Public awareness regarding climate change has grown rapidly. As a result, many businesses and individuals are considering ways to go green and establish sustainable business practices while reducing expenses and increasing profits.
In California, however, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will soon shift to a mandatory program that is subject to criminal liability. With the enactment of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, or Assembly Bill 32, the state established the first comprehensive regulatory program in the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Californians must now plan for the new regulations and how they will affect business.
Understanding AB32
AB32 requires the California Air Resources Board to adopt rules and regulations that achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions to meet the statutory criteria.
AB32 required the Air Resources Board to identify a list of discrete early action items by June 30, 2007 for implementation as regulations on or before Jan. 1, 2010. The Air Resources Board is next required to finalize a scoping plan by Jan. 1, 2009. The broader greenhouse gas emissions regulations must be adopted by January of 2011 and will become effective one year later.
Air Resources Board action items
By December of 2007, the board approved 10 discrete early action items for implementation, many of which will directly regulate specific industries and indirectly affect businesses and consumers. These discrete early actions include:
• Low carbon fuel standard program to reduce at least 10 percent of the carbon content in California's transportation fuels, including conventional fuels like gasoline and diesel, compressed or liquefied natural gas, liquefied propane gas, electricity, compressed or liquefied hydrogen, ethanol blends and biodiesel blends.
• Landfill methane controls to establish statewide performance standards to maximize methane capture efficiencies and reduce methane emissions from municipal solid waste landfills by requiring gas collection and control systems on landfills.
• Hydrofluorocarbon emission reduction from automobile air conditioning systems by regulating do-it-yourself air conditioning servicing, requiring AC inspections during smog checks, enforcing federal bans on hydrofluorocarbon releases when servicing or dismantling systems and requiring new systems to use refrigerants with low global warming potential.
• Sulfur hexafluoride reduction from applications used in magnesium die-casting, fume vent hood testing, tracer gas use and other niche uses, but not including emissions from semiconductor manufacture and electric utilities.
• California will expand its program to reduce volatile organic compounds in chemically formulated consumer products, which currently regulate hairspray, antiperspirants, deodorants and aerosol paints and coatings.
• Heavy-duty vehicle greenhouse gas emissions reduction in coordination with the EPA's SmartWay Program. The board will explore new technologies to improve the efficiency of heavy-duty tractors and trailers by reducing idle times along major transportation corridors and increasing rail efficiency and intermodal operations.
• Tire pressure strategy, including requiring repair and service facilities to inspect and properly inflate tires, fueling stations to clearly indicate the availability of free compressed air and extensive outreach programs.
• Green ports regulations for reducing diesel auxiliary engine emissions on container, passenger and refrigerated cargo ships while at-berth at California ports.
In addition, two proposed early actions would regulate cement in the state.
The first measure will require reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by converting to low-carbon fuel, decreasing fuel consumption and improving energy efficiency in the practices and technology used to produce cement. The second measure would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by replacing the clinker in Portland cement production.
The board made the draft scoping plan publicly available for the first time June 26, which commenced the open process of drafting the final regulations.
Enforcing AB32 regulations
The board will prosecute violations of the regulations as misdemeanors under the agency's current penalty scheme. Depending on the type of violation, the punishment can range from a $1,000 per day fine and up to six-month jail sentence to a $75,000 per day fine and one-year of imprisonment. The board also can impose administrative civil penalties.
John Lormon specializes in and is the group leader for Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch's Environmental, Land Use and Government Affairs practice group. For more information, call Lormon at (619) 515-3217 or e-mail him at [email protected].
In California, however, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions will soon shift to a mandatory program that is subject to criminal liability. With the enactment of the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, or Assembly Bill 32, the state established the first comprehensive regulatory program in the world to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Californians must now plan for the new regulations and how they will affect business.
Understanding AB32
AB32 requires the California Air Resources Board to adopt rules and regulations that achieve the maximum technologically feasible and cost-effective greenhouse gas emissions reductions to meet the statutory criteria.
AB32 required the Air Resources Board to identify a list of discrete early action items by June 30, 2007 for implementation as regulations on or before Jan. 1, 2010. The Air Resources Board is next required to finalize a scoping plan by Jan. 1, 2009. The broader greenhouse gas emissions regulations must be adopted by January of 2011 and will become effective one year later.
Air Resources Board action items
By December of 2007, the board approved 10 discrete early action items for implementation, many of which will directly regulate specific industries and indirectly affect businesses and consumers. These discrete early actions include:
• Low carbon fuel standard program to reduce at least 10 percent of the carbon content in California's transportation fuels, including conventional fuels like gasoline and diesel, compressed or liquefied natural gas, liquefied propane gas, electricity, compressed or liquefied hydrogen, ethanol blends and biodiesel blends.
• Landfill methane controls to establish statewide performance standards to maximize methane capture efficiencies and reduce methane emissions from municipal solid waste landfills by requiring gas collection and control systems on landfills.
• Hydrofluorocarbon emission reduction from automobile air conditioning systems by regulating do-it-yourself air conditioning servicing, requiring AC inspections during smog checks, enforcing federal bans on hydrofluorocarbon releases when servicing or dismantling systems and requiring new systems to use refrigerants with low global warming potential.
• Sulfur hexafluoride reduction from applications used in magnesium die-casting, fume vent hood testing, tracer gas use and other niche uses, but not including emissions from semiconductor manufacture and electric utilities.
• California will expand its program to reduce volatile organic compounds in chemically formulated consumer products, which currently regulate hairspray, antiperspirants, deodorants and aerosol paints and coatings.
• Heavy-duty vehicle greenhouse gas emissions reduction in coordination with the EPA's SmartWay Program. The board will explore new technologies to improve the efficiency of heavy-duty tractors and trailers by reducing idle times along major transportation corridors and increasing rail efficiency and intermodal operations.
• Tire pressure strategy, including requiring repair and service facilities to inspect and properly inflate tires, fueling stations to clearly indicate the availability of free compressed air and extensive outreach programs.
• Green ports regulations for reducing diesel auxiliary engine emissions on container, passenger and refrigerated cargo ships while at-berth at California ports.
In addition, two proposed early actions would regulate cement in the state.
The first measure will require reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by converting to low-carbon fuel, decreasing fuel consumption and improving energy efficiency in the practices and technology used to produce cement. The second measure would reduce greenhouse gas emissions by replacing the clinker in Portland cement production.
The board made the draft scoping plan publicly available for the first time June 26, which commenced the open process of drafting the final regulations.
Enforcing AB32 regulations
The board will prosecute violations of the regulations as misdemeanors under the agency's current penalty scheme. Depending on the type of violation, the punishment can range from a $1,000 per day fine and up to six-month jail sentence to a $75,000 per day fine and one-year of imprisonment. The board also can impose administrative civil penalties.
John Lormon specializes in and is the group leader for Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch's Environmental, Land Use and Government Affairs practice group. For more information, call Lormon at (619) 515-3217 or e-mail him at [email protected].