Boston-Converted Organics Inc., which produces organic soil amendments and fertilizer from a proprietary thermal process, has added two more companies to its nationwide network of distributors. Company officials said Ballard Sports, a division of Ballard Construction Inc., which specializes in athletic field construction, sports turf maintenance, and athletic field renovation, and Liberty Acres Fertilizer Corp., a division of B.B. Hobbs Co. Inc., a single-source fertilizer company serving multiple industries throughout the Southeast, have joined the distribution team, which represents a variety of industries in the fields of professional turf, crop production, and residential lawn care. Marketing Vice President David Flannery described the two companies as “valuable additions due to their client base, industry experience, and geographic locations.”

Northbrook, Ill.-Old World Industries, an industry and market leader as the largest world supplier of auto antifreeze and other automotive products under the PEAK and other brand names, is already up and running in the diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) market. It expects to be a strong competitor with Terra Industries Inc. and Yara North America at a national level, providing DEF to truckers and others required to meet new EPA standards for reducing NOx emissions. According to Old World officials, BlueDEF-branded exhaust fluid is now available at thousands of locations through a network of master distributors in 1 and 2.5 gallon bottles, 55-gallon drums, 275 and 330-gallon totes, and above-ground bulk storage and dispensing systems supplied by Blue1USA. Duluth, Ga.-based Blue1USA, a fully integrated manufacturer and distributor of DEF storage and dispensing systems for the commercial and retail markets, will manufacture in North Little Rock, Ark., and will service these products through Old World’s North American distribution. Old World’s established supply network of 10 BlueDEF terminals and over 450 distribution points across North America will enable truck stops, fleet operators, dealerships, and truck manufacturers to maintain DEF inventory network. BlueDEF Brand Manager Chad Wenzel told Green Markets Old World is not disclosing its DEF suppliers at this point, but said BlueDEF meets the stringent ISO 22241 quality specification and is approved under the American Petroleum Institute’s diesel exhaust fluid certification program, which guarantees the integrity of Old World Industries’ DEF supply chain from the point of production right to the DEF tank. To ensure the widest possible availability, Old World is working closely with major distributors of packaged products, including McLane’s, H.T. Hackney’s, Eby-Brown, and Core-Mark, to ensure that BlueDEF is on the shelves in Pilot, Flying J, Love’s, Sunoco, Speedway, and SuperAmerica convenience stores, as well as Wilco Travel Centers and other major retailers. “Few manufacturers have the opportunity to supply and distribute to so many diverse networks as we do,” said Kal Mahmood, senior vice president of commercial sales. “Our expertise and relationships across the heavy-duty market allows us to provide BlueDEF through an already established network.”

Warrenville, Ill.-Chicago truck and engine maker Navistar Inc. appears to be hedging its bets on the future of its EGR technology meeting U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-mandated diesel truck emissions reductions by acquiring an interest in a Danish technology company that has an ammonia-based system similar to selective catalytic reduction. Navistar has entered into a long-term agreement with Amminex to gain access to its ammonia storage and delivery system for NOx emissions control. Industry observers say unlike the way SCR uses diesel exhaust fluid (DEF), the Amminex AdAmmine system has crystallized salt ammonium stored in a cartridge that is heated to create “on-demand” ammonia in the catalyst, triggering the same NOx conversion as with DEF. The cartridge would be replaced at every oil change. Navistar insists this makes the Amminex technology more customer-friendly and is a tool that its engineers will use to explore exhaust gas NOx reduction for specific applications. “Our in-cylinder approach with MaxxForce Advanced EGR technology remains our prime path to achieve a tailpipe emissions compliance level of 0.2 NOx,” said Jack Allen, president, Navistar’s North American Truck Group. “The Amminex technology fits perfectly into our Advanced EGR prime path ?Çô assuring that the responsibility of emissions compliance remains with the OEM and eliminating the need for customers and third parties to invest in a new infrastructure for liquid urea.” Amminex reports that it is currently conducting joint development programs with several leading automotive companies, and that the Amminex ASDS is considered a viable technology. “It is a major breakthrough for Amminex that a global player like Navistar has decided to implement the system in series production,” says Jens Hinnerskov, CEO of Amminex.

Salem, Ore.-State environmental officials are indicating that more fertilizer restrictions may be in store for agriculture in Oregon’s Lower Umatilla Basin. “It’s looking like, overall, things are still going downhill,” reported Mitch Wolgamott, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s (DEQ) eastern region administrator. Efforts to reduce nitrogen leaching have been voluntary thus far, with the largest source on the ground’s surface unquestionably being irrigated agriculture, Wolgamott reported, adding that new rules may concern how and when farmers apply nitrogen to their fields. He said farmers were included in setting up the voluntary action plans, but there is no clear data on how much fertilizer or how many practices have been initiated and what they have accomplished. “That creates a big black hole for the largest source,” he stressed, “so what I want to do is get some reporting so we have better data from the source. We are coming up on an evaluation point, and if the voluntary measures are found not to be effective we need to consider something else. We do know that some good things are happening. We know that some progress is being made, but we’re not seeing that reflected in ground quality yet.” He indicated possible approaches could be improved targeting of an education and outreach program, or a permit-style regulation with irrigated agriculture. But he said the latter wouldn’t be the preferred, because “we don’t need any more permits to deal with.” The Oregon DEQ declared concerns about the Lower Umatilla Basin ground water management area in 1990 because nitrate-nitrogen concentrations in many area groundwater samples exceeded the federal safe drinking water standard. A four-year interagency hydrogeologic investigation to determine the extent of contamination and identify potential sources of contamination was conducted. The DEQ and local area residents and governments formed a committee to develop the action plan to address the contamination concerns in the basin.