California advisory speakers push to delay LCFS vote

California regulators should delay long-awaited changes to the state's Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) until at least July, members of an advisory committee said yesterday.

Staff-proposed revisions the California Air Resources Board (CARB) could consider at a March meeting would allow too much biofuel and biogas to remain in the state's transportation supply for too long, members of the board's Environmental Justice Advisory Committee (EJAC) and public commenters said during a meeting to discuss the plan.

Speakers on Thursday specifically warned against incentives for renewable diesel production and dairy methane capture, and worried the program as proposed would heap costs on residents who could not afford zero-emissions vehicles. Opposition could further extend dramatic surplus conditions that last month helped drop LCFS spot prices to their lowest level in nearly nine years.

The comments did not constitute a formal recommendation by the full committee. The advisory panel has no voting power on CARB decisions, instead offering the board perspective on rulemakings and policies from historically disadvantaged and under-represented communities.

The committee's reaction and hours of public comment show that LCFS program revisions proposed in December have not satisfied critics who are adamant that the state more quickly transition away from combustion fuels and agricultural feedstocks.

"We hope the board listens to the community and tothe EJAC and postpones this decision because we need to be serious here about the kind of transformation that we need so that our communities do not continue to be the sacrifice zones," co-chairwoman Martha Dina Arguello said.

LCFS requires yearly reductions to transportation fuel carbon intensity. Higher-carbon fuels that exceed the annual limit incur deficits that suppliers must offset with credits generated from the distribution in California of approved, lower-carbon alternatives.

The combination of LCFS, other state carbon incentives and federal tax and renewable fuel mandate programs have made California a leading destination for growing production of renewable diesel and biogas. Renewable diesel last year began to fill more than half of the state's liquid diesel pool and generated roughly 40pc of all new LCFS credits. Biogas, much of it credited through book-and-claim from out-of-state dairies and attributed to compressed natural gas vehicles, generated another 17pc of all new credits in the third quarter of 2023.

Supporters point to these fuels as valuable alternatives that cut the carbon intensity of current vehicles while zero-emissions technologies, especially for medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, catch up. Environmental justice speakers have repeatedly warned that these fuels extend polluted conditions for communities along the fence lines of dairies and converted renewable diesel plants.

The committee in September urged CARB to limit credits for crop-based biofuels and for captured dairy methane. CARB's proposed rulemaking requires new certification for forestry- and crop-based feedstocks by 2028, and limits the credits generated by biogas projects — if they break ground after 2029.

CARB's proposals have failed to address the committee's concerns, and the speed of the rulemaking seemed to allow little time for change, speakers said. Public comment began 5 January and will continue to 20 February. CARB has scheduled a hearing on the rulemaking for its 21 March meeting, which would be the first opportunity for the board to consider voting on the proposal.

"This is a really important rule program, and unfortunately, I think, on both process and substance we have progressed from bad to worse," EJAC co-chair Catherine Garoupa White said.

A delay could also push back the higher-profile elements of the proposed changes, including tougher targets and automatic mechanisms to respond to rising credit supplies. Ten consecutive quarters of new credits exceeding new deficits has amassed more than 20mn t of unexpiring credits available for future compliance. Available credits are likely to continue to grow as long as the status quo remains.

By Elliott Blackburn