Peer Review of the Emission  Factor
                    forTropical Peatlands Drained for
                    Palm  Oil  Cultivation
                    What is the subject of this peer review?

                    On January 27, 2012 the EPA issued a document called a Notice of Data Availability
                    (77 FR 4300) to provide the public an opportunity to comment on our initial lifecycle
                    analysis on transportation fuels produced from palm oil (the "palm oil NODA"). In
                    the palm oil NODA, we indentified GHG emissions from drained tropical peat soils
                    as a key source of emissions. The EPA used a peat soil emission factor of 95 tonnes of
                    carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2) emissions per hectare of drained peat soil to help
                    estimate the total GHG emissions from the expansion of peat soil drainage. The
                    purpose of this review was to request additional scientific input about the Agency's
                    assessment of the peat soil emission factor for use in EPA's lifecycle GHG analysis of
                    palm oil-based biofuels.
                    What guidelines did the peer review follow?

                    The peer review was conducted following OMB's peer review guidance that ensures
                    consistent, independent government'wide implementation of peer review and
                    according to EPA's longstanding and rigorous peer review policies.
                    How were the peer reviewers selected?

                    EPA used an independent, third-party contractor to select five peer reviewers:
                       •  EPA provided the contractor with a description of the expertise required and
                          the names of reviewers recommended by stakeholders.
                       •  The Agency solicited reviewer nominations from a range of key stakeholders
                          who commented on the palm oil NODA, and the third-party contractor also
                          identified reviewer candidates through literature review.
SEFft
United
Environmental Protection
Agency
Office of Transportation and Air Quality
                  EPA-420-F-14-061
                   December 2014

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What are EPA's next steps for the palm oil determination process?

EPA will consider the peer review results along with public comments received. The Agency
will also continue to evaluate new data and scientific analysis of other important factors in the
lifecycle analysis of palm oil biofuels, including deforestation and methane emissions from palm
oil mill effluent. We will continue the dialogue with government, industry, civil society and
scientific experts to understand all of the technical issues.
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