Whether we are nearing the end of oil or merely nearing the end of inexpensive oil, it is becoming increasingly clear that we need to find alternative ways to meet our energy needs. Biodiesel is one such alternative—and is one of the fastest-growing sectors of the US economy.

Biodiesel in North America is in its infancy. As air quality deteriorates in major centers, governments are scrambling for ways to reduce emissions and are embracing biodiesel in their fleets. Conferences on biodiesel are often “inaugural” as society begins discussing this fuel in earnest.

Biodiesel Power is a chronicle of this emerging industry. Lightly touching on the technical aspects of the fuel, its qualities, and specifications, the book is largely about the people and stories of the biodiesel movement. It explores the tensions between

Grass-roots activists and their altruistic co-ops
The profit-minded commercial producers and the voices of agribusiness
The current administration—or “the coalition of the drilling”

Far from a third-party account, Biodiesel Power comes from one who has experienced it from the grease dumpster to the boardroom. Lyle Estill has made the journey from backyard brewing, to being part of a producer and distributor cooperative, to commercial production.

Compelling and timely, Biodiesel Power is the history of biodiesel in the making. It will appeal to a wide audience, including farmers, truckers, backyarders, and commercial producers, investors, politicians, and all those concerned about the end of oil.

Lyle Estill is vice president of Piedmont Biofuels Industrial in Chatham County, North Carolina. He has published an important Weblog—Energy Blog—about the biodiesel movement for several years and has received numerous awards for his environmentalism and outreach on biodiesel, including Educator of the Year for 2004 from Environmental Educators of North Carolina.