Fans who tuned into the Major League Baseball All-Star Game a few weeks ago were watching a broadcast powered by biodiesel. FOX Sports used B20, a blend of 20 percent biodiesel and 80 percent diesel, in all of its generators, satellite trucks and other diesel equipment at its television compound in San Francisco. What’s more, the company has committed to using B20 to power its broadcasts of the World Series, Super Bowl, the Bowl Championship Series and other major events.

The move is part of the “Cool Change Initiative” introduced by News Corporation, the parent company to FOX Sports.

“This initiative is an attempt to reduce our carbon footprint to neutral by 2010, “said Michael Davies, Director, Field Operations - FOX Sports. “The All-Star game presents the opportunity to start implementing some of these environmentally friendly practices, part of which is using B20 in our equipment.”

The House of Representatives on Friday approved H.R. 2419, the Farm, Nutrition, and Bioenergy Act of 2007 - more commonly known as the Farm Bill - by a 231-191 margin. Among its many provisions, the legislation reauthorizes the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Bioenergy Program and the Biodiesel Education Program.

Passage of the bill in the full House was not without controversy. The legislation was modified before floor consideration to include a controversial change in international tax law that increased federal revenue to offset spending beyond what was initially allocated for the Farm Bill. This provision and other policy changes in the measure prompted a veto threat from the Administration.