RNG NEWS
Stay up to date with the latest stories, insights, and announcements.EPA Announces RVO Delay
By Johannes Escudero, Coalition For Renewable Natural Gas.
Friday - November, 21. This morning the US EPA announced that it “is not in a position to finalize the 2014 RFS standards rules before the end of the year.” Accordingly, their statement continued, “we intend to take action on the 2014 standards rule in 2015 prior to or in conjunction with action of the 2015 standards rule.”
We recognize the negative near-term impacts on the cellulosic biofuels market. While we are disappointed by yet another delay, it is imperative that EPA get everything right. We prefer a delay over a roll-back or lower volumes that undermine the intent of the program. Additionally, we believe is it critical that EPA take the time time to resolve how it will address market transparency issues regarding use of cellulosic waiver credits before it moves forward.
The Renewable Natural Gas industry continues to be optimistic and positive on the future of RNG’s future as a cellulosic biofuel. The Renewable Fuel Standard is an important policy that aides the diversification of our nation’s fuel portfolio, reduces dependence on foreign oil, and helps promote clean air.
The complete text of US EPA’s announcement can be found at the link below.
http://www.epa.gov/otaq/fuels/renewablefuels/documents/fr-notice-2014-rf-standards.pdf
For additional comments please contact Johannes Escudero, Executive Director of The Coalition For Renewable Natural Gas at 916.520.4764 or mailto:Johannes@rngcoalition.com.
Biogas Racks Up Cellulosic RINs
By Amanda Bilek, Biomass Magazine.
In July, when the U.S. EPA published a final rule that expanded cellulosic fuel pathways to include renewable compressed natural gas (CNG) and liquefied natural gas (LNG) derived from various sources of biogas, a surge of cellulosic fuel credits from biogas was widely anticipated. After two months of reporting, speculation proved correct. August and September saw record volumes of cellulosic renewable information numbers (RINs). These high volumes were not generated from liquid fuels like ethanol or renewable gasoline, but from renewable CNG and LNG.
US Senate rejects Keystone XL Bill
By Argus Media.
The US Senate narrowly rejected a bill to authorize TransCanada to build its proposed 830,000 b/d Keystone XL pipeline today.
The Senate voted 59-41 in favor of a measure to enable TransCanada to construct the $5.4bn pipeline to carry heavy Canadian crude to the US midcontinent, where it would link up with an existing network feeding US Gulf coast refineries.
That was short of the 60 votes Democrats and Republicans had agreed would be necessary to pass the bill.
Amazon Vows to Run on 100 Percent Renewable Energy
By Klint Finley, Wired.
Apple made the pledge. So did Google and Facebook. But Amazon stayed silent.
Over the past few years, Apple, Google, and Facebook pledged to run their online empires on renewable energy, and considering how large these empires have become—how many data centers and machines are now required to keep them going—this was a vital thing. But despite pressure from the likes of Greenpeace, the environmental activism organization, the other big internet name, Amazon, didn’t budge.
That all changed on Wednesday. With a post on its website, Amazon’s cloud computing division—Amazon Web Services—said it has a “long-term commitment to achieve 100 percent renewable energy usage for our global infrastructure footprint.”
Air Liquide Plans Network of new Hydrogen Filling Stations in the US
By PR Web.
Air Liquide announces plans to develop and supply a fully-integrated hydrogen fueling infrastructure in the northeast United States, in collaboration with Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc. (Toyota), to support Toyota’s introduction of a new hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), the “Mirai”, and its plans to deliver hydrogen FCEVs in the United States.
Air Liquide is actively involved in setting up the hydrogen energy industry at the global level. The Group has delivered more than 60 hydrogen stations worldwide. Air Liquide already operates hydrogen filling stations for the general public in Europe, including Rotterdam, Netherlands and Düsseldorf, Germany. In Germany, Air Liquide is also a partner of the “H2 Mobility initiative” which aims to deploy about 400 hydrogen stations covering the whole country by 2023. In 2014, the Group announced the installation of four new hydrogen filling stations in Denmark (the first hydrogen infrastructure network in Europe at national level).
Hydrogen can be produced from a wide range of energy sources, natural gas in particular, but also from renewable energy sources.
What's in Store for Natural Gas Vehicles, Post-Election 2014?
By Joseph Bebon, NGT News.
"In case you haven't heard, we had an election," quipped Richard Kolodziej, senior advisor at NGVAmerica, during the opening plenary session of last week's North American NGV Conference and Expo in Kansas City. He said the midterm election results, which handed control of Congress over to Republicans, represented a major change for politics in Washington and could greatly affect the natural gas vehicle industry. Furthermore, a panel of NGV sector leaders later offered their outlook for some key legislation.
Kolodziej kicked off an early part of the opening session titled "Below the Beltway - A Look at Post-Election Washington." It started with what seemed like a more-lighthearted version of CNN's old show "Crossfire," during which a liberal and conservative pundit would often debate a specified topic.
Aria Energy to be New Corporate Name and Brand for Landfill Energy Systems, Innovative Energy Systems and Timberline Energy
By Cory Ziskind, ICR for Aria Energy.
Landfill Energy Systems, Innovative Energy Systems and Timberline Energy today announced that they have consolidated their names and will now operate collectively as Aria Energy. The Company’s diversified portfolio of energy projects provides baseload renewable energy to utilities and other customers across the United States.
Richard M. DiGia, President & CEO of Aria Energy, commented: “We are entering a new chapter of growth as we continue to develop, own and operate renewable energy projects across the country. This consolidating change in our corporate and brand name better reflects our position in this industry and the degree of integration we have achieved. Our focus on owning, operating and developing long-lived energy projects that deliver stable long-term cash flows remains the same. We look forward to continuing to execute our growth and development strategy under our new name – Aria Energy.”
Republic Services' Good Samaritan Garbage Truck Driver Returns Full Wallet
By Andrea Castillo, The Fresno Bee.
The day started like any other work day for Heliodoro Banuelos. The 56-year-old Dinuba resident woke up Oct. 29 at 2:30 a.m. to be on time for his 4 a.m. shift as a garbage truck driver for Republic Services of Fresno. Then, around 1 p.m., he noticed something: A wallet.
By that time, Banuelos was emptying trash bins at the Dante Club at 6176 N. Grantland Ave., west of Highway 99. In the parking lot, 20 feet from the bins, he spotted a man’s wallet on the concrete. Inside was the man’s driver’ license, some credit cards and $300.
Waste Management Opens Illinois Unit Converting Landfill Gas to Natural Gas
By Allan Gerlat, Waste360.
Waste Management Inc. has opened an expanded landfill gas-to-energy (LFGTE) facility in Fairmont City, Ill., to convert it to natural gas.
The facility at Houston-based Waste Management’s Milam Landfill is designed to process 3,500 standard cubic feet per minute (SCFM) of incoming landfill gas, the company said in a news release. In early December the processed renewable natural gas will be injected into the Ameren Illinois pipeline for use at other locations, including some waste management facilities, according to a news release.
Our Landfill – More than Just Trash
By Debra Atlas, aNewsCafe.com.
It's tough to write about something you've never seen. When I decided to write about landfills, I realized I'd never been to one. So I arranged to visit Shasta County's West Central Landfill, which lies about 9 miles west on Clear Creek Road off Highway 273 in Redding.
The drive there took me through scorched land - the scene of the September 2013 Clover Fire that burned more than 8,000 acres near Igo. As devastated as the hills and forests had been, there were encouraging signs of a slow recovery.
When I arrived, my imagination smashed into reality. I had pictured trash everywhere, blowing loose. Clearly the wrong picture.
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