The Fit for 55 policy package is a set of proposals to revise and update European Union legislation in support of the EU’s target of reducing its net emissions by 55% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. While the Fit for 55 was first introduced in July of 2021, several of its key proposals have recently been passed and will take effect over the coming years.
The Brennstoffemissionshandelsgesetz (BEHG) is Germany’s national emissions cap program. In 2023, the Federal Office of Justice (Bundesamt für Justiz) published an ordinance on emissions testing under the BEHG for 2023 to 2030. One result of this ordinance is that the program has started to recognize the biogenic portion of emissions from waste incineration, such as from coal facilities using co-firing and waste-to-energy (WtE) plants. As a result, operators of these plants reporting their emissions for 2023 will be able to use carbon-14 (C-14) testing results to quantify the biogenic portion of their emissions.
A Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program is designed to decrease the carbon intensity (CI) of a state’s fuel supply by requiring suppliers to purchase credits corresponding to fossil fuels they sell and offering tax incentives to those providing renewable options. The revenue generated by selling credits is then used to finance the state’s energy transition, particularly by funding the public infrastructure necessary to promote the use of renewable fuels.
To incentivize the production of chemicals made from renewable resources, some states have implemented tax credit programs.
In a recent article in Global Cement Magazine, Beta Analytic marketing specialist Haley Gershon describes how carbon-14 testing can help cement plants reduce their greenhouse gas inventories by measuring their biogenic, carbon-neutral carbon dioxide emissions.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has published an air-quality standard for measuring the ratio between biogenic and fossil-derived carbon dioxide emissions from stationary sources. The standard is called ISO 13833:2013, Stationary source emissions — Determination of the ratio of biomass (biogenic) and fossil-derived carbon dioxide — Radiocarbon sampling and determination.
The UK’s Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (OFGEM) will allow electricity generators using waste-derived fuels to use the Carbon-14 technique to determine the renewable energy content of the fuel. Under this method, post-combustion flue gases will be analyzed for their carbon-14 content and not the solid waste feedstock.
WASHINGTON, January 21 — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed the 2012 percentage standards for four fuel categories that are part of the agency’s Renewable Fuel Standard program (RFS2). EPA continues to support greater use of renewable fuels within the transportation sector every year.
In the consultation document published by the UK Department for Transport (DfT) regarding the implementation of the transport elements of the EU Renewable Energy Directive, the DfT is proposing to determine the renewable portion of partially renewable fuels through carbon-14 dating techniques.
Beta Analytic, Inc., will showcase its ISO/IEC 17025:2017-accredited lab’s services at the 8th World Congress on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioprocessing, which starts May 8, 2011. Martin Tesini, the company’s Operations Manager for Latin America/Iberian Peninsula, will take charge of Beta Analytic’s tabletop display at the exhibit hall and would welcome any inquiries on biobased or […]
ASTM D6866 lab Beta Analytic Inc. has submitted a public comment on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed rule for the deferral of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from bioenergy and other biogenic sources. The company is recommending to the EPA that stationary sources combusting mixed fuels use ASTM D6866 testing to accurately measure their biogenic […]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is amending certain provisions of its Mandatory Reporting of Greenhouse Gases Rule (MRR) to address issues raised after the MRR was first published in October 2009. Revisions will affect, among others, facilities combusting municipal solid waste or tires as fuels. These facilities no longer need to have continuous emission monitoring […]
The Ministry of the Environment of Ontario, Canada, has published Ontario Regulation 452/09, which focuses on greenhouse gas emissions reporting. The guideline accompanying the regulation outlined the standard methods to be used for emissions quantification. ASTM D6866 is the standard identified for the quantification of biomass CO2 emissions from the combustion of fuels with both […]
ASTM D6866 has been added to the latest version of New Zealand’s Climate Change Regulations. The standard will be used to measure the non-biomass fraction of CO2 emissions from the combustion of used oil, waste oil, used tyres, or waste. Gases reported under the regulations are CH4, N2O, and non-biomass CO2.
According to French company Aliapur, used tires are not wastes but are traditional solid fuels better than coal or petroleum coke. A three-year study by Aliapur’s Research & Development unit has proven what the French cement industry has known since the 1970s – used tires as fuels have high heat output with less environmental impact […]
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is developing an air quality standard for the determination of the speciation of biogenic and fossil-derived carbon dioxide emissions from stationary sources. The standard, currently named ISO/NP 13833, includes radiocarbon or carbon 14 sampling and measurement.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) final greenhouse gas mandatory reporting rule allows owners and operators of general stationary units combusting a mix of biomass-derived and fossil fuels to use ASTM D6866 in determining the exact percentage of biogenic CO2. The reporting rule applies to all companies with facilities that produce a minimum of 25,000 […]
The Western Climate Initiative mandates that owners or operators of general stationary combustion units using mixed fuels and waste-derived fuels use ASTM D6866 to determine the biomass fraction of their carbon dioxide emissions. Mixed fuels are mixtures of biomass/biomass fuel and fossil fuel. Waste-derived fuels are those derived from wastes, excluding materials that are pure […]
Beta Analytic submitted a public comment to the Western Climate Initiative relating to the latter’s essential requirements for mandatory reporting final draft. Beta noted that sewage is not 100% biomass.
The Western Climate Initiative recommends ASTM D6866 analysis to determine the biomass fuel portion of carbon dioxide emissions produced by the combustion of mixtures of biomass fuel and fossil fuel. This mandate also covers municipal solid wastes, which have been categorized by the WCI as waste-derived fuels.