Future, thy name is bio-diesel â€" at least that’s the hope of Marcus Vernon, a local businessman who yesterday was awarded a zoning clearance from the city of Greensboro to begin the process of bringing a bio-diesel plant into neighboring Greene County.Â

“It’s the very first baby step in a long process,â€� says Vernon, of Carbon Neutral Holdings, LLC in Madison.Â

Bio-diesel, an incarnation of natural animal fats and vegetable oils that is then blended with petroleumâ€"based diesel, is touted as more environmentally friendly and is a phenomenon that’s been gaining popularity around the country.Â

Although the bio-diesel that may be on its way to this area probably won’t be gassing up many tour buses, it could become an option for tractor-trailers and regular diesel engines looking to help the environment, as the new fuel is biodegradable and cuts carbon emissions that cause global warming by up to three quarters.Â

According to Vernon, it’s not only the environment that will benefit from his new initiative; the local economy will get a boost as well. A large part of bio-diesel production comes from agricultural byproducts from local farms.Â

The local plant, which Vernon hopes to have operational by the first quarter of 2008, will employ 10 to 15 workers when it’s running at full capacity, churning out up to 10 million gallons of the clean-burning fuel per year and will operate from an existing facility in Greene County.Â

“You can’t simply disregard the fact that we’re emitting,â€� said Vernon of the current carbon emissions of regular gas and diesel vehicles. This, for Vernon, is a key factor in his decision to get into the bio-diesel business, which he says could come out to be a $3 million to $6 million investment. “It’s a business opportunity,â€� he said, “but it’s also a paradigm shift in energy.â€� And that’s something he hopes will catch on in the community and in the nation.Â

Vernon is also a proponent of bio-diesel for the effect he thinks it will have on American security, a benefit that is much promoted by alternative fuel advocates, who believe that switching to increasingly home-grown fuel sources like bio-diesel, ethanol and solar power will increase U.S. stability and help wean the country off foreign oil.Â

Bio-diesel, however, is not without its faults. While it does run ordinary diesel engines at a cleaner burning rate, it’s not as cheap as standard petroleum diesel. Federal subsidies are on the books and others are in the works that would help cut prices for those trying to go green with their diesel, and federal laws are beginning to mandate what are called ‘non-attainment zones’ in high-traffic areas like Atlanta that would require a certain percentage of alternative fuels to be available, but at the moment, the price at the pump will still be above just plain diesel.Â

Availability is another issue facing those who would seek the more environmentally friendly fuel. According to the National Bio-diesel Board, U.S. sales volume estimates have gone up from 500,000 gallons in 1999 to 250 million gallons in 2006, which is a significant jump, but still pales in comparison to the average 50 billion gallons of standard diesel sold annually in the U.S.Â

Vernon’s product, while using agricultural products as raw material, probably won’t impact local farmers on the other side of the sales equation. Although most farm equipment runs on standard diesel, farmers get a break on price by using off-road diesel, which is tax-free and therefore cheaper. For a bioâ€"diesel blending facility to receive blender credits, it must blend taxed diesel with bioâ€"diesel. Creating a market for offâ€"road diesel, without the excise tax credits, is unrealistic.Â

However, Vernon hopes that the proposed plant, which will itself run on natural gas and biofuel, will bring not only economic prosperity to the community â€" according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, the financial contribution of the bio-diesel industry will top $6 billion this year â€" but relief to the environment as well.Â

Does he think that this effort can pull others in the community on board? “I don’t know that any one plant will change people’s perspectives,â€� he says, but he’s hoping it will get them thinking in the right direction. In the first quarter of 2008 Vernon hopes to produce 2.5 million gallons of bio-diesel, the beginning of what he predicts, and hopes, will be a 10 million gallon year.Â