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SACRAMENTO – The Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (RNG Coalition) supports the California Air Resources Board's (CARB) decision today to approve proposed amendments to California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS), after a lengthy rulemaking process intended to increase programmatic ambition.
"Today’s vote marks a powerful step forward in California’s journey of climate leadership," Sam Wade, RNG Coalition's director of public policy, said today. "With the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, the state has shown what’s possible in reducing greenhouse gas emissions by displacing over 60% of the state’s diesel supply with cleaner alternatives.
"CARB’s commitment today to increasing the ambition of this program also upholds support for renewable natural gas (RNG) projects that capture methane from organic waste sources," Wade said. "While there remain aspects of the program that could use improvement, today’s decision signals to our industry that California remains a committed partner in building a cleaner, healthier, and more secure energy future."
CARB's update to this program will increase overall program stringency while continuing to recognize the dual emissions reduction benefits of RNG projects, which displace fossil fuels while capturing methane from organic waste sites, like landfills, dairy farms and wastewater treatment facilities. Due in part to support from the LCFS, California today boasts more dairy RNG projects than any other U.S. state, offering hope that we can tackle the environmentally pressing problems of transportation-linked pollution and agricultural methane emissions within coming decades.
According to data from the end of the third quarter of 2024, North America currently has 435 operational RNG facilities, plus another 455 sites either under construction or in planning stages. California alone has 133 operational facilities, with another 84 facilities forthcoming. Today's vote will allow investors to move forward with these plans with confidence that California's LCFS market will continue to reward their innovation.
The LCFS is a proven climate program, and today's vote indicates that our industry's advocacy has been successful in underscoring its environmental benefits. In 2023 alone, the LCFS helped reduce GHG emissions by 30.6 million metric tons CO2e, which is the equivalent of taking 6.7 million cars off the road.
RNG Coalition looks forward to continuing to work with CARB to make this program even stronger in years to come, as we work together to ensure a sustainable, reliable energy future for Californians and North Americans of all backgrounds.
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Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas is the non-profit trade association providing leadership, public policy advocacy and education for the sustainable development, deployment, and utilization of renewable natural gas, so that present and future generations have access to domestic, renewable, clean fuel, energy and products. Membership is comprised of 400+ companies committed to supporting RNG Coalition’s mission and Sustainable Methane Abatement & Recycling Timeline (SMART).
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