Memorandum of Support - S.7133 (Parker)
IPPNY supports S.7133 (Parker). To meet the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act’s (CLCPA) targets, this bill would foster the development of renewable natural gas. The legislation indicates that renewable natural gas “is a desirable source of renewable energy because it captures methane otherwise emitted into the atmosphere from various sources of waste, thereby reducing greenhouse gas” emissions and that it can be paired with renewables and delivered through the existing natural gas system. Under the bill, "renewable natural gas" would include biogas, hydrogen produced using renewable energy sources, and methane gas “derived from any combination of biogas, hydrogen gas derived from renewable energy sources or waste carbon dioxide.”
The Public Service Commission (PSC) would be required to “establish a program to require that gas corporations procure renewable natural gas from third parties, including affiliates of the gas corporation, for distribution to natural gas customers” and to adopt a cost recovery mechanism. The bill would require gas corporations, to the extent practicable, to “prioritize the procurement of renewable natural gas from non-hazardous landfills, farms, wastewater treatment plants and food waste processing facilities.” The PSC could waive the procurement requirement due to inadequate renewable natural gas supply or to protect ratepayers from adverse impacts.
The CLCPA mandates a transition away from fossil fuels, thus creating a need for new technologies, and it requires the PSC to designate what technologies qualify as zero emissions. In August of 2021, IPPNY, the NYS AFL-CIO, and the NYS Building & Construction Trades Council submitted a petition to the PSC to establish a competitive program to foster the development of, and investment in, 1 gigawatt of zero emissions energy systems to help reach the CLCPA’s target of having a 100% emissions-free electricity system by 2040 (100 by 40 target), while also maintaining electric system reliability. The PSC has made some progress, but more is required.
As the State’s economy electrifies to meet the CLCPA’s targets, the current electricity grid will need to be expanded at least three-fold. The invention and installation of a new class of technology that is both dispatchable (able to operate on demand whenever needed) and emissions-free – also known as dispatchable emissions-free resources (DEFRs) – will be necessary to meet the 100 by 40 target. The Climate Action Council’s adopted Scoping Plan indicates the importance of identifying, exploring, evaluating, and supporting the development of DEFRs.
Sargent & Lundy, a world-renowned engineering firm, has identified DEFRs capable of “filling the gap” created by increased intermittent resources on New York’s electric grid and the retirement of existing fossil fueled resources. To transition away from fossil fuels while maintaining reliability, all solutions must be considered, including new and existing nuclear, hydrogen, renewable natural gas, and carbon capture and sequestration technologies.
For the reasons stated above, IPPNY supports S.7133 (Parker).
