Appendix I: Detailed analysis for indirect land use change
HERO ID
10285704
Reference Type
Technical Report
Year
2015
Language
English
| HERO ID | 10285704 |
|---|---|
| Year | 2015 |
| Title | Appendix I: Detailed analysis for indirect land use change |
| Book Title | Staff report: Calculating carbon intensity values from indirect land use change and crop based biofuels |
| Authoring Organization | California Air Resources Board |
| Publisher Text | California Environmental Protection Agency, Air Resources Board |
| City | Sacramento, CA |
| Abstract | Carbon intensities are calculated under the LCFS on a full life cycle basis. This means that the carbon intensity value assigned to each fuel reflects the GHG emissions associated with that fuel’s production, transport, storage, and use. Traditionally, only these steps, termed direct effects, have been included in the life cycle assessment of transportation fuels. In addition to these direct effects, some fuel production processes generate GHGs indirectly, via intermediate market mechanisms. Stakeholders participating in the LCFS process have suggested that most or all transportation fuels generate varying levels of indirect GHG emissions. To date, however, ARB staff has only identified one indirect effect that has a measurable impact on GHG emissions: land use change effects. A land use change effect is initially triggered when an increase in the demand for a crop-based biofuel begins to drive up prices for the necessary feedstock crop. This price increase causes farmers to devote a larger proportion of their cultivated acreage to that feedstock crop. Supplies of the displaced food and feed commodities subsequently decline, leading to higher prices for those commodities. Some of the options for many farmers to take advantage of these higher commodity prices are to take measures to increase yields, switch to growing crops with higher returns, and to bring non-agricultural lands into production. When new land is converted, such conversions release the carbon sequestered in soils and vegetation. The resulting carbon emissions constitute the “indirect” land use change (iLUC) impact of increased biofuel production. Based on research and published work, most of the land use change impacts result from the diversion of food crops to producing biofuels. During the regulatory process (i.e., workshops and meetings with stakeholders) leading up to the 2009 LCFS Board Hearing, the magnitude of this impact was discussed and also questioned by renewable fuel advocates. Land use change is driven by multiple factors, some of them not related to the production of biofuels. Because the tools for estimating land use change were few and relatively new when the regulation was originally adopted in 2009, biofuel producers argued that land use change impacts should be excluded from carbon intensity values, pending the development of better estimation techniques. Based on its work with land use change academics and researchers, however, ARB staff concluded that the land use impacts of crop-based biofuels were significant, and must be included in LCFS fuel carbon intensities. To exclude them would assume that there is zero impact resulting from the production of biofuels and would allow fuels with carbon intensities that are similar to gasoline and diesel fuel to function as low-carbon fuels under the LCFS. This would delay the development of truly low-carbon fuels, and by not accounting for the GHG emissions from land use change, would jeopardize the achievement of a ten percent reduction in fuel carbon intensity by 2020. Details of ARB’s estimated land use change impacts of biofuel crop production for the 2009 regulation is provided in the ISOR from 20091. Since 2009, there have been numerous peer-reviewed publications, dissertations, and other scientific literature, that have focused on various aspects of indirect land use changes related to biofuels. Staff has reviewed published articles, contracted with academics, and consulted with experts, all of which have led to significant improvements to the GHG modeling methodologies and analysis completed in 2009. Complete details of the updates and results from the current analysis are presented in this section. |
| Url | http://www.arb.ca.gov/regact/2015/lcfs2015/lcfs15appi.pdf |
| Is Certified Translation | No |
| Dupe Override | No |
| Number Of Pages | 110 |
| Is Public | Yes |
| Language Text | English |
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