After All, EPA to Regulate Climate Change via The Clean Air Act

The Environmental Protection Agency is set to make final new air-pollution standards for coal-fired power plants by mid-December, sparking disagreement among power companies about how quickly aging coal plants need to be pushed offline.

The EPA wants to give coal-fired plants three years to comply with the new standards—either by shutting down or going through expensive retrofits—with the possibility of a one-year extension.

The maintenance of baseload power is likely to be appropriate in many locations, meaning some coal fired and natural gas fired plants will not be de-commissioned. However, the likelihood of investors preferring the lower costs of green energy will mean that they will replace most sources.

The new rules will make some coal powered plants to shut down as it will not be economical to retrofit them. They will most likely be replaced by the new plants powered by natural gas. Renewables will pick some slack, but that is negligible in the big scheme of things. Unfortunately, US nuclear industry is still not ready to come back. We will probably wait another 10 years, and at that time probably buy nukes from Chinese who will perfect new technology and get experience building AP1000 reactors (AP1000® pressurized water reactor or PWR. It is the only Generation III+ reactor to receive Design Certification from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC)) long before we put one on the drawing board permitting process.

But in summary, EPA is moving to regulate climate change via The Clean Air Act, and because of the coal power plants shut down we may very well meet the Waxman-Markey climate and energy bill–aka the American Clean Energy and Security Act, ACES, H.R. 2454. The bill would put a cap on emissions of greenhouse gases, and would require high-emitting industries to reduce their output to specific targets between now and the middle of the century. The bill covers 85 percent of the overall economy, including electricity producers, oil refineries, natural gas suppliers, and energy-intensive industries like iron, steel, cement, and paper manufacturers. Emission cuts would start in 2012 and EPA is right on track.

The goals for U.S. emission reductions, below 2005 levels are 3 percent cut by 2012; 17 percent cut by 2020; 42 percent cut by 2030; more than 80 percent cut by 2050. We may achieve 2020 goals with retrofitting and shutdowns of coal powered plants and slowing economy. We will not meet other goals without injecting nuclear power.

EPA to Ease Air Emissions Rule on Power Plants

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under industry pressure, is expected to ease an air quality rule that would require power plants in 27 states to slash emissions, said the Wall Street Journal. It appears that changes are needed because the original rule from July 2011 required steep reductions too quickly. This summer the administration, pressed by industry, forced the EPA to abandon an air-quality rule to curb ozone-forming smog. The agency also has delayed a rule on greenhouse-gas emissions.

The power-plant rule affects about 1,000 plants, requiring them to cut sulfur dioxide by 73% and nitrogen oxide by 54% from 2005 levels. Reductions must begin in January 2012, with compliance by 2014. Companies are expected to install new pollution controls or switch from coal to cleaner-burning natural gas.

The EPA plans to allow certain states and companies to emit more pollutants than it previously permitted. EPA spokesman Brendan Gilfillan said, “While we don’t have anything to announce at this time, EPA often makes technical adjustments … because data, including data in some cases provided by industry, turns out to be incorrect, outdated or incomplete.” It is interesting that EPA is using the real world and real time data and information to fine tune the rule. This is welcome news for both industry and environmental groups as it shows that future rule making will rely more on actual data and less on politics.

The move comes amid a backlash over the rule enacted last July, which the EPA has said will protect public health and prevent up to 34,000 premature deaths. Critics contend it will cost jobs, increase power costs and threaten electric reliability.

The EPA changes are expected to allow for emissions increases ranging from 1% to 4% above the July requirement, depending on the pollutant, said the WSJ. The Cross-State Air Pollution Rule is intended to reduce smog-forming chemicals emitted from power plants that often drift into other states. The pollutants can cause heart attacks and respiratory illnesses.

When the rule is in place some utilities are planning to shut down a portion of their operation in order to comply. Some states have attacked the rule and sued the EPA, saying the regulations are unnecessary and dangerous.

Locus Ranked 3rd Largest Environmental Firm in Silicon Valley

L.A. may have bested the rest of the country when it comes to green job creation, but other regions can still be considered green tech hubs.

Carbon Regulations Under Fire: AB32 Delayed to 2013

At a legislative hearing on the status of California’s cap-and-trade system yesterday, the Chair of the California Air Resources Board (CARB), Mary Nichols, indicated they are proposing to start the program in 2012 but delay the first compliance period to 2013.

Cap-and-trade is a cornerstone of California’s approach to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. This reduction is preserved in AB32, the state’s climate change legislation. Cap-and-trade is also a key component of the state’s participation in the Western Climate Initiative, which involves a number of US states and Canadian provinces and aims to reduce carbon emissions across the partner jurisdictions.

Nichols said the quarterly auctions of emissions allowances that each large emitter in the state must turn in would begin in the second half of 2012, rather than February 2012 as planned. The first three-year compliance period, which originally covered 2012-14, will be shortened to two years.

CARB indicates that the one-year delay will provide flexibility and allow them to “stress test” the market mechanisms. They intend to release a draft of regulations covering allowance distribution and details on offset protocols within the next two weeks. Nichols indicated the agency is also on track to finish its regulations by the end of October.

Keep checking Locus or CARB’s website for more information.

EPA Delays Rules for Boilers to April 2012

The Environmental Protection Agency is delaying issuing final regulations aimed at cutting pollution from factory boilers until April 2012.

The delay is one in a serious of slowdowns in regulatory agenda to curb carbon dioxide emissions using the Clean Air Act and several rules aimed at reducing emissions from coal-burning power plants.

Although the federal court has ordered the EPA to implement the boiler standards, the agency has said it needed more time for public input. This latest delay would push the deadline for compliance to 2015 from 2014.

The EPA’s delay has frustrated environmental and public-health groups, which cite evidence that the rules would save lives and avert thousands of heart and asthma attacks.

Industry, on the other hand, has said that the rules would be extremely costly and difficult to implement.

Boilers are on-site generators that can provide energy for apartment buildings and shopping malls, as well as refineries and factories.

The EPA rules also would affect incinerators at industrial facilities. Small boilers located at universities, hotels, hospitals and other commercial buildings also might have to comply, though the EPA has sought to limit the impact on smaller emitters.

Locus Technologies Cloud Software to Manage Energenic’s Environmental Compliance and Stewardship

Locus SaaS software to manage environmental compliance for sustainable self-contained energy solutions by Energenic

SAN FRANCISCO, California, May 2, 2011  — Locus Technologies (Locus), the industry leader in Web-based environmental and energy software, announced today that it has been awarded a contract from Energenic, LLC to manage its environmental, compliance, and sustainability information in Locus’ Cloud.

Energenic selected Locus’ SaaS-hosted software to implement a new environmental compliance management system to meet its business and regulatory requirements, specifically for managing and reporting environmental, compliance, and sustainability information.

Energenic specializes in the comprehensive design, development, construction and operation of large-scale energy projects. Whether the project involves electricity generation from cogeneration, solar, landfill gas, or biogas to fuels, environmental compliance and stewardship are imbedded in each Energenic design. Energenic evaluated multiple companies’ software offerings before selecting Locus to meet its business and regulatory reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

“We are very pleased that Energenic selected our Cloud platform. We are very proud that our software will complement Energenic’s disciplined expertise to engineer fiscally, technologically, environmentally, and sustainably responsible power solutions for generations to come. ePortal will allow Energenic to take a better aggregate view of its environmental challenges, take full ownership of its environmental data, and make better planning decisions for environmental stewardship,” said Neno Duplan, President and CEO of Locus.

“Energenic is committed to the next generation of energy technologies and services. Using Locus’ software will improve our project delivery, our financial well-being and our environmental stewardship. Locus’ ePortal software will help us meet our compliance and legal responsibilities, as well as position us to grow with the evolving regulatory landscape. Managing our data and information in the Cloud, and streamlining our reporting processes, will help us support our mission to provide sustainable energy sources to our clients while becoming better stewards of the environment,” added Frank DiCola, Energenic’s president and CEO.

 

ABOUT ENERGENIC
Energenic is a joint business venture between long-term business partners Marina Energy LLC, a subsidiary of South Jersey Industries (NYSE: SJI), and DCO Energy LLC. Energenic specializes in the comprehensive design, development, construction, and operation of large-scale energy projects and has offices in Nevada and New Jersey.

For more information, visit www.energenic-us.com, www.sjindustries.com, and www.dcoenergy.com.

Locus’ CEO to present at The 10th Wall Street GREEN Summit in New York City, 29-30 March 2011

The 15th Annual Wall Street Green Summit is the longest running and most comprehensive sustainable finance event in the industry.

US EPA extends deadline for greenhouse gas emissions reporting program to Sept 30, 2011

US EPA today announced that they are extending this year’s deadline for their greenhouse gas (GHG) reporting program to September 30, 2011. The program was launched in October 2009, and requires large emission sources and fuel suppliers to report their GHG emissions to EPA on an annual basis.

EPA previously indicated that the original reporting deadline of March 31st would be extended to this summer. Today’s release specifies the new reporting deadline of September 30, 2011. According to EPA, the extension will allow them to further test their electronic reporting platform, and provide industry with the opportunity to provide feedback and become familiar with the tool prior to reporting.

As soon as the new electronic platform is ready and tested by EPA, Locus GHG module of ePortal  will be compatible and able to directly upload data into it.

Entities required to submit data must register with the electronic GHG reporting tool (e-GGRT) no later than August 1, 2011.  Locus can assist with this registration.

EPA will provide more detail on the extension in the coming weeks. For more information, see EPA’s website.

Locus to Present at Cleantech Forum San Francisco, March 15-17, 2011

Organizing Enterprise Sustainability and Water Information in the Cloud

Locus Technologies Expands EIM Software to Manage Hydro Fracturing Data

Water-quality software maker expands its offering to meet natural gas industry demand

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., 7 March 2011  — Locus Technologies (Locus), the industry leader in Web-based environmental software, announced today that it has expanded its flagship product to manage data and information for natural gas exploration and production sites that use hydro fracturing to extract gas from shale.

Locus designed this expanded module in its Environmental Information Management (EIM) software specifically to meet the hydro fracturing industry’s needs for managing subsurface and water quality data. Since EIM has been used for more than 10 years at many oil and gas exploration sites and nuclear facilities nationwide, the system upgrade provides for rapid deployment, an unmatched level of functionality and data security, data validation, and scalability.

The relatively new drilling method for natural gas extraction—known as high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking—carries significant environmental risks. It involves injecting large amounts of water, mixed with sand and chemicals, at high pressure to break up rock formations and release gas deposits. Anywhere from 10 to 40 percent of the water sent down the well during hydrofracking returns to the surface, carrying drilling chemicals, very high levels of salts and, at times, naturally occurring radioactive material. There were more than 493,000 active natural-gas wells in the United States in 2009, almost double the number in 1990, according to the New York Times. Around 90 percent have used hydrofracking to get more gas flowing, according to the drilling industry.

“The hydrofracking industry has been in the spotlight in recent months and Locus wanted to provide this sector with a tool to prove its case to the public and regulators that natural gas production using hydrofracking can be done safely and transparently without jeopardizing drinking water supplies,” said Neno Duplan, President and CEO of Locus.

“We expanded our software offerings to manage and visualize water, waste, wastewater, drilling fluids, radionuclides and air emissions more effectively online. Since this industry is subject to a different set of state and federal regulatory guidance, we felt that the market needed an off-the-shelf tool to manage hydrofracking data. Locus’ software provides any natural gas production site that has a need for data management and reporting—and almost all have—the necessary functionality to meet these requirements,” he continued.

For the natural gas industry to stay in compliance with ever-stricter laws to protect drinking water supplies and air emissions, drilling companies need better ways to organize hydrofracking waste data in order to demonstrate to the public and regulators that hydrofracking activities are not endangering natural resources. They also need to prove that any dangerous waste from the wells is handled in compliance with state and federal laws. The EIM software upgrade helps address these needs for natural gas companies.