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Renewable Natural Gas for Long Island Energy Vision Workshop

Renewable Natural Gas for Long Island Energy Vision Workshop. Donald Chahbazpour Oct. 14, 2014. Agenda. Basics What is Renewable Natural Gas? How is it produced? Why should it be considered? What is the Potential? Vision? Policy issues. 2. Feedstock. Anaerobic Digestion / Gasification.

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Renewable Natural Gas for Long Island Energy Vision Workshop

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  1. Renewable Natural Gas for Long IslandEnergy Vision Workshop Donald Chahbazpour Oct. 14, 2014

  2. Agenda • Basics • What is Renewable Natural Gas? • How is it produced? • Why should it be considered? • What is the Potential? Vision? • Policy issues 2

  3. Feedstock Anaerobic Digestion / Gasification Upgrading, clean-up, methanation Injection of pipeline quality gas What Is Renewable Natural Gas? Pipeline quality gas derived from biomass resources that is injected into the gas distribution network Sources of biomass include wastewater treatment plants, food waste, landfills, livestock manure, municipal solid waste, agricultural residues and energy crops 3

  4. Technology Overview – How Is Renewable Natural Gas Produced? Anaerobic Digestion (AD) • High-moisture organic material such as wastewater, food waste & certain livestock manure • Microorganisms convert organic matter into biogas • Commercially available and in use today Thermal Gasification (TG) • Low-moisture feedstock such as forestry waste, crop residue, municipal solid waste and energy crops • Thermal breakdown of solid biomass into syngas and converted to methane • A proven technology likely to reach commercial-scale implementation within 10 years 4

  5. Why Should It Be Considered Renewable Natural Gas is a here and now energy solution that delivers the following benefits: • Lowers greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by offsetting the use of natural gas (and in some instances capturing methane that would have otherwise entered the atmosphere) • Provides a real option for managing and using local waste resources to produce renewable energy • Leverages the existing natural gas network to deliver a renewable fuel for homes, business, industrial, and transportation needs • Stimulates the local economy and creates jobs • Enhances diversity of supply with a local and domestic resource 5

  6. Fireplaces Gas Ranges, Ovens & Cooktops Hot Water Fleet Vehicles & Public Transportation Clothes Dryers Cars, Trucks, Vans & SUVs Furnaces Renewable Natural Gas Is Interchangeable With Natural Gas for Everyday Uses in Our Homes and Businesses 6

  7. What Is National Grid Doing in New York? • Raising the profile of renewable gas • Education is key • Published white paper in 2010 • Demonstration project • Stimulate the industry • Prove the concept, and share the lessons learned– leveraging experience from the Staten Island Landfill 7

  8. What Is the Potential? Recent study by American Gas Foundation (released Sept. 2011) Finding: Under a reasonable long-term scenario, Renewable Natural Gas could be used to meet the natural gas needs of half of all American homes. * Based on a national usage of approximately 24 TCF of natural gas (for 2010), source EIA 8

  9. Newtown Creek Renewable Gas Project Overview • Largest wastewater treatment plant in NYC • Partnering with NYCDEP • The project will inject enough gas into the distribution network to heat ~2,500 homes • Reduce CO2 emissions by about 16,000 tons annually • Equal to CO2 emissions of ~3,000 cars Picture of Newtown Creek wastewater treatment plant in Brooklyn, NY Source: New York City Department of Environmental Protection

  10. What Is the Vision? 10

  11. Transportation Sector Is Well Positioned to Embrace Renewable Natural Gas • The environmental attributes of renewable natural gas can be recognized through Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) – EPA program • RFS sets annual mandates for renewable transportation fuels in the United States • RFS program was created under the Energy Policy Act (EPACT) of 2005 & it was expanded and extended by the Energy Independence & Security Act (EISA) of 2007 • Requires 36 billion gallons of renewable fuel by 2022 • RFS2 also established new RINs that are differentiated by type of biofuel • Renewable natural gas is now considered a cellulosic biofuel RIN 11

  12. What Needs to Happen to Realize the Potential? • Federal & State policy support will be a critical factor in delivering the potential of renewable natural gas. Concepts should include: • Parity • The playing field needs to be leveled so that Renewable Gas is valued, supported and incentivized in ways equal to renewable electricity • Accessibility and Integration • Our nation’s pipeline infrastructure should facilitate the purchase and transfer of Renewable Natural Gas in order to more easily meet local, state, or federal goals for renewable energy 12

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