LMOP Publishes New Data & Issues Request for Voluntary e-GGRT Data Submission

The U.S. EPA Landfill Methane Outreach Program (LMOP) is pleased to announce new data on landfills and landfill gas (LFG) energy projects are now available on the LMOP website. With this update, data files for download and the LMOP National Map have been updated with information from the LMOP Database, current as of September 2018. In this data update, we have changed the terminology used for projects that upgrade LFG into renewable natural gas (RNG). Previously these were categorized as High-Btu projects. Now, you can sort the data by RNG project type, including vehicle fuel or electricity generation, and by RNG delivery method, such as local use or pipeline injection. We hope you find these new classifications helpful.

Starting today, October 1st, LMOP will begin to collect data from Partners involved with LFG energy projects and landfills via the new LMOP module in e-GGRT. This change will streamline and improve the efficiency of collecting data. The e-GGRT module will be open for six weeks. Applicable Partners have been notified about this transition over the last several months. Information about this change is available on the Resources for Partners webpage. If you are unsure about your participation in e-GGRT reporting or have any other questions, please contact LMOP at lmop@epa.gov.

LNG Canada Announces Investment in Canada’s First Large-Scale LNG Export Project

VANCOUVER/SINGAPORE (Reuters) - The approval on Tuesday of a massive liquefied natural gas export (LNG) terminal in Canada is being touted as the return of the mega-project, ending a lean period where low energy prices and oversupply concerns kept investors from taking big risks.

By Julie Gordon, Jessica Jaganathan, Reuters.

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Element Markets Exceeds 3-Year Revenue Benchmark to Orange County Transportation Authority Well Ahead of Schedule

In mid-2016, Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) entered into a contract with Element Markets Renewable Energy, LLC (Element Markets) to supply renewable natural gas (RNG) to OCTA’s fleet and management of the generation, marketing and sale of the associated environmental credits.

With more than $10 million of revenue generated to date through the sale of environmental credits resulting from OCTA’s use of RNG as a vehicle fuel under California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard, Element Markets has exceeded—well ahead of schedule—the $8.9 million revenue benchmark established for the initial three years of the contract.

“OCTA has been a great partner and we are very pleased to have exceeded their expectations in delivering both economic value and emissions reduction through Biomethane CNG. We look forward to an even stronger relationship in the future as OCTA introduces Renewable Hydrogen into their fleet,” said Angela Schwarz, President and CEO of Element Markets.

OCTA continues to be a leader in reducing transportation emissions, having recently rolled out hydrogen buses and its own hydrogen fueling station. The new hydrogen buses, which are replacing LNG buses, are scheduled to begin service in late 2018. Element Markets will facilitate the generation and sale of environmental credits associated with OCTA’s hydrogen fuel initiative as well.

About Element Markets

Element Markets is a leading renewable natural gas marketing and environmental commodities company that applies its diverse environmental expertise to provide structured environmental compliance and optimization services to prominent corporate and institutional clients. The company has a long history within the emissions, carbon, renewable energy credit, biogas, renewable natural gas, and renewable fuel credit markets. Element Markets is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Element Markets, LLC, and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. More information about the company is available at www.elementmarkets.com

Amp Americas responds to California’s $41M grant to fund fuel cell trucks over renewable natural gas

By Tom Quimby, Hard Working Trucks.

The State of California recently announced that it was awarding the Port of Los Angeles $41 million through its Zero-Emission and Near Zero-Emission Freight Facilities (ZANZEFF) project.

However, despite including ‘near-zero emission’ in its project title, the state has not yet committed to funding near-zero emission trucks, such as those powered by the latest natural gas engine technology. And such funding may never come as the California Air Resources Board made clear in its 2017-2018 Grant Solicitation for the ZANZEFF project.

“Use of Low NOx engines will be eligible for funding where fully zero-emission or zero-emission enabling technologies are not commercially available,” CARB writes in its grant solicitation.

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Former EPA OTAQ Senior Policy Advisor Paul Argyropoulos Joins Element Markets Board of Managers

HOUSTON, October 3, 2018 (Newswire.com) - Element Markets LLC (EM) is pleased to announce that former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Transportation and Air Quality (OTAQ) Senior Policy Advisor Paul Argyropoulos has joined the company’s board of managers.

“Paul has a unique perspective on the intricacies of the federal and state policies affecting the environmental commodity markets and his insight will be invaluable as we continue to build out our RNG and carbon business lines,” said Angela Schwarz, EM’s president and CEO.

“I'm both honored and excited to join the Element Markets Board of Managers,” said Mr. Argyropoulos. “This is a unique opportunity for me to continue supporting the development and deployment of advanced renewable fuels. I'm excited about working with this team and supporting their efforts in the industry.”

Mr. Argyropoulos is currently the president of Policy Nexus Advisors, a firm that specializes in promoting the growth of the renewable fuel industry through its work with environmental, energy and agricultural business interests and provides advice on federal fuel and transportation program policies.

In his role as senior policy advisor, Paul was instrumental in the development and administration of the Renewable Fuel Standard and provided recommendations and analysis directly to the director of OTAQ on a broad range of transportation program issues. He also chaired the intra-agency working group for the RFS program implemented under both the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007.

Prior to his tenure with EPA, Mr. Argyropoulos worked on domestic and international fuel and transportation-related issues in the private sector with Hart Downstream Energy as its executive director of the International Fuel Quality Center and director of U.S. Federal Affairs, and with the American Petroleum Institute (API), supporting its Downstream and Fuels Committee.

About Element Markets

Element Markets is a leading renewable natural gas marketing and environmental commodities company that applies its diverse expertise to provide structured environmental compliance and optimization services to prominent corporate and institutional clients. The company has a long history within the emissions, carbon, renewable energy credit, biogas, renewable natural gas and renewable fuel credit markets. Element Markets is headquartered in Houston, Texas, and more information about the company is available at elementmarkets.com.

SoCalGas Joins Coalition for Clean Air to Announce Plans for California Clean Air Day on October 3

Natural gas utility pledges to limit yearly energy use at each of its 60 work locations, reducing its overall electricity usage by more than 86,000 kWh - the equivalent of more than 157,000 miles driven

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today joined the Coalition for Clean Air (CCA), local elected officials, industry representatives, businesses, and community leaders at Union Station in Downtown Los Angeles to announce plans for California Clean Air Day, a multifaceted, statewide program built on the idea that shared experiences unite people to action to improve community health, taking place on Oct. 3, 2018. In celebration of Clean Air Day, SoCalGas has pledged to reduce its yearly use of air conditioning at each of the company's 60 work locations on an ongoing basis, starting on Oct. 3, 2018. The new initiative is expected to reduce the utility's overall electricity usage by more than 86,000 kWh per year –  the equivalent of more than 157,000 miles driven by an average passenger car. In addition, more than 125 SoCalGas employees, so far, have taken the Clean Air Pledge, which includes actions like reducing car use by telecommuting, taking mass transit to work, biking, turning off lights, changing the filter in their car or home heater, planting trees, and encouraging friends and family members to take the pledge. Photos from this morning's event are available here. 

"Earlier this year, California celebrated as we announced that our statewide efforts had reduced greenhouse gas emissions below 1990 levels and four years ahead of schedule," said George Minter, regional vice president of external affairs and environmental strategy for SoCalGas. "But a closer look at the data shows that GHG emissions from the transportation sector are actually increasing. And this year, we had more days with unhealthy air than at any point in the last two decades. We can address pollution and emissions linked to climate change today with balanced energy policies that encourage the rapid deployment of near-zero emissions natural gas trucks fueled with renewable natural gas sourced from farms, landfills, and wastewater treatment plants."

"Heavy-duty trucks fueled with renewable natural gas reduce air pollution and help protect against climate change. It's a win-win combination," said Joseph K. Lyou, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Coalition for Clean Air.

Earlier this year, SoCalGas announced that, for the first time, renewable natural gas produced from organic waste was being introduced into the company's pipeline system. Renewable natural gas is already being used by a local waste hauler as fuel for 400 of its collection trucks and is reducing emissions equal to taking 130,000 cars off the road.  

SoCalGas also recently announced it will soon begin using renewable natural gas for the first time at the 25 utility-owned natural gas vehicle fueling stations across its service territory, as well as at six fueling stations in the San Diego area.

SoCalGas is a leader in reducing emissions. Since 1990, the company's energy efficiency and rebate programs have reduced emissions equal to taking almost 700,000 cars off the road.

Through the Clean Air Pledge, individuals, communities, businesses, government, schools, and other organizations across California commit to taking simple, personal actions to clean the air in ways that makes sense for them. Clean Air Day is a project of the Coalition for Clean Air. For more information about Clean Air Day, visit www.cleanairday.org.

Reducing Emissions with Renewable Natural Gas

Today, the transportation sector is responsible for about 41 percent of California's greenhouse gas emissions and 80 percent of smog-forming pollution. The latest heavy-duty natural gas engines can cut smog-forming emissions by more than 90 percent compared to the cleanest heavy-duty diesel trucks on the road today. And, when near-zero emission natural gas trucks are fueled by renewable natural gas, greenhouse gas emissions are reduced by at least 80 percent. Each heavy-duty diesel truck that is replaced with a near-zero emissions natural gas truck is equal to removing 57 passenger vehicles from the road. 

Already, close to 70 percent of natural gas fleets in California are fueled with renewable natural gas.

In support of renewable energy and the state's vision of a low-carbon future, SoCalGas has been working to rapidly expand the production and use of renewable natural gas in California. Renewable natural gas is a carbon-negative fuel produced from waste found at landfills, wastewater treatment plants, and agriculture and dairy farms that can be used in trucks and buses, to generate electricity, fuel heating systems in home and businesses, and for cooking.

In addition, new research shows that renewable natural gas can play an important role in lowering carbon emissions in buildings. The analysis forecasts that replacing roughly 16 percent of the traditional natural gas supply with renewable gas captured from sources like dairies, wastewater treatment plants, and landfills can achieve greenhouse gas reductions equivalent to converting 100 percent of buildings to electric only energy by 2030. By using a mix of both in and out of state resources, the renewable natural gas strategy is three times more cost effective in reducing greenhouse gas emissions than an electrification pathway. 

SoCalGas also recently joined a new international collaboration with Canadian natural gas utility Énergir and French utilities GRDF and GRTgaz aimed at advancing the research and development of renewable natural gas and renewable energy storage technologies, such as power-to-gas. 

To help educate the public on renewable natural gas and assist developers who may be interested in interconnecting to the SoCalGas pipeline network, the utility developed a downloadable tool kit. Watch this video to learn more about the environmental and cost-saving benefits of renewable natural gas: Digesting the Facts About Renewable Natural Gas.

About SoCalGas
Headquartered in Los Angeles, SoCalGas® is the largest natural gas distribution utility in the United States. SoCalGas delivers affordable, reliable, clean and increasingly renewable natural gas service to 21.8 million customers across 24,000 square miles of Central and Southern California, where more than 90 percent of residents use natural gas for heating, hot water, cooking, drying clothes or other uses. Natural gas delivered through the company's pipelines also plays a key role in providing electricity to Californians—about 60 percent of electric power generated in the state comes from gas-fired power plants.  

SoCalGas is committed to investing in its natural gas system infrastructure, while keeping bills affordable for our customers. From 2013 through 2017, the company spent nearly $6 billion to upgrade and modernize its natural gas system to enhance safety and reliability. The company is also committed to being a leader in the region's clean energy future, and is working to accelerate the use of renewable natural gas from dairy farms, landfills and wastewater treatment plants and the development of renewable energy storage technologies. SoCalGas is a subsidiary of Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE), an energy services holding company based in San Diego. For more information visit socalgas.com/newsroom or connect with SoCalGas on Twitter (@SoCalGas), Instagram (@SoCalGas) and Facebook. 

DTE Energy cutting methane emissions by 80 percent

Company replacing infrastructure at accelerated pace

DETROIT, Sept. 27, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- DTE Energy will reduce methane emissions from its natural gas utility operations by more than 80 percent by 2040 – part of a broad sustainability initiative the company has launched to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and address climate change while continuing to provide customers with reliable and affordable power.

"Since 2011 DTE's improvements in our natural gas distribution system have resulted in a 16 percent reduction in methane emissions," said Mark Stiers, president and chief operating officer, DTE Gas. "Our continued commitment to gas main replacement and proactive compressor station maintenance will allow us to reduce methane emissions by more than 80 percent in the next 20 years."

DTE is achieving these reductions by replacing steel and cast iron pipelines at a more accelerated pace than recommended by the Environmental Protection Agency and installing new materials, such as polyethylene tubing for main and service lines and epoxy coated high-strength steel for transmission lines.

DTE transports natural gas, which serves as the energy source for providing heat, powering appliances and much more for 1.3 million residential and business customers throughout Michigan. With DTE moving to retire all of its coal-fired plants by 2040 to cut carbon emissions by 80 percent, the company also is increasing its use of natural gas as a low-emission 24/7 energy source to produce electricity for 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan.

Natural gas is a clean, safe and reliable source of energy. It will play a key role in partnership with DTE's growing capacity of emission-free renewable energy to ensure cleaner, reliable and affordable energy for Michigan residents

DTE plans to double its renewable energy capacity from 1,000 megawatts to 2,000 megawatts by 2022 – providing enough additional electricity to power 800,000 homes, while driving investments of more than $1.7 billion in Michigan. Within the next year, DTE will begin operating the Pine River and Polaris wind parks, which will have a combined capacity of 330 megawatts and be DTE's largest and most efficient wind parks to date.

"DTE has demonstrated that methane emissions can be reduced while at the same time allowing natural gas to play an integral role in the company's energy portfolio while transitioning to a reduced carbon emission infrastructure," Stiers said.  "A balanced mix of energy sources, such as wind, solar and natural gas, is an important part of DTE's strategy to deliver safe, secure, reliable, affordable and cleaner power to our customers and all Michigan consumers."

DTE broke ground in August on the natural gas-fueled Blue Water Energy Center in East China Township, Mich. When it becomes operational in 2022, it will be the most efficient power plant in the state producing affordable and reliable low-emission electricity for 850,000 homes starting in 2022.

Methane accounts for about 10 percent of total greenhouse gas emissions, according to the EPA. The transmission and storage sector of the natural gas industry has reduced its methane emissions by 44 percent from 1990 to 2016.

About DTE Energy
DTE Energy (NYSE: DTE) is a Detroit-based diversified energy company involved in the development and management of energy-related businesses and services nationwide. Its operating units include an electric utility serving 2.2 million customers in Southeastern Michigan and a natural gas utility serving 1.3 million customers in Michigan. The DTE Energy portfolio includes non-utility energy businesses focused on power and industrial projects, natural gas pipelines, gathering and storage, and energy marketing and trading.  As one of Michigan's leading corporate citizens, DTE Energy is a force for growth and prosperity in the 450 Michigan communities it serves in a variety of ways, including philanthropy, volunteerism and economic progress. Information about DTE Energy is available at dteenergy.com , twitter.com/dte_energy and facebook.com/dteenergy .

SOURCE DTE Energy

Op-Ed: Future here now with renewable natural gas

California’s leadership and its commitment to improving air quality has led to the adoption of new clean fuel technologies that have not only dramatically changed the vehicles on our state’s roads but also the air we breathe. I’ve seen first-hand how both the public and private sector have embraced the challenge to put new, clean-fuel vehicles into use.

The push to reach 100 percent renewable energy remains a lofty goal in some areas, but the 100 percent renewable energy future is already here in mass transit with today’s natural gas buses. They are more than 90 percent cleaner than the best diesel engines on the market and when powered by renewable natural gas, can actually reduce GHG emissions and operate cleaner than battery buses plugged into today’s electrical grids.

By John Drayton, appearing in Capitol Weekly.

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Liberty Utilities proposes renewable natural gas project at Bethlehem landfill

By MICHAEL COUSINEAU, New Hampshire Union Leader

Liberty Utilities announced Thursday it is proposing a new renewable natural gas production facility at the Bethlehem landfill that it says will lower gas bills for New Hampshire customers starting next summer.

“We intend for this project to be the first of many in New Hampshire, and Liberty Utilities plans to be at the center of this growing local clean energy industry,” said Susan Fleck, president of Liberty Utilities' New Hampshire operations.

“Our team is currently working with communities across New Hampshire on similar projects, and we hope to announce more New Hampshire RNG projects in the future,” Fleck said.

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New California Law Authorizes Biomethane Procurement Program

Legislation aims to provide cost-effective means of reducing short-lived climate pollutant emissions

Sacramento, CA – September 26, 2018 – A new law in California will authorize the state to adopt a biomethane procurement program if it is found to be cost-effective, beneficial to ratepayers, and in advancement of the state’s  environmental and energy policies. The legislation, authored by Senator Ben Hueso (D-San Diego) and signed by Governor Brown on Sunday, seeks to further develop a pathway for renewable biomethane to be injected into the gas pipeline system, thereby displacing fossil gas and reducing the carbon intensity of the natural gas system. 
  
Senate Bill 1440 requires the California Public Utilities Commission, in consultation with the California Air Resources Board, to consider adopting specific biomethane procurement targets or goals for each of the gas corporations so that each gas corporation procures a proportionate share of biomethane annually. It requires the targets or goals to be cost-effective, the biomethane to be injected into pipelines in California, and the capture or production of the biomethane to directly result in environmental benefits to California. 
  
In addition to providing a pathway for the de-carbonization of the natural gas system, biomethane procurement will assist the state in meeting the organic waste diversion and short-lived climate pollutant goals established by SB 1383 in 2016. Through SB 1383, the state mandated that 75 percent of organics be diverted from landfills but did not provide a market for it.  
  
“To achieve our ambitious climate and energy procurement goals, California will need to deploy a balanced mix of strategies that spur innovation in the energy sector,” said Senator Hueso. “These strategies will require a fundamental shift in the way we power our homes and businesses, how we transport ourselves and the goods we use in our daily lives, and how we manage the lifecycle of our food and waste.” 
  
California has set a goal of reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050. It has also set a target to reduce methane emissions by 40 percent below 2013 levels by 2030. The state has sought to reduce the methane emissions because they present a significant challenge in reducing the state’s overall GHG emissions. Methane has a global warming potential that is 25 times greater than that of carbon dioxide over 100 years, or 84 times greater over 25 years. This means that reducing emissions of methane in the near-term can have immediate climate, air quality, and public health benefits. 
  
In 2015, methane contributed to about 9 percent of California’s GHG emissions. A majority of these emissions come from renewable resources such as landfilled organic waste, livestock manure, and wastewater. By creating a procurement program for biomethane, the state can work toward achieving its organic waste diversion and methane reduction goals by developing a market for the products of the diverted organic waste and captured methane. By utilizing renewable resources that would otherwise emit GHG’s, California can ensure grid reliability, renewables integration and decarbonize the residential and commercial sectors of its economy. 
  
“Biomethane helps create a new holistic or ‘circular’ economy, as opposed to our current linear process of raw inputs and waste material outputs,” said Senator Hueso. “Connecting the ends of the linear economy into a circular whole is the only way forward to a truly sustainable future.” 
  
SB 1440 was sponsored by the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (RNG Coalition).