RNG NEWS
Biogas-to-Fuel Study Moves Forward in Wisconsin
The Watertown Public Works Commission in Wisconsin recently OK’d a study to assess biogas as a potential transportation fuel.
According to a local report from the Watertown Daily Times, the commission approved the nearly $15 million project to be conducted with Symbiont Inc.
The study, according to the minutes of the commission’s Jan. 22 meeting, is designed to “determine feasibility and opportunities” to better use biogas from an anaerobic digestion process at a wastewater treatment facility.
By, Betsy Lillian, NGT News
Leyline Renewable Energy Raises $12.5M Fund to Accelerate Development of Solar and Biogas Projects
Leyline Renewable Energy, a renewable energy finance company, announced today that its first fund, Windstar Fund I, L.P. has raised $12.5 million in equity funding to provide development-stage capital for renewable energy infrastructure projects.
The funds will be invested in early to mid-stage project development, providing a critical source of capital for developers. Renewable energy project developers that are seeking pre-development capital should contact Leyline to determine if their project is a good fit for the Windstar Fund I. Learn more at https://www.leyline-energy.com/developers/.
By, Fox40
In Connecticut, Municipal Aggregation Rising as a Clean Energy Priority
Several groups want lawmakers to follow the lead of neighboring states and adopt community choice aggregation.
Allowing local governments to buy clean power on behalf of residents is emerging as a top legislative priority for Connecticut clean energy advocates.
Community choice aggregation remains an under-the-radar concept in Connecticut even as all of the state’s neighbors have already adopted policies. Several groups see it as a potentially important tool for the state’s clean energy transition and are working to raise its profile with policymakers.
By, Meg Dalton
Denmark to Build Nine Industrial Renewable Energy-Producing Islands
URBAN POWER, an architecture firm based in Denmark, has recently unveiled a plan to build nine islands that will be used for fossil-free energy production, act as a flood barrier, and add a publicly accessible nature area.
The land reclamation project, dubbed Holmene, will consist of nine industrial islands, each one surrounded by a “nature belt” that will include areas for sports as well as more tranquil areas for relaxation. Also included will be several small islets and reefs to provide new nature areas for plants and animals to thrive in the water and on land. The new islands will provide approximately 3.08 million sm of new space and will be built and developed stepwise to limit any impression of an unfinished project as construction progresses.
By, David Malone, BDC Network
Gasrec First UK Firm to Offer Government-Certified Bio-LNG
Gasrec, a leading bio fuel supplier, is the first UK firm to offer customers access to Renewable Transport Fuels Obligation (RTFO)-certified biomethane through either a grid-connected facility (CNG) or through tanker-supplied liquified natural gas (LNG).
Natural gas-powered trucks typically see CO2 savings of around 15% for long-distance motorway work, but when fuelled with biomethane, CO2 reductions are as high as 80-95%.
By Molly Burgess, Gasworld
Middlebury Announces Energy2028 Plan to Address Threat of Climate Change
Recognizing the profound threat of climate change, Middlebury College today announced a 10-year commitment that will put the institution on a path toward a complete shift to renewable energy to power and heat its central campus. The plan also sets ambitious goals to reduce energy consumption, phase out direct fossil fuel investments in the endowment, and, significantly, to create new educational programs and opportunities that will help to empower future generations of environmental leaders.
By, Middlebury College 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