by 
By Matt Carr
The big news from last month is that ABO’s efforts to secure new funding and regulatory support for supplying carbon dioxide to industrial algaecultivation operations is beginning to pay off.
Last week marked a significant victory for ABO’s efforts to raise the profile of algae‘s ability to consume carbon dioxide and help fight climate change: U.S. Senators Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) introduced legislation to prioritize research and development of carbon utilization technologies at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Fossil Energy program.
It’s hard to believe that just a year ago carbon utilization wasn’t on the mind of most sitting U.S. Senators, but thanks to the efforts of ABO members we have found a number of allies on Capitol Hill that recognize the enormous advantage that comes with the ability to convert CO2 emissions into valuable products.
With their help we can accelerate the day algae become a source of renewable fuels, chemicals, food and feed products – all while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
We still have a ways to go. Despite simmering support for carbon utilization in the House and Senate, there is still a lot of momentum going against us. Much of the hesitation is due to the large and important effort at federal agencies that has already gone into developing other climate technologies, such as carbon sequestration, and the lack of information about cutting-edge technologies like algae.
We need widespread support for carbon utilization because it would unlock the supplies of CO2 that will drive the development of new algae products, help establish new R&D programs, and convince the largest food, energy and materials companies that algae, a new raw material, is ready for tomorrow’s sustainable economy.
In the coming months we will need your help. Congress is debating a variety of proposals that could support algae R&D; the Environmental Protection Agency is preparing to finalize rules that will guide how states will control greenhouse gas emissions; and unsustainable pressures on our food supplies and environment are worsening.
If you are ready to take a stand for algae please spend a few short moments right now and write a letter to your Congressional delegation asking for carbon utilization support across federal agencies.
We’ve made the process a little easier for you–just go straight to ABO’sAlgae Action Center.
All you have to do is enter your contact info, make your own custom edits to a letter we have drafted and click the “submit” button.
Thanks to all of those that have added their voices so far. We are making progress, and now is the time to accelerate our efforts.
