[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 35, Number 32 (Monday, August 16, 1999)]
[Pages 1626-1627]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Memorandum on Biobased Products and Bioenergy

August 12, 1999

Memorandum for the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Energy, 
the Secretary of the Treasury, the Administrator of the Environmental 
Protection Agency

Subject: Biobased Products and Bioenergy

    Today I issued an Executive Order, ``Developing and Promoting 
Biobased Products and Bioenergy,'' to further the development of a 
comprehensive national strategy that includes research, development, and 
private sector incentives to stimulate the creation and early adoption 
of technologies needed to make biobased products and bioenergy cost-
competitive in national and international markets.
    Consistent with the objectives and activities in that order and to 
ensure that the Nation moves efficiently to exploit the benefits of 
expanded use of biobased products and bioenergy, I hereby direct as 
follows:
(1)         The Secretaries of Agriculture and Energy, in consultation 
            with other appropriate agencies, shall, within 120 days of 
            this memorandum, prepare a report outlining and assessing 
            options for modifying existing respective agency programs in 
            fiscal year 2001 to promote biobased products and bioenergy 
            with a goal of tripling U.S. use of biobased products and 
            bioenergy by 2010. Programs include, among others, 
            conservation and utility programs within the Department of 
            Agriculture (including the Conservation Reserve Program and 
            the Environmental Quality Incentives Program); technology 
            assistance and other small business programs; and education 
            and extension programs. The report also shall include an 
            assessment of: (a) the evidence to determine whether 
            modifications to the tax code are a cost-effective policy 
            option for review by the Department of the Treasury; and (b) 
            the potential to expand use of biobased products and 
            bioenergy by Federal agencies including co-firing with 
            biomass at Federal

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            facilities, use of biofuels in Federal vehicles, and Federal 
            procurement of biobased products and bioenergy. Such 
            expanded use shall be consistent with agency opportunities 
            and the President's budget.
(2)         In preparing this report, the agencies shall:
            (a) work closely with the Environmental Protection Agency to 
            ensure that actions recommended reflect a careful review of 
            the environmental benefits, concerns, and net environmental 
            consequences created by expanded use of biobased products 
            and bioenergy. The factors considered should include:
              (i) impact on net emissions of greenhouse gases including 
            carbon sequestered by biomass crops, and substituting low 
            net-carbon, biobased products, and bioenergy for products 
            manufactured from fossil fuels; and
              (ii) emissions of criteria pollutants and air toxics and 
            other environmental consequences of production of biobased 
            products and bioenergy; and
              (iii) changes in water quality, soil erosion, pesticide 
            and fertilizer use, and wildlife habitat as a consequence of 
            changes in land use associated with biomass production; and,
            (b) consider the findings and recommendations of the 
            recently released National Academy of Sciences report 
            ``Biobased Industrial Products;'' the recommendations 
            contained in ``Technology Vision 2020: The U.S. Chemical 
            Industry'' by the American Chemical Society, American 
            Institute of Chemical Engineers, Chemical Manufacturers 
            Association, Council for Chemical Research, and the 
            Synthetic Organic Chemical Manufacturers Association; the 
            recommendations by the U.S. agricultural, forestry, and 
            chemical communities from the ``Plant/Crop-based Renewable 
            Resources 2020: A Vision to Enhance U.S. Economic Security 
            Through Renewable Plant/Crop-Based Resource Use;'' and, 
            ``Agenda 2020'' by the U.S. Forest Products Industry; and 
            (c) consider input from other sources, including public-
            private strategic plans developed by the Departments of 
            Agriculture and Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency, 
            National Science Foundation, Department of the Interior, and 
            other agencies bioenergy (power, fuels, and heat), 
            commercial and industrial chemicals, and other products and 
            materials.
(3)         The Secretaries of Agriculture and Energy shall, within 120 
            days of this memorandum, report on outreach efforts to raise 
            the Nation's awareness of the useful applications, benefits, 
            and costs of producing biobased products and bioenergy and 
            adopting biobased technologies including workshops on new 
            biomass crops and technologies for producing and marketing 
            biobased products and bioenergy.
                                            William J. Clinton

Note: An original was not available for verification of the content of 
this memorandum.