RNG NEWS
Climate Resolve Names SoCalGas' George Minter RNG Champion at Innovation in the Fight Against Climate Change
LOS ANGELES - March 13, 2019 - Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) today announced George Minter, the company's regional vice president of external affairs & environmental policy, was named 'Renewable Natural Gas Champion' by Climate Resolve, a Los Angeles-based nonprofit organization that focuses on local solutions to global climate change, Climate Resolve lauded Minter's efforts to increase the use of renewable natural gas to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in a way that benefits all people, including low income families. Minter was honored at Climate Resolve's annual Coolest in LA Gala - a celebration of innovation in Southern California's Fight Against Climate Change.
'I am honored to accept this award from Climate Resolve,' said Minter. 'To truly achieve carbon-neutrality, California must capture the methane emissions from waste sources. A path to carbon neutrality that includes renewable natural gas will also be two to three times more cost effective than an all-electric solution. This is something I wholeheartedly believe in and I will continue to try to educate the public, my peers and those in government about this concept so that together, all of us in California can reach our climate goals.'
By, Market Screener
Anaergia's Rialto Bioenergy Facility to Process 1 ,000 tons of Food waste and Biosolids Per Day
Organics recycling solution provider Anaergia is on course to launch what it says will be the largest food waste diversion and energy recovery facility in North America, in partnership with two major waste management companies, three California utilities and several sanitation agencies in that state. The city of Rialto, Calif., will host the plant on property adjacent to its wastewater treatment plant.
Anaergia will leverage proprietary technology that separates organics from mixed solid waste of any contamination level in order to recover energy and make fertilizer. The process involves anaerobic digestion (AD).
By, Arlene Karidis, Waste 360
Washington Moves One Step Closer to Passing a Clean Fuel Standard
On the evening of March 12, the Washington State House of Representatives passed HB 1110 (Clean Fuel Standard) by a vote of 53-43. This milestone vote brings Washington state closer to passing a policy aimed at growing the market for low carbon fuels, reducing the costs and impacts of air pollution to public health, and increasing economic investment and returns from local renewable fuel production.
The bill has strong support among a diverse group including public health groups, local elected officials, automobile manufacturers, environmental justice groups, clean energy businesses, and science and medical professionals, and several leaders expressed strong support upon passage:
By, Climate Solutions
Clean Energy on Renewable Natural Gas as Fuel Option for Fleet Requirements
Agencies have a number of choices when it comes to fueling options for bus fleets, when considering which fuels would be the most beneficial an agency takes into account several factors including price point, infrastructure needs, sustainable emissions and performance reliability.
Chad Lindholm, Clean Energy vice president, explained that natural gas is one of the cleanest fuel options available.
“Abundant, domestic and stable, natural gas helps transportation fleets operate cleaner, more efficiently and at a lower fuel cost than diesel. Clean Energy is focused on meeting the demand for renewable natural gas or RNG, a low-carbon renewable fuel that is made from organic waste and doesn’t require drilling. When paired the latest natural gas engine technology, fleets adopting RNG can realize low-carbon emissions,” said Lindholm.
By, Maile Rudebusch, Mass Transit
SoCalGas Joins the California Energy Commission in Demonstration of a New Ultra-Efficient Water Heater and Space Cooler
Restaurants use a lot of energy to not only prepare and cook food, but to cool kitchens, dining rooms, and other spaces. A new high efficiency, ultra-low emissions commercial water heating and space cooling unit, which begins field demonstrations at two Southern California restaurants this week, could dish out energy savings, lower operating costs, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions for foodservice and hospitality facility operators.
The new technology uses a thermally driven heat pump fueled by natural gas or propane to capture ambient energy, achieving a heating efficiency of 140 percent or greater. It is projected to reduce energy use by 30 to 50 percent compared to standard natural gas water heaters. The highly-efficient heat pump also provides space cooling simultaneously, which reduces the need for air conditioning and can help lessen electricity use.
By, PR Newswire
What New York's Renewable Waste Water Management Can Teach China
Millions of Chinese citizens are flooding into urban areas throughout the country, with 70 percent of the nation’s population expected to reside in cities by 2030.As cities face an influx of residents, they also face an influx of wastewater and sludge.Currently, 80 percent of sludge in China is improperly dumped-—an increasingly controversial environmental issue that has urban centers scrambling to decrease pollution by improving their wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). As it grapples with these challenges, China could use an example to follow. New York City’s large size and innovative wastewater system make it one of the only municipalities in the United States that can serve as a useful case study for China’s growing cities.
By, Danielle Neighbour & Gillian Zwicker, Scientific American
Governor Murphy Ignoring Organic Waste as Clean Energy Source: Tomich
Gov. Phil Murphy pledged to restore New Jersey to national leadership in fighting climate change, building a green economy and transitioning to 100 percent clean energy by 2050.
He has already taken some laudable steps. He brought New Jersey back into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) to lower greenhouse emissions from electric power generation, and the Transportation and Climate Initiative (TCI) to lower emissions from the transport sector, which is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, accounting for 40 percent of New Jersey’s emissions.
By, Matt Tomich, App
Washington State Tackles Transportation Emissions with Possible Clean Fuels Policy
The climate crisis demands an immediate response on multiple fronts, and while in Washington DC the Trump administration is attempting to reverse the progress of the last administration, in Washington state legislators are tackling the challenge head on.
The largest source of pollution in Washington state is transportation, which is another way to say burning petroleum-based fuels like gasoline and diesel. Tackling emissions from transportation requires policies that focus on vehicles and transportation fuels. Broad economy-wide measures like carbon pricing or cap and trade are important and should be pursued but will have limited direct impact on transportation in the near term. Fortunately, a clean fuel program, which targets transportation fuel directly, has proven quite effective. Legislators in Washington are considering enacting such a standard, which would be a major step forward in cutting oil use and emissions from transportation.
By, Union of Concerned Scientists
RNG: Most Efficient Approach to Decarbonizing Buildings
Critics of natural gas in markets scattered across the U.S. have begun to call for 100 percent electrification of buildings to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the sector. They also often claim that it will benefit low-income and minority communities. But the facts are to the contrary, and instead show that a rigid call for electrified buildings as the sole way to reduce emissions is misguided.
We should applaud the end goal of decarbonization. It’s possible for our building sector, and we are all worthy of reduced emissions and increasingly cleaner, healthier air. However, requiring across-the-board electrification of buildings limits consumer choice. It’s also incredibly costly for residents and small businesses, and therefore will not help low-income families as the diehards of electrification claim.
By, Marcus Gillette, Biomass Magazine
SoCalGas Announces Vision to Be Cleanest Natural Gas Utility in North America
Southern California Gas Co.(SoCalGas) today announced a bold plan to replace 20 percent of its traditional natural gas supply with renewable natural gas (RNG) by 2030. Today's announcement is part of SoCalGas' vision to be the cleanest natural gas utility in North America, delivering affordable and increasingly renewable energy to its customers. To kickstart the plan, SoCalGas will pursue regulatory authority to implement a broad renewable natural gas procurement program with a goal of replacing five percent of its natural gas supply with RNG by 2022. SoCalGas also recently filed a request with the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to allow customers to purchase renewable natural gas for their homes. SoCalGas aims to have CPUC approval of its voluntary program by the end of the year.
By, Market Watch