Indian River Marina head Gary King knew that Biodiesel wouldn’t be his most popular product right away. When he received a grant enabling him to start selling the soy-based fuel at the marina last May, he knew boaters would be hesitant to put the new product into their engines, on which they have probably spend thousands of dollars. And he was right about that.
“There’s a lot hesitation about it because there’s a lot of misinformation,” King said. So, he added, “We’re trying to educate people about the product and what you can do to use it effectively.”
King said that marina officials have made brochures about the product, and he spends time talking to boat owners, boat manufacturers and other marinas across the state and the region about promoting the environmentally-friendly product.
“We have made some end roads,” King said. Some on-the-road gas stations have picked up on the product and are educating the public, as well. Sanjay Kapuria, the owner of the Millsboro Uncle Willies at the corner of Routes 20 and 113 said he will keep promoting and selling the fuel as long as that venture remains economically viable.
Many Uncle Willie’s gas stations across the state are selling the product but they are still in the minority. But although most gas-stops in the state don’t yet sell the product, the bio-fuel is gaining popularity and should soon be a fixture, especially on the Delmarva Peninsula, said Jeff Allen, president of the Delaware Soybean Board.
“The sales are picking up all of the time,” Allen said. “It’s just the education of people and exposing people to it. We’re looking at this year being prosperous,” he added.
Fuel meets two needs
Biodiesel is a soy-based fuel that can be made wholly from crops harvested on the Delmarva Peninsula. About 200,000 acres of soybeans are harvested each year in Delaware alone, most of which are sold to Perdue for chicken meal.
The other byproduct of crushed soybeans is oil. Much of that Delmarva soybean oil will be used in a Clayton Biodiesel plant, starting this summer, to make the clean fuel, which can be used in any diesel-powered vehicle without upgrades. Producing home-grown oils should have benefits to farmers in the area and the country as a whole.
“The plant in Clayton is a major step for Delaware and here in the Northeast,” said Michael Scuse, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Agriculture. “It’s really a big step in helping our farmers, our environment and to help break our dependence on foreign oil.”
Most Biodiesel found on the Eastern Shore, however, is a blend. King sold B2 at the marina last year, which is 2 percent Biodiesel and 98 percent conventional petroleum. He might switch to a B5 this year, with 5 percent Biodiesel.
The Uncle Willie’s gas stations across the state sell B20, offering 20 percent Biodiesel. Even at a 20 percent blend, though, there are major improvements on the emission effects of the fuel.
As compared to conventional diesel, B20 decreases the release of hydrocarbons — which are known to be cancer-causing — by up to 20 percent, according to www.biodiesel.org. It decreases carbon monoxide emissions — a poisonous toxin released into the air each day by gas- and diesel-powered vehicles — by about 12 percent.
“The heath issues are important. Its cleaner burning,” said Marty Ross, a farmer and president of the Mid Atlantic Biodiesel Company, the company that is opening the Clayton plant. He said that he has been using Biodiesel on his farm and has “never seen an engine with that many hours so clean.”
Bio-fuel causes filter, wallet problems
A Sussex Lumber employee filling up his work truck with regular diesel at the Millsboro Uncle Willie’s said he uses whatever fuel his boss tells him to use. But if he had to guess, he’d say that they use regular diesel because of the cheaper price.
B20 Biodiesel at the Millsboro station and other on-the-road stations across the state runs about 20 cents more than regular diesel, which averaged $2.97 a gallon in Delaware on Wednesday.
Its price has been the No. 1 reason customers haven’t used much Biodiesel at Kapuria’s store, he said.
“It’s expensive,” he said. And not just for the customers. “I’m going to try and keep it around at least until the end of the summer and then make a judgment call,” Kapuria added. “You buy it and it lasts you five months. As to diesel, you can turn it around in four days.”
At the marina, it’s been a different story. Because road tax doesn’t apply to the marina’s fuel, King has been offering the bio-product for the same price as regular diesel. Its price has this year stayed at less than $2.70 a gallon for water users at Indian River.
Filter problems associated with the fuel have been the major concern offered by boaters, said Dave Wolzansky, a fuel dock employee at the marina.
Biodiesel acts as a “detergent” in fuel tanks and lines. If there is a sludge buildup in the boat’s tank or lines, the bio-fuel will clean it out, flush it through the system and possibly clog the filter, shutting down operations. Wolzansky said this is more of a concern with older boats, but it has been a concern of most boaters who come through the marina’s fuel dock.
“They’re concerned that they might be 25 miles off shore and get clogged,” he said.
Mixed reactions
Despite engine-related concerns on the water, Wolzansky said that the marina sold more than 9,000 gallons of the soy-based fuel last year. About a dozen regular customers regularly powered their boats with the bio-fuel in the 2005 summer season.
Kapuria said that he wishes his Biodiesel customer base was that large. He said that only about 2 percent of his diesel sales come from Biodiesel and he only sells about 200 gallons of the product a week. Although he does see need for the fuel in the long run, Kapuria is not sure if that will help him keep the fuel readily available in Millsboro.
“I’m going to try to keep it until it starts selling, unless it becomes a dead product,” he said. “It’s a product we think there will be a demand for down the road. But nobody is even talking about it.”
Wolzansky now thinks the bio-fuel will have more of an immediate impact on the fuel sales at the marina, after introducing the product last year.
“We had no idea what to expect,” Wolzansky said of last year’s sales. “I think more people will be converting based on the assurance that people have been using it successfully for a year.”
Steve McGeehan said it won’t even be a question of whether he’ll use the product this year. The owner of the Rusty Reel commercial fishing boat, docked at the Indian River Marina, said using the bio-fuel is a “no-brainer.
“I have every intention on trying it because it burns a lot cleaner,” McGeehan said. “I’ll be changing filters for a while, but you have to clean them anyway. If you’re not sacrificing horsepower, it’s the way to go.”