News
Join Now
The Grand Del Mar Fuels Themselves!
City Honors Grand Del Mar for Recycling
By Lou HirshThursday, April 19, 2012
The Grand Del Mar resort in Carmel Valley has been named Recycler of the Year, in an annual awards program presented by the City of San Diego.
An April 18 statement from hotel operators said the luxury property recently announced a fuel recycling program and a new food waste composting program, among other efforts. Grand Del Mar President Tom Voss said recycling efforts “have evolved and expanded” since the 249-room resort opened in 2007.
Programs aimed at reducing trash hauled to landfills include an “aggressive recycling program” developed with Waste Management Inc. and Urban Corps, a local nonprofit geared to conservation and community service by young adults, the statement said.
The resort sends 7,000 pounds of food scraps to The Greenery, a city-run composting facility at Miramar Landfill. Only 10 percent of trash is sent to landfills, with 90 percent recycled on-site.
The Grand Del Mar works with San Diego-based Buster Biofuels to reclaim 200 gallons of cooking oil and grease monthly. It is blended and converted into diesel fuel used to power the resort’s landscaping equipment.
The city plans to present its annual Waste Reduction and Recycling Awards in an April 20 ceremony at the San Diego Zoo, as part of Earth Day observances.
Fueling the Fire for 20 Years
FUELING THE FIRE FOR 20 YEARS
Original Founders of Fuel Clothing Circle Back and Collaborate
Hilton Head, SC & San Diego (April 16, 2012)
Twenty years ago, former pro skateboarder Buster Halterman and former pro snowboarder Shane Gould founded Fuel Clothing (Fuel) from an 18-acre farm in Pennsylvania. The owners moved the company to its existing headquarters on Hilton Head Island, SC and worked together for over three years until Halterman went on to pursue his own path in the action sports industry. Since 1995, Gould has carried the Fuel torch and continued to build the brand with success. Now, 20 years later, Buster and Shane remain friends laughing at the fact that they are still in the fuel business…but just in slightly different ways. Today they celebrate Fuel’s anniversary along with their continued passion for fuel, and what it represents.
On April 16, 1992 the partners threw themselves in to the fire of the clothing industry to create a skate, snow, surf lifestyle brand with a positive attitude and image. “Fuel was founded on the principles of the word itself”, says Buster. “It was about getting fired up, aggression, inspiration, motivation and passion for what we were about. We tried to express that in our designs, graphics and branding overall”. The company’s simple Fuel Coffee Cup, Utterly Fuel (milk) and Heart graphics spoke for themselves. Their asymmetrically cut yokes on the Aztec printed flannel and fleece made from recycled plastics were ahead of their time. However, since those early days, the company has come a long way.
“It has taken 20 years of perseverance to keep things burning over here,” Shane says. I don’t’ see perseverance ever leaving the business, but because of it, the original dream did come to fruition…even all the way to the Fuel Station retail store that I built here on the Hilton Head.”
So here’s the irony of it all. In 2009, Buster stepped away from the action sports industry and founded Buster Biofuels LLC. Toward the end of his skate and business career in action sports, Buster became a backyard biodiesel enthusiast who quickly got the bug for creating a business with a meaningful mission to RECLAIM, RECYCLE and REFUEL. The company is built on similar values as Fuel Clothing, and also shares the dream of having a fuel station someday, or at least having a brand presence at fuel stations.
“Shane and I have kept in touch over the years.” Says Buster, “And when we realized that it was the 20th year anniversary of Fuel we felt it would be a good time to reminisce on the old days, celebrate and collaborate on the fuel marketing front. So, we’re ripping off one of Shane’s graphics…hahaha.”
Fuel’s fuel gauge graphic will be adapted in to a limited edition Buster Biofuels t-shirt that Fuel Clothing will be producing. “I think it is very fitting that we’ve circled back 20 years later to collaborate on something simple.” Says Gould. “Now Buster Biofuels can have high end T’s for his team and promotions, and our FUEL labels can be the supporting brand behind it all.”
The old partners hope this leads to further collaboration in the form of clothing, accessories and marketing efforts down the line. But for now, lets be stoked that Fuel Clothing has survived the crazy roller coaster ride of an economy that was filled with fierce lawsuits from Fuel TV and cease and desist orders from Diesel clothing and Sunoco (no kidding! Shouldn’t they have been after Buster Biofuels instead?). Nonetheless, Fuel Clothing prevailed.
Happy 20th year anniversary to Fuel Clothing. Keep fueling the fire.
Fuel has been supplying the action and motorsports industry world-wide with quality clothing and accessories since 1992. The Biggest Little Company in America has remained consistent with our core image in a time of overblown commercialism and the blatant exploitation of the industry. Fuel makes innovative clothing & accessories that incorporate basic as well as cutting edge concepts, appealing to anyone that Fuels the fire everyday. The company has always been a company of riders and a team approach to clothing design to ensure that the fit will assist customers in the action sport of their choice.
Buster Biofuels LLC was founded in 2009 with a mission that can be summed up in three words – RECLAIM, RECYCLE, REFUEL. Based in Escondido, California, the company services the used cooking oil collection needs of restaurants all over San Diego CA, including large clients like the San Diego Padres, Legoland California, La Costa Resorts, etc. Also, the company has initiated pilot biofuel programs by delivering biofuel to several company fleets including the San Dieguito Union High School District and Cannon Pacific (the largest street sweeper in San Diego). Currently, the company poised well for grant funding from the California Energy Commission this summer and hopes to have their in-house biorefinery online by Q4 2013.
Addition company info can be found at:
Call 843-842-3835 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvBw0stO8SY&feature=youtu.be
Call 760.266.5142 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zvBw0stO8SY&feature=youtu.be
Buster Biofuels Featured on KPBS
San Diego Drivers Consider Alternative Fuels
Monday, April 2, 2012
By Erik Anderson
Above: Gas prices unexpectedly roared into record territory in February. That surge forced San Diego drivers to consider their pocketbooks when refueling. It also has some drivers considering other ways to power their cars. KPBS Business and Environmental Reporter Erik Anderson says high gas prices are pushing up the value of alternative fuels.
SAN DIEGO — A worker at a Carlsbad eatery dumps a bowl of quartered tortillas into a fryer filled with hot oil. There is a rush of noise as the grease begins to cook the Mexican staple. It’s a process that happens at Casa de Bandini all day long.“As you can see, we go through a lot of chips here at Casa De Bandini,” says Gilbert Gastelum, Casa de Bandini manager. “We have a big vat that we make chips in. We go through about 32 five-gallon containers of oil a week.”That used cooking oil has to go somewhere, so workers store it behind the restaurant in a greasy square tank. The used oil sits there until Max Minahan rolls up in his Buster Biofuels truck. He uses the vehicle to collect oil from a number of different customers. It is a quick process.
“Go ahead open my bin up. Unlock it. Take the cap off the hose,” said Minahan, as he goes through the routine. “Run my hose back at the side of the building. Go ahead and get the oil.”
A screen on top of the vat catches and filters the oil, removing solid particles that are byproducts of the cooking process.
Minhan empties the vat of oil in a matter of minutes. He works for an Escondido start-up that collects used cooking oil. Filters it. Treats it. And turns it into bio diesel. The firm has a number of customers, including Legoland, a company interested in managing the environmental impact of the huge theme park.
The Coast News features Buster Biofuels
Local skater turns waste into fuel in growing industry
ENCINITAS — Next time you order fish tacos from Las Olas or french fries while visiting Legoland, you’ll be making a contribution to the local economy and the environment by closing the loop on waste. By collecting bio-waste and turning it into fuel for local use, Buster Biofuels is “greening” the local economy.
Padres Among San Diego Companies Fueling School Buses
French fries may not be the first thing you think of when it comes to your health, but if Buster Biofuels™ has its way, they will contribute to the health of the planet – one school bus at a time. Buster Biofuels has formed THE ALLIANCE with LEGOLAND™ California, the San Diego Padres and hundreds of restaurants, hotels and resorts to collect their grease and oil that get recycled into biodiesel fuel. Biodiesel is a renewable, non-toxic and biodegradable fuel that can power virtually any diesel engine. Now that biofuel is helping to power school buses in the San Dieguito Union High School District (SDUHSD), emissions surrounding the youth are being reduced by as much as 78 percent when compared to petroleum diesel.
“Organizations like LEGOLAND and the Padres have a huge amount of oil and there is just no way… read more
See how much you can reduce! For Individuals and Corporations For Restaurants
