RNG NEWS
Stay up to date with the latest stories, insights, and announcements.Study Finds Biomethane-fueled Cars the Most Environmentally-friendly Option
A recent study has revealed biomethane-fuelled cars are the best transportation option to preserve air quality. The research, conducted by IFP Energies Nouvelles in France, reveals that light vehicles running on biomethane are more environmentally-friendly than other technologies.
The study compares the carbon footprint of the lifecycle of compressed natural gas (CNG) and biomethane vehicles to that of diesel, gasoline and electric vehicles.
By BioEnergy Insight
New York LCFS May Come Through One of Three Separate Channels in 2020
Three potential pathways exist for New York to approve a low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) next year as support builds for the program, an industry source said.
Several North American jurisdictions, including Canada, Washington state’s Puget Sound Region, and Colorado, are either planning or exploring the implementation of clean fuel standards to lower the carbon intensity of their transportation sectors.
By Carbon Pulse
California Dairy Farms Reach Major Milestone in Climate Goal
Dairy Cares reports that the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) announced this month that California's dairy farms will soon be more than halfway to achieving the state's world-leading target for reducing methane. The update was part of CDFA's announcement that an additional $102 million has been awarded this year to support the implementation of dairy methane reduction projects. 93 new projects were funded, including 43 methane digesters that capture methane and 50 alternative manure management projects. There are currently more than 229 dairy methane reduction projects in operation or under development on California dairy farms.
Through the implementation of these projects, CDFA estimates 2.2 million metric tons of greenhouse gases will be reduced each year. That's approximately 25 percent of the 2013 California inventory for dairy and livestock manure methane emissions. The state's target is a 40 percent reduction below 2013 levels by 2030. In total, the state has now invested $260 million in dairy methane reduction projects. California's dairy farm families and other investors have matched that with more than $360 million in private funding.
By Oil & Gas
Los Angeles-Long Beach Port Trucking Company Replacing Entire Diesel Truck Fleet with Near-Zero Emissions Renewable Natural Gas Trucks
Total Transportation Services Inc. (TTSI) today announced it is replacing its entire diesel trucking fleet with near-zero emission natural gas trucks, which it plans to fuel with carbon negative renewable natural gas. The announcement was made in conjunction with the non-profit Coalition for Clean Air (CCA) to raise awareness of the importance of natural and renewable gas trucking to help improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the Los Angeles region, especially at the L.A. and Long Beach ports.
Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas), along with environmental health non-profit BREATHE LA, fueling company Clean Energy, engine manufacturer Cummins Westport, and the California Air Resources Board (CARB) participated in today’s announcement. Twenty-five percent of TTSI’s investment in the new natural gas trucks was funded through CARB’s California Climate Investments initiative, a statewide program that puts billions of cap-and-trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy and improving public health and the environment—particularly in disadvantaged communities.
By Oil & Gas
UPS is Converting Ground Fleets to Renewable Natural Gas
UPS (NYSE: UPS) purchased 170 million gallon equivalents of renewable natural gas (RNG) to use between 2020 and 2026. Since 2014, UPS ground fleets consumed 28 million gallons of RNG. In order to consume what was purchased, it must annually use close to the total consumed gallons of RNG from the last five years.
UPS’ goal is to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 12% in its ground fleets by 2025. Drivers will be able to get RNG from the following locations: Phoenix; Commerce City and Trinidad, CO; Atlanta and Tifton, GA; Kansas City, KS; New Orleans, Port Allen and Shreveport, LA; Omaha, NE; Sparks, NV; Oklahoma City; Chattanooga, TN; El Paso, Fort Worth and San Antonio, TX; and Salt Lake City.
By Freight Waves
UN Climate Action Summit: Five Things Governments Should be Doing
As leaders gather for the 2019 UN Climate Action Summit today, they need some outside the box thinking about steps to strengthen their national commitments to shrink their greenhouse gas emissions ahead of the next phase of the Paris Agreement.
By Council on Foreign Relations
Best Practices for Voluntary RNG Programs
As pressure to decarbonize our energy supply mounts, many gas utilities are considering how to integrate and scale renewable natural gas, and are considering a voluntary renewable natural gas (RNG) program for their residential and commercial customers.
While voluntary RNG programs are a relatively new development for gas utilities, these programs have many similarities to the voluntary green power programs that have been offered by electric utilities for decades. As such, there is much that gas utilities can learn from their electric utility counterparts in terms of best practices and risk mitigation as they consider whether and how to design and launch successful RNG programs.
By Utility Dive
Brightmark Energy Invests in Upstate New York Dairy RNG Project
Brightmark Energy, a San Francisco-based waste to energy development company, announced today that it has partnered with four dairy farms in upstate New York to utilize anaerobic digesters that will convert a total of 225,000 gallons of dairy waste per day from 11,000 cows into biogas and other useful products.
After the planned installation of gas upgrade equipment is completed at the Swiss Valley, Zuber, Boxler, and Lake Shore farms, as well as a fifth farm that is expected to be finalized next month, the project is anticipated to generate about 260,000 MMBtu of renewable natural gas each year. The gas processed at each farm will be transported to the Zuber farm, where it will be injected into the Empire interstate gas pipeline.
By Fox40
Fortis Utilities Take Action to Decrease Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Increase Renewable Energy Use
Fortis Inc. ("Fortis" or the "Corporation") (TSX/NYSE:FTS) announced today that its subsidiary, FortisBC, has set a greenhouse gas ("GHG") reduction target. The utility said earlier today it has set an ambitious goal to reduce GHG emissions associated with their customers’ energy use by 30 percent overall by the year 2030. This announcement, along with other developments at Fortis utilities, demonstrates our commitment to a lower carbon economy.
Tucson Electric Power ("TEP") had a goal to deliver 30 percent renewable power to customers by 2030. The utility is expecting to exceed 28 percent of its renewable generation retail sales by 2021 – close to nine years ahead of schedule. TEP is now setting its sights on new carbon emission reduction goals and has partnered with the University of Arizona to develop a carbon reduction target for the utility's 2020 Integrated Resource Plan.
By Business Insurance
RNG Offers Lower-Carbon Option For Natural Gas Utilities
An interconnection guidance document released this week outlines the ways that renewable natural gas (RNG) can be effectively incorporated into local natural gas systems – to reduce carbon emissions, support local economic development, and utilize local supply resources. The report, "Interconnect Guide for Renewable Natural Gas in New York State," was prepared by the Northeast Gas Association (NGA) and GTI, sponsored by and in coordination with several New York State natural gas utilities. While developed for New York State, this report provides a guideline for RNG pipeline interconnections that will be applicable and of value throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Renewable natural gas – or RNG – is a pipeline-compatible, gaseous fuel derived from biomass or other renewable sources. It has lower lifecycle CO2e emissions than geological natural gas and is compositionally equivalent and fully interchangeable with natural gas. It is the product of raw biogas (from anaerobic digestion) or syngas (from biomass gasification) that has been upgraded to pipeline quality.
By PR Newswire
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