Biodiesel fuel makes its way to Wilmington

Five-hundred gallons of free biodiesel were up for grabs in ten gallon installments at Eco-Collection Systems in Wilmington Friday afternoon. The B100, refined from used frying oil, went quickly; from a solar powered pump, no less. "The thing I like is the smell. It is not that horrible diesel smell," said biodiesel user Skye Dunning. It smells an environmentally friendly shade of green. There are no fossil fuels involved in B100 biodiesel, just used cooking oil. The oil is put into settling tanks for processing at the Eco-Collections Systems facility on North Kerr and then shipped to Triangle Biofuels for refining. It comes back here to be sold by Cape Fear Biofuels. Eco-Collections Systems is growing its collection network of local restaurants. Barbara Croll of Chick-Fil-A said, "They come out, it's been so easy. Much better than what we used to do. It's been a great relationship." Cameron Calhoun from Eco-Collections Systems said, “We need their oil. We will pay for it. It’s a win-win for them. We love doing it.” Biodiesel currently sells for $2.45 a gallon, and yes, Cameron burns it exclusively in his car. If you know someone in the restaurant business who might be interested in recycling their used cooking grease, contact Eco-Collections Systems.