Besides welcoming him back from his Honduras hiatus, we here at GreenOptions want to wish a happy birthday to Clayton, our intrepid writer on biofuels (and the policy issues swirling around them). We love his thorough, academic approach to such complicated topics.

Although they might not appeal directly to your average 'lite green' consumer in the same way that much of our other content does, Clayton's posts are always well-read, and tend to draw thoughtful, thorough responses from readers, which make for long comments, but also make for a real dialogue on issues that a growing segment of society has a real desire to understand.

On a personal note, I've known Clayton now for most of his 25 years on this little planet, and never have I met anyone more dedicated to learning for the sake of learning. This value is quickly slipping in our society, and it's good to be reminded of people who are caring about the details for all us lazy sinners.

What I'm saying is that we appreciate Clayton's contribution to a real dialogue on some very muddy issues. If you want to understand how science and policy mix when it comes to biofuels, take a look at some of Clayton's previous posts:

Yesterday: 'Free Trade' Descends on Biofuel Arena

2/14: Eugene's Green Biofuel Station

2/7:Ethanol Could Face Hazy Future

And, from our beta period:

1/31: Oregon Seed Growers United Against Canola

1/24: Live From Sundance 2007: "Everything's Cool"

1/17: Cold-Flow: A Firsthand Experience with Frozen Biodiesel

1/9: EPA Requires New MPG Estimates

1/3: It still smells good: B20 Biodiesel emissions show no NOx increase.

All of Clayton's posts can be found here.