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GreenChill Partnership Achievements—Industry Steps Up The GreenChill Partnership provides food retailers, as well as advanced refrigeration system manufacturers and retrofit chemical and secondary fluid manufacturers, with assistance with preventing costly refrigerant leaks and emissions and meeting strict performance criteria under the GreenChill Store Certification Program. During the first year in the program, Partners average an […]
Value-Added Benefits from Biogas As discussed yesterday, a fully developed biogas industry could provide both renewable energy and reduced emissions of the GHG methane, two valuable assets for combating climate change. But the recent report, Biogas Opportunities Roadmap, also makes the case for biogas as an economic driver that can generate capital investments, jobs, and […]
U.S. Biogas Energy Potential The process of creating energy through anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic materials (aka “biogas”) is not a new concept, but in light of climate change, it may be one with a lot of unrealized potential for both renewable energy and reducing emissions of the potent GHG methane. In the report titled […]
Four RMP Documentation Violations to Avoid 1) Failure to include all the required documentation for the alternative release scenarios for the chemical pipe leak and natural gasoline vapor cloud fire as required by 40 CFR 68.39(b). 40 CFR 68.39(b) establishes the offsite consequences analysis documentation requirements for alternative release scenarios that include a description of […]
Recent RMP Settlements Underscore Compliance Pitfalls On September 24 and 29, 2014 the EPA announced settlements with three different companies in two states for violations of to RMP regulations. The first two settlements were at facilities in Idaho, one a corn-based ethanol production facility in Burley and the other a manufacturer of agricultural chemicals in […]
Curbing GHGs with Cap–and–Trade —How It’s Working The RGGI held its first CO2 allowance auction on September 25, 2008 and will hold its 26th auction on December 3, 2014. Along the way, the RGGI has evolved and in 2013, made changes to its Model Rule to further reduce CO2 emissions and help to ensure the […]
Curbing GHGs with Cap–and–Trade —How It Works The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI or “Reggie”) was first discussed in 2003 by the governors of nine states as a possible way to lower CO2 emissions from electric power plants on a regional scale. In late 2005, seven states – Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, […]
Sector Highlights from the 2013 Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program In 2013 1,572 power plants reported, which is down from 1,589 in 2011 and 1,601 in 2012. This sector consists of facilities that produce electricity by combusting fossil fuels and/or biomass and the emissions from this sector are solely from stationary fuel combustion sources, although carbon […]
National Highlights from the 2013 Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program Mandatory reporting of GHGs became law in October 2009 for sources emitting 25,000 metric tons or more of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) per year in the United States. Reporting began in 2010 and in 2011, the EPA published the first GHGRP report setting a benchmark for […]
The Second Integrated Urban Air Report to Congress—What’s Next? With publication of the Second Integrated Urban Air Report to Congress, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has fulfilled its three primary obligations under the 1990 Clean Air Act (CAA) Amendments. These are: Report twice on accomplishments realized relative to reducing harmful air toxics; Regulate 90 […]