RNG NEWS
Opinion Editorial: ‘Carbon Free Boston’ Begins with Cars and Homes
It’s all about cars and houses.
The new carbon-reduction plan produced for the city and unveiled on Tuesday makes for sobering reading, in part because of the enormous logistical challenges it highlights, and in part because it throws cold water on some of the more crowd-pleasing approaches to fighting climate change at the city level. Rooftop solar? It’s nice, but won’t make a big dent in the city’s emissions. Bike lanes? Great from a liveability perspective, but they won’t cut greenhouse gas emissions much either.
Instead, the report makes clear that the success or failure of the city’s climate goals will depend on getting drivers into zero-emission cars and slashing pollution from the city’s drafty old housing stock.
By, Boston Globe
New Mexico Governor Sets Carbon-Neutral Goals with Use of Renewable Energy
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham on Tuesday formally ordered that New Mexico will join the U.S. Climate Alliance, fully embracing the goals set by the 2015 Paris Agreement, "aligning New Mexico with the U.S. governors and states that have committed to a climate-conscious future and moves to protect people, natural resources and cultural heritage." Here is a statement from the Governor's office:
The governor also ordered the creation of a New Mexico Climate Change Task Force, calling on all state agencies to contribute to a statewide climate strategy and incorporate climate mitigation and adaptation practices into their programs and operations.
By, KRWG News Media
Center Point Energy Proposes RNG as In-Home Energy Option for Minnesota Residents
A Minnesota utility’s proposal to offer renewable natural gas under a voluntary green tariff pilot program faces opposition from state officials and clean energy advocates who see better ways to decarbonize the economy.
If approved by regulators, CenterPoint Energy’s proposal would likely be the nation’s largest renewable natural gas program. Just one other utility in the country, Vermont Gas Systems, has a renewable natural gas green tariff program.
By Frank Jossi, Energy News
How to Zero-Out GHG Emissions from Homes and Buildings with RNG
Well before Gov. Brown signed his executive order calling for carbon neutrality by 2045, experts were puzzling over how to stop greenhouse gas emissions from homes and commercial buildings. Homes and commercial buildings are responsible for about 12 percent of California’s greenhouse gas emissions, and the goal is to make them carbon-neutral. This week, some of those experts will gather at VerdeXchange, a clean technology conference in Los Angeles, to share their solutions.
Some are focused on eliminating natural gas appliances from homes and gas boilers from commercial buildings. Advocates argue that if we all replace our gas appliances and use only electricity for heat, hot water and cooking, then homes and business will be emissions-free (that is, once all electricity serving buildings is renewable, which still decades away).
By George Winter, LA Daily News
DVO's Anaerobic Digester Benefits
DVO Inc. continues garnering headlines with installations of its patented anaerobic digesters throughout the country and around the globe.
But recent accolades and high-profile projects aren’t necessarily the company’s biggest source of pride.
“One of the things we’re most proud of is the fact that the first digester we ever built in 2001 is still running today (at Gordondale Farms in Nelsonville), and there are very few people anywhere who can say that,” said Melissa VanOrnum, vice president of marketing for DVO, which is based in Calumet County.
By, Benjamin Wideman, Leader Telegram
Governor Inslee's The Clean Buildings for Washington Act could Reduce GHG Emissions
Snohomish County citizens are joining the charge to clean up how we generate electricity: more renewables, fewer fossil fuels. Meanwhile, few of us are paying attention to how we use that energy. If we’re really interested in reducing greenhouse gas emissions that’s where we have to look.
Buildings — houses, stores, offices, and others — produce 27 percent of Washington’s greenhouse gas emissions, and with the population growth the state is experiencing, these emissions are growing. This air pollution is linked to increased asthma and other breathing problems that kill 4 million to 7 million people every year and cost governments a little less than $23 billion each year.
By, Jeanine SanClemente, Herald Net
DTE Energy to Issue Request For Proposal for Energy Efficiency Programs
DTE Energy will issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) for two energy-efficiency programs that offer energy services for Multifamily homes, and Home Energy Consultations for homeowners.
The Multifamily Scope of Work includes an in-unit and common area product direct install component plus a common area rebate component for market rate multifamily properties. The Multifamily Scope of Work also includes a comprehensive income qualified component for properties designated as meeting income qualified requirements.
By, PR Newswire
Xebec’s First Italian Renewable Natural Gas Project is Operational
Xebec, a global provider of clean energy solutions is pleased to announce that its first project in Italy – a biogas upgrading plant in Modena, Italy – is now operational. The AIMAG installation is successfully producing revenue-generating pure biomethane, also known as renewable natural gas (RNG), for injection into the local gas grid of AS RETIGAS. The biogas is produced from the anaerobic digestion (AD) of source-separated municipal organic waste.
Environmental engineering and construction company Atzwanger AG-SpA chose Xebec as its upgrading supplier after extensive evaluation of various technologies. Xebec’s innovative Pressure Swing Adsorption (PSA) technology was selected as the most reliable, cost effective and simple solution.
By, Fox 40
Ingevity Unveils Low-Pressure Adsorbed Natural Gas Fueling Station Supporting ANG Bi-Fuel Vehicle Technology
Ingevity has completed the construction of a low-pressure adsorbed natural gas (ANG) fueling station at its global headquarters and technical center in North Charleston, South Carolina. The fueling station will supply natural gas to ANG bi-fuel vehicles outfitted with storage cylinders containing Ingevity’s Nuchar® FuelSorb™ activated carbon monoliths.
ANG technology is made possible by Ingevity’s activated carbon which reduces the storage pressure of natural gas without sacrificing the volume of gas stored through a process known as adsorption. Ingevity has produced and sold activated carbon for more than a century, including over 40 years in the automotive market capturing gasoline vapor emissions on vehicle-based systems.
By Business Wire
New Washington State Bill Sets 2030 Food Waste Goal
The newly introduced House Bill 1114 aims to halve food waste in Washington state by 2030, relative to 2015 levels. It is scheduled for an executive session on Thursday in the Committee on Environment & Energy
The bill would require the state's Department of Ecology to "develop and adopt a state wasted food reduction and food waste diversion plan" by October 2020. It does not directly mandate action by specific generators.
By Rina Li, Waste Dive