A: RNG production converts waste that is negatively impacting the environment and creates a clean energy resource fully compatible with our current infrastructure and appliances.

Society will always produce waste, which naturally emits surface-level methane as it decomposes. We can and should capture methane from our waste streams and prevent that methane from entering the atmosphere.

RNG is one essential piece of the puzzle. It is crucial to maintain a diverse portfolio of solutions that work together to combat climate change.

RNG is a complement to other renewable energy sources because it is storable, dispatchable and can be combined with other fuel, heat, and power generation resources providing reliable energy in a more sustainable and circular economy.

A: As the global population grows, the World Bank projects solid waste to increase nearly 70% by 2050. RNG is an immediately available and ‘no-regrets’ solution to help improve society’s response to waste and resulting emissions.

Because RNG captures emissions from society’s waste streams and redeems its energy value, it has the lowest lifecycle carbon intensity (CI) of any clean energy source available today. Downstream, consumption of RNG leads to measurable displacement of fossil natural gas.

In recent years, the North American RNG industry has faced a significant amount of misinformation about its environmental benefits and practicality. Many opponents to RNG, for example, argue that any solutions short of electrification represent a step backward.

What critics often overlook is that even an ideal, fully realized vision of an electrified world would not address greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions arising from society’s organic waste. Moreover, national- and state-level policy programs in North America and abroad have already managed to leverage RNG and other alternative fuels to displace previously unthinkable volumes of fossil gas and diesel — meaning RNG represents real progress that can be achieved today, rather than in a far-off tomorrow.

A: Full electrification will take time and intense investment; the infrastructure for RNG exists today. To effectively address our complex environmental challenges, we need a diverse portfolio of solutions that can work together. There is no ‘one size fits all’ solution.

According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), RNG plays an essential, long-term, clean energy role because it can be used to produce renewable electricity, heat, fuel, and hydrogen.

A: RNG captures the naturally occurring GHG emissions from society’s many waste streams, keeping methane out of the atmosphere, and recycling its energy value for electricity, heating, and fuel. Left unabated, this gas leaks into the atmosphere at 100%.

The best use for RNG is an active discussion that will likely evolve over time. Today, RNG is mostly used to displace higher-carbon and less-clean transportation fuels, like diesel.

Our industry is on a mission to capture and destroy every fugitive GHG molecule. This capture and energy creation improves environmental conditions, health and quality of life for all communities.

A: Our industry is actively studying this question and is committed to continually improving technology and infrastr

ucture to remove any-and-all leaks. Our membership includes companies working at the vanguard of methane detection, measurement and control, and advances will be needed in this space, in addition to further academic inquiry.

However, even setting aside environmental concerns, it is important to note that RNG incentivizes companies to capture every molecule of methane for productive use, by converting emissions themselves into a potentially valuable source of revenue.

A: Looking to the future, RNG will likely not produce enough energy to be a single solution to provide the world’s energy. Where RNG may prove most impactful, however, is in areas that are “hard to decarbonize” — like heavy-duty transport, industrial applications, shipping and the like. Moreover, there are already countries in Europe that are close to using RNG for 100% of all gas used in homes, businesses and industries — providing a sense of what is possible with the right public support and understanding.

RNG is a critical part of our energy future, but we need a diverse portfolio of solutions to meet projected future energy demand and make our societies more sustainable. Through the combined use of complementary-technologies and solutions, we can work together towards a clean energy future.Looking to the future, RNG will likely not produce enough energy to be a single solution to provide the world’s energy. Where RNG may prove most impactful, however, is in areas that are “hard to decarbonize” — like heavy-duty transport, industrial applications, shipping and the like. Moreover, there are already countries in Europe that are close to using RNG for 100% of all gas used in homes, businesses and industries — providing a sense of what is possible with the right public support and understanding.

RNG is a critical part of our energy future, but we need a diverse portfolio of solutions to meet projected future energy demand and make our societies more sustainable. Through the combined use of complementary-technologies and solutions, we can work together towards a clean energy future.

A: RNG is derived from gases emitting from existing waste streams that are inevitably produced by all communities. Mismanagement of waste harms vulnerable communities, which are also disproportionately impacted by vehicle pollution arising from more carbon-intensive fuels, like diesel. RNG addresses both issues.

RNG Coalition does not support the creation of more waste to fuel the growth of RNG but recognizes that natural and organic waste streams will always exist and need to be managed. Why not convert society’s inevitable waste streams into a reliable form of alternative energy while capturing methane that would otherwise escape into the atmosphere? RNG improves current conditions and is an important step to help abate, mitigate and ultimately eliminate any negative, local impacts of waste.

A: Yes, RNG has the potential to reduce food costs. RNG, and byproducts like fertilizer and soil amendments, create new revenue streams for farmers, helping them to keep food prices lower. By powering farms and fueling the vehicles that deliver our food, RNG provides savings throughout the food production and delivery system.

A: RNG is best understood as two products — the energy commodity and environmental attributes.

When delivered to customers, RNG is often sold at or below conventional gas prices because the environmental attributes are sold separately to parties with regulatory obligation or sustainability commitments to retire such attributes. For companies, universities or governments committed to decarbonization, RNG is cost competitive with other popular strategies for reducing the carbon footprint of energy consumption.

Ultimately, however, the cost of RNG isn’t strictly measured in dollars and cents. What is the price of reducing waste, realizing cleaner air to breathe and a healthier environment?

If done well and sold on a large scale, RNG is an affordable source of clean energy for consumers. RNG will cost less than gasoline at the pump and much less than rebuilding infrastructure for electrification, given the technology and infrastructure currently available.

A: With how quickly the industry has grown, we continue to observe and analyze the economic benefits of RNG. In late 2024, RNG COALITION supported a study by Guidehouse showing net gross domestic product (GDP) impact of nearly $8 billion from RNG industries — a significant figure and exponentially higher than just a few years prior.

RNG projects provide good paying jobs to urban and rural communities while creating additional revenue streams for municipalities, farmers and North American businesses. 

A: The answer depends on the size of the facility and how much waste management infrastructure is already in place.

The average RNG cleaning and conditioning facility costs $17 million to construct, with actual facility construction ranging from under $1 million to over $100 million. Many of these facilities are financed with private equity, while others capitalize on loan programs, such as the USDA Business & Industry Loan Program.

Regardless of the cost, RNG facilities have a proven track record of returning quick and predictable returns on investment.

A: RNG production facilities do not require a new gas pipeline network — they simply need access to already existing infrastructure. Once connected, RNG helps to decarbonize our energy transmission systems.

A: Unlike natural gas, RNG is not a fossil fuel.

Natural gas is widespread through many facets of our economy and has been used for a long time. RNG provides an alternative to conventional natural gas produced by hydraulic fracturing (fracking).

Currently both natural gas and RNG are cost effective for consumers, and the vast existing natural gas infrastructure is compatible with RNG, allowing RNG facilities to quickly decarbonize our energy infrastructure and provide cleaner gas on a regional or even national scale.

A: RNG is regulated and promoted as a viable source of alternative energy by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and similarly situated state entities, as well as throughout Canada, Europe, and the rest of the world. Denmark, rightfully regarded as a careful environmental steward, has made RNG a lynchpin of its decarbonization regime through its “Danish Green Gas Strategy.”

Governments and companies are embracing RNG because it provides a real, sustainable path to reducing pollution. Because waste emissions are a naturally occurring source of GHG, RNG is an essential part of the energy future. The circular economy is essential and all stakeholders must work toward meaningful solutions, including companies whose core businesses have historically focused on traditional energy sources.