BOARD MEETING DATE: May 7, 2010
AGENDA NO. 22

PROPOSAL:

Climate Change Committee 

SYNOPSIS:

The Climate Change Committee met on Wednesday, April 7, 2010. Following is a summary of that meeting.

RECOMMENDED ACTION:

Receive and file.
 

Dr. William Burke, Chair
Climate Change Committee

Attendance

The Climate Change Committee meeting was held on April 7, 2010. Committee Members who participated were Committee Chair William Burke, Josie Gonzales, and Judith Mitchell. Committee Members Miguel Pulido and Ronald Loveridge were absent.

The meeting was chaired by Dr. William Burke and convened at 11:20 a.m. 

Discussion Items

Regulation XXVII Update

Jill Whynot, Director of Strategic Initiatives, provided a summary of the proposed amendments to Regulation XXVII – Climate Change. The proposed amendments would add a boiler and process heater efficiency protocol, remove the requirement for CARB’s approval of new protocols prior to being added to Regulation XXVII, and not allow harvesting under the forestry protocol. As a separate item, staff will also recommend establishing a pre-funded bank of certified reductions under Rule 2702 – Greenhouse Gas Reduction Program.

There is a large potential for GHG reductions within the Basin through boiler and process heater efficiency upgrades. There are over 2,000 permitted boilers above 5 MMBtu/hr. It was noted these efficiency measures are typically not installed on existing boilers and process heaters due to high upfront costs, but the energy savings result in relatively short payback periods, especially for larger equipment.

Currently under Rule 2700 – General, the addition of new protocols requires approval from the CARB Governing Board or Executive Officer. At the February 2010 CARB Governing Board meeting, approval of all voluntary GHG protocols was withdrawn. Dr. Barry Wallerstein, Executive Officer, noted that CARB stated the protocols are fine and technically sound, but will be shifting their focus to compliance protocols for the upcoming State cap-and-trade program. Dr. Wallerstein also noted that CARB did not have the resources to provide technical review of future voluntary protocols.

Staff is requesting transfer of $500,000 from the SCAQMD’s Undesignated Fund Balance to prefund GHG reduction projects under Rule 2702. This pre-funding would help establish a bank of certified GHG reductions, which could more quickly assist those seeking GHG mitigation.

The public hearing on the proposed amendments for Regulation XXVII and the Board’s consideration of the pre-funding request for Rule 2702 will be on June 4, 2010.

GHG Emissions Verification Services for SCAQMD Reporting

Aaron Katzenstein, Climate Change Program Supervisor, gave a briefing on the verification of the SCAQMD’s voluntary reporting of CO₂ emissions to the California Climate Action Registry (CAR). The SCAQMD since 2004 has voluntarily reported operational emissions. Voluntary reporting of GHG emissions requires an accredited third party verifier and SCAQMD has used SGS for verification. This company will no longer be providing verification services in California. Staff called several approved verifiers, which are either ANSI certified or CARB accredited for cost proposals. It was recommended that SCS, a company based in Long Beach be used for an amount not to exceed $3,000 per year.

Dr. Wallerstein proposed two options – find a local business such as SCS, or use another Air Pollution Control District (APCD) to verify the emissions cost free. Dr. Wallerstein stated that similar to SCAQMD, other districts’ staff are becoming CARB accredited and could be used as verifiers. Chairman Burke noted that final accreditation for air districts has not been approved by CARB. Dr. Wallerstein stated that if the SCAQMD asks CAR, it is likely they will give special permission to allow APCDs as verifying bodies. Supervisor Gonzales requested that Dr. Wallerstein settle the issue in the most expedient and cost effective way, and this was the committee’s recommendation to staff.  

Other Business

No other business.

Public Comment

Greg Adams commented as a representative on behalf of the Home Rule Advisory Group Climate Change Subcommittee. Proposed regulations from the U.S. EPA and further upcoming regulations warrant extensive discussion and consideration by the SCAQMD. He invited a speaker to the May 12, 2010 meeting to discuss these newly released and forthcoming changes.  

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 11:55 a.m. 

Attachment (DOC, ~46k)

Attendance Roster