Project Professional SCS Engineers Santa Rosa, California
California’s transportation sector is responsible for 50 percent (%) of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, 80% of nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions, and 95% of particulate matter (PM) emissions in the state. The “Low Carbon Fuel Standards (LCFS) Regulation” (Regulation) was developed by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) as one of the nine discrete early action measures that were implemented under the California Global Warming Solutions Act (AB 32, 2006) to reduce GHG emissions. CARB approved the LCFS in 2009 to reduce the carbon intensity (CI) of transportation fuel in California by ten percent by 2020 from a 2010 baseline. This paper will focus on the LCFS alternate fuel pathways and electric vehicle opportunities created or enhanced by the Regulation.
In the LCFS program, alternative fuels are reported as pathways, which include a complete well-to-wheel analysis of the fuel’s life cycle GHG emissions, and are reported in CARB’s Alternative Fuel Portal (AFP). The three types of alternative fuel pathways include Lookup Table Pathways, Tier 1 Pathways, and Tier 2 Pathways. This paper will provide an overview of the alternative fuel pathway process, reporting requirements, and examples of each alternative fuel pathway. This paper will also describe how the LCFS promotes the use and manufacturing of fuels with a low CI, as determined through a life cycle analysis (LCA) process, and examples of pathways that have been approved by CARB.
In addition, a discussion will be included on how electric vehicles are a part of the LCFS program though zero-emissions vehicles or low-CI electricity usage.
Lastly, this paper will summarize how alternative fuels and electric vehicles generate credits as part of the LCFS program, and the current CI benchmarks in comparison to different alternative fuels that have been reported.
