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The modern-day greaser is unlikely to have much in common with Elvis Presley. He’s probably more like Eric Sobalvarro, whose Ford Excursion smells like french fries as a result of running on biodiesel fuel from local restaurants. But the good ol’ days of showing up in an alley to fill up on the golden stuff are over. Grease prices have risen about 70 percent to $3 a gallon, notes the Wall Street Journal, which reports that corporate processors are now working with restaurants to recover their used oil, leaving greasers like Sobalvarro feeling the pinch.
Here in Colorado, big-time grease processors were successful last year in pushing lawmakers to pass a bill that requires anyone who transports grease to pay a state registration fee up to $1,140 a year. While recycOil, a Boulder processor that backed the change, claims the law prevents dumping that harms the environment, Colorado greasers are upset and talking to a lawyer. “If I go to Costco, I can buy a pallet of vegetable oil,” Sobalvarro says. “Explain to me why it is that it’s considered hazardous material if it touches a chicken wing.”
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