RNG NEWS
Stay up to date with the latest stories, insights, and announcements.Argus: Senators Continue Push for Icahn Documents
Houston, 8 June (Argus) — US senators this week pressed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for communications between the regulator and presidential adviser Carl Icahn, the latest development in months of questions about the investor's role shaping policy that affects his businesses.
Five Democratic senators requested the EPA provide them all communications between regulatory officials in the agency and Icahn or individuals working on the behalf of Icahn or CVR Energy, a US independent refiner of which the New York investor owns at least 80pc.
Kings County, CA: Hanford forum will discuss dairy biogas plan
By John Lindt, The Sentinal.
California Division of Food & Agriculture will soon award between $29 million and $36 million for the installation of dairy digesters in California, which, they say, will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Existing milk producers and dairy digester developers can apply for funding of up to $3 million per project for anaerobic digestion projects that provide quantifiable greenhouse gas reductions. The program requires a minimum of 50 percent of total project cost as matching funds.
By John Lindt, The Sentinal.
California Division of Food & Agriculture will soon award between $29 million and $36 million for the installation of dairy digesters in California, which, they say, will reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Existing milk producers and dairy digester developers can apply for funding of up to $3 million per project for anaerobic digestion projects that provide quantifiable greenhouse gas reductions. The program requires a minimum of 50 percent of total project cost as matching funds.
One developer, Maas Energy Works, is holding a community meeting June 8 to discuss a Kings County project that could pipe biogas from five to six dairies to a central digester – then be injected in the SoCal gas pipeline as renewable natural gas. The meeting will happen tonight at 6 p.m. at the Comfort Inn Sierra Room in Hanford. Founder Daryl Mass expects to lay out a plan to be done in phases, starting with two local dairies he would help build a digester at their ranches if their projects are funded through CDFA. Applications and all supporting information must be submitted by June 28. Awards will likely be announced by September and Maas expects some projects could be online by the end of the year.
Trump Administration's Clean Power Plan replacement being reviewed at OMB
By Robert Walton, Utility Dive.
Dive Brief:
- President's Trump's replacement for the Clean Power Plan is now being reviewed by the Office of Management and Budget, a necessary step before it can be released for public comment.
- The Hill reports the form of Trump's plan remains unknown, but it is expected to include a complete rollback of the Obama-era power plant rules.
- OMB typically takes about two months to review a rule, but can take additional time.
EIA updates short-term bioenergy forecasts
By Erin Voegele, Biomass Magazine.
The U.S. Energy Infrastructure Administration has released the June edition of Short-Term Energy Outlook, predicting nonhydropower renewables will provide 9 percent of U.S. electricity generation in 2017, increasing to nearly 10 percent in 2018.
Wood biomass is expected to be used to generate 112,000 MWh per day this year, falling to 111,000 MWh per day next year. Waste biomass is currently expected to be used to generate 59,000 MWh per day in 2017, increasing to 60,000 MWh per day in 2018.
Xergi to supply Arla with biogas plant
By Jim Cornall+, Dairy Reporter.com, 07-Jun-2017
Xergi is to deliver its largest biogas plant to date, which will supply Danish dairy company Arla Foods with green energy for the production of milk powder in Videbæk, in western Denmark.
Obama air pollution rule put on hold for another year by U.S. EPA
By Timothy Cama, The Hill.
The EPA announced the delay in the ozone pollution rule enforcement late Tuesday, saying that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt had notified state governors.
Under the new schedule, the EPA will make final decisions on which areas are out of compliance with the ozone rule by October 2018.
By Timothy Cama, The Hill.
The EPA announced the delay in the ozone pollution rule enforcement late Tuesday, saying that EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt had notified state governors.
Under the new schedule, the EPA will make final decisions on which areas are out of compliance with the ozone rule by October 2018.
Determinations on so-called nonattainment areas were going to be proposed this month and finalized this October under the original plan.
The letters to governors did not specify if other deadlines in the rule — including when states must submit plans to reduce ozone levels in areas that need reductions — would also be delayed.
“States have made tremendous progress and significant investment cleaning up the air. We will continue to work with states to ensure they are on a path to compliance,” Pruitt said in a statement.
“We are committed to working with states and local officials to effectively implement the ozone standard in a manner that is supportive of air quality improvement efforts without interfering with local decisions or impeding economic growth,” he said.
Portland, Multnomah County set 100% renewable energy goal
By Ted Sickinger, The Oregonian / OregonLive.
On the day the Trump administration withdrew from the Paris climate agreement, the City of Portland and Multnomah County committed to a goal of meeting 100 percent of community energy needs with renewable power by 2050.
That's everybody in the county. All of their electricity from renewables by 2035. And all their energy, including transportation, industry and natural gas use, with renewables by 2050.
By Ted Sickinger, The Oregonian / OregonLive.
On the day the Trump administration withdrew from the Paris climate agreement, the City of Portland and Multnomah County committed to a goal of meeting 100 percent of community energy needs with renewable power by 2050.
That's everybody in the county. All of their electricity from renewables by 2035. And all their energy, including transportation, industry and natural gas use, with renewables by 2050.
It was a historic occasion, and save the absence of City Commissioner Amanda Fritz, both the Portland City Council and Multnomah County Commissioners voted unanimously for the audacious, some would say impossible, goals.
Mayor Ted Wheeler called it "one of the longest resolutions ever adopted in the history of the city, but I think it is worthy of that title." Indeed, the city version included a veritable Christmas tree of commitments for more energy efficiency, demand control, community-based renewable energy, job training, transit expansion, electric buses, minority- and women-owned business participation, and climate justice measures such as rate protections, low transit fares and job training for low-income residents that could be disproportionately affected by climate change and the transition to clean power.
New study indicates that cold anaerobic digestion is viable
By Bioenergy Insight.
A new study has demonstrated the viability of using anaerobic digestion in a low-temperature (20°C) environment to convert solid food waste into renewable energy and organic fertiliser.
Researchers from Concordia’s Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering (BCEE) in collaboration with Bio-Terre Systems Inc. have been using ‘cold-loving’ psychrophilic bacteria to break down food waste in a specially designed bioreactor. The outcome was the production of a specific methane yield comparable to that of more energy-intensive anaerobic digestion processes.
By Bioenergy Insight.
A new study has demonstrated the viability of using anaerobic digestion in a low-temperature (20°C) environment to convert solid food waste into renewable energy and organic fertiliser.
Researchers from Concordia’s Department of Building, Civil and Environmental Engineering (BCEE) in collaboration with Bio-Terre Systems Inc. have been using ‘cold-loving’ psychrophilic bacteria to break down food waste in a specially designed bioreactor. The outcome was the production of a specific methane yield comparable to that of more energy-intensive anaerobic digestion processes.
The study, written by Rajinikanth Rajagopal, David Bellavance and Mohammad Saifur Rahaman, is published in the journal Process Safety and Environmental Protection.
"There is enormous potential here to reduce the amount of fuel that we use for solid waste treatment," Rahaman explained in a statement from Concordia University.
"Managing and treating food waste is a global challenge, particularly for cold countries like Canada where the temperature often falls below -20°C and energy demands related to heating are high."
According to History, the Tax Reform Process Is Just Getting Started
By Laura Davison and Colleen Murphy,
Republicans laid out an ambitious agenda at the start of the year to overhaul the tax code by the end of 2017.
But history suggests that there isn’t time for a complete overhaul by December. It took more than two years to pass tax legislation in 1986, which was shepherded through with bipartisan plans and buy-in from the White House. And as June begins, it’s unclear if the GOP has unified around the framework and cost of tax reform.
By Laura Davison and Colleen Murphy, Bloomberg BNA.
Republicans laid out an ambitious agenda at the start of the year to overhaul the tax code by the end of 2017.
But history suggests that there isn’t time for a complete overhaul by December. It took more than two years to pass tax legislation in 1986, which was shepherded through with bipartisan plans and buy-in from the White House. And as June begins, it’s unclear if the GOP has unified around the framework and cost of tax reform.
“At the rate we’re going, we’re going to have like a full proposal, you know, somewhere like 2075 or something like that,” Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) said at a May 25 hearing. “We really got to get moving.”
House Ways and Means Republicans are still talking through the details of the blueprint they put out last year, and members are split on the controversial border adjustment tax at the center of the plan. Over in the Senate, lawmakers are unified in opposition to the import tax provision, and are currently reviewing previous tax reform plans for ideas.
The White House released a one-page tax plan on April 26. The proposal outlined goals of tax cuts, but didn’t delve into the details of how to pay for those reductions, a necessary step for overhauling the tax system. National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn initially said the administration would release a more thorough plan later this summer, but lawmakers are now signaling that the next release will be unified legislation between the two chambers and the administration—a goal that some doubt can be achieved.
2017 RNG SUMMIT highlights RNG Benefits in Washington DC
On May 22-23, the RNG Coalition hosted members for the North American renewable natural gas industry's 2017 RNG SUMMIT. RNG Coalition staff thanks each member representative who participated in the annual Fly-In, federal advocacy meetings and mid-year networking events.
For the first time, the 2017 RNG SUMMIT kicked off with a featured Policy Forum where representatives from the US EPA, DOE and USDA, along with executives from Washington Gas & Light, American Gas Association, Greater Washington Region Clean Cities, American Biogas Council, NGV America, and Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas provided a real-time, RNG-relevant update and Q&A for all attendees. (For a copy of presentations please contact RNG Coalition Staff).
On May 22-23, the RNG Coalition hosted members for the North American renewable natural gas industry's 2017 RNG SUMMIT. RNG Coalition staff thanks each member representative who participated in the annual Fly-In, federal advocacy meetings and mid-year networking events.
For the first time, the 2017 RNG SUMMIT kicked off with a featured Policy Forum where representatives from the US EPA, DOE and USDA, along with executives from Washington Gas & Light, American Gas Association, Greater Washington Region Clean Cities, American Biogas Council, NGV America, and Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas provided a real-time, RNG-relevant update and Q&A for all attendees. (For a copy of presentations please contact RNG Coalition Staff).
Following the Policy Forum, RNG SUMMIT attendees enjoyed a hosted evening reception - made possible by the generous sponsorship of Senatorial Host DTE Biomass Energy and Co-Sponsor EcoEngineers at the UPS Townhouse.
On Tuesday, after an orientation breakfast (hosted by NGVAmerica) nine RNG Coalition Member-led Delegations met with nearly 50 offices on Capitol Hill, including new and key members of RNG-relevant policy committees in both the US House and Senate. RNG Coalition Executives, Directors and Members also participated in a Congressional Lunch Briefing, educating Congressional Staff and the general public on the economic and environmental benefits associated with renewable natural gas (for a link to the video recording of the briefing please contact RNG Coalition Staff).
In keeping with tradition, the RNG SUMMIT concluded at the Washington Nationals' Ballpark, with the home team securing an 11-1 victory over the visiting Seattle Mariners.
For more information, or to secure your Host or Sponsorship for RNG 2018, please contact RNG Coalition Staff.
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