofuel.