1. A Biomethane-RNG Roadmap for Washington State
January 2018

2. Travel Plan Destination Current location Lay of the land
Let’s get moving
Obstacles
Roadside assistance
Safe arrival

3. Destination GHG limits set by 2008 Legislature:
2020—reduce to 1990 levels
2035—25% below 1990 levels (40%)
2050—50% below 1990 levels (80%)
Gov. Inslee’s agenda priorities: building energy efficiency, renewables integration, resiliency, natural gas policy
Pacific Coast Collaborative (WA, OR, CA & BC)

4. Biogas and RNG: Versatile Renewable Energy

5. RNG Benefits Develop local resources. Investment success and jobs.
Reduce air pollution health impacts.
Support a low-carbon energy future
Support alternative fuel use in vehicles
Stabilize price volatility
Community resilience

6. GHG Reduction Potential from RNG

7. Landfills

8. Landfills

9. Wastewater Treatment

10. Wastewater Treatment

11. Agriculture (Dairy)

12. Industrial Food Waste
Food processing is the second largest user of electricity in the Northwest.
Energy generation and fossil fuel use account for vast majority of GHG emissions.
Successful projects at AgriBeef and JR Simplot provide internal energy offsets.

13. Source-Separated Organics from municipal solid waste
Successful Projects
Stalled Projects
JC Biomethane Junction City, OR
Harvest Power Vancouver, BC
(Biofuel Facility)
Surrey, BC
None in Washington
Cedar Grove
Everett, WA
PacifiClean
Cle Elum, WA
Columbia Biogas
Portland, OR
Regulations, finance, and NIMBY opposition

14. Thermal Gasification
Competition for woody materials from biojet fuel, biomass CHP for industry, etc.
We started by quantifying RNG from urban/MSW woody materials.
In BC analysis, gasification of forestry debris nearly doubled the volume of RNG.

15. Current Position 2011, 2013, 2017 state data RNG Source Energy
MMBtu/yr
Electricity
MWh/yr
Fuel
DGE/yr
Landfills
16,519,219
1,738,865
122,364,586
Wastewater Treatment
1,716,062
180,638
12,711,571
Agriculture
3,011,250
316,974
22,305,566
Source-Separated Organics
5,430,198
571,600
40,223,692
Thermal Gasification
23,376,197
2,460,652
173,157,015
2011, 2013, 2017 state data

16. RNG Displacement Potential
WA Energy
1,988 trillion BTU
energy consumption
308 trillion BTU
nat gas consumption
(308 million cubic feet)
(15.5% of all energy)
1 billion gallons
diesel consumption
Est RNG Production
20-26 trillion BTU
(8-10% of direct nat gas use)
198 million DGE
(20% of diesel)
50+ trillion BTU
(19% of direct nat gas use)
370 million DGE
(37% of diesel)
Sources: Energy Information Administration, State Energy Data System

17. Lay of the Land (Natural Gas Market in Washington)

18. Western Gas Pipeline Grid
Williams (Northwest) Pipeline supplies natural gas from Canada, from the Rocky Mountain region, and from the San Juan Basin in the U.S. Southwest. Gas Transmission Northwest Pipeline enters the state from Idaho, bringing natural gas, primarily from Canada.

19. Natural Gas Utilities Utility Gas Customers Territory
Puget Sound Energy
Bellevue, WA
790,000
Central Puget Sound region
Avista Corp.
Spokane, WA
300,000
Eastern Washington and northern Idaho
Cascade Natural Gas
Kennewick, WA
282,000
Scattered among NW, central and southern Washington counties
Northwest Natural Gas Co.
Portland, OR
730,000
Western Oregon and southwest Washington

20. Natural Gas Use
Source: EIA, 2011

21. Natural Gas for Power
Source: Dept of Commerce Fuel Mix Disclosure, 2015.
Additional sources: Energy Information Administration, State Energy Data System

22. Natural gas price trends
Source: Northwest Gas Association, 2016 Outlook.

23. Transportation fuel price forecast
Source: Northwest Gas Association, 2016 Outlook.

24. Projected population growth
Washington State population (OFM, April 2016) = 7,183,700
Population growth curves shown in the table below.
Source: Office of Financial Management, County Growth Management Population Projections by Age and Sex:

25. Where are the Keys? Location, location, location
Interstate interconnection
Monetize environmental benefits (transportation & California links)
Co-products
Private finance
State and local support

26. We’re on the Move
Landfills
WWTPs
Private
MSW

27. RNG Production Costs

28. Road Hazards Limited pipeline infrastructure
RNG quality standards for pipeline gas
Scattered RNG sources
Price trends
Insufficient incentives

29. Roadside Assistance
Federal
State
Local
Research

30. State Policy Options Carbon pricing on GHG emissions
RNG portfolio standard for gas utilities
Clean fuel standard
Utility regulation (interconnection standards, net metering, standard offers)
Environmental and waste regulations
Streamline permitting for new facilities
Purchasing contracts and preferences, including state highways and fleets
Financial assistance/incentives (Clean Energy Fund, property tax deferral, sales tax exemptions, etc.)

31. 2018 RNG Bill Study to identify specific, detailed opportunities.
Work with UTC, utilities, developers and other stakeholders on the pipeline gas quality standards.
Restore lapsed tax incentives for digester projects, while expanding the types of eligible projects and the total value of the incentive per project.

32. Coordinated Efforts
POLICY – state and local governments BENEFITS – economic, environmental, social FINANCE – public and private

33. Thank You