Utah Clean Cities presented a video for the 2022 Intermountain Sustainability Summit hosted by Weber State University.
In Utah, we are leading the way in developing and expanding hydrogen energy production which will allow our state, and collective region, to offer a full portfolio of advanced, renewable fuels thus ensuring commercial fleets have access to clean fuels across the west, in our state, and ideally, throughout our nation’s major corridors. As the trifecta of clean energy, methane capture – electric – hydrogen.
What type of crude oil is used for the comparison? Different crude oils have different refining needs.
Answer: Indeed, oil source matters since it can affect API gravity, sulfur content, transportation distances (and transit method), etc. The GREET model considers crude from multiple global sources including the United States, Canada (oil sands and conventional), Mexico, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa. We also account for a portion of ethanol within the fuel consistent with U.S. average conditions.
How many miles are you assuming in your life cycle emissions?
Answer: Lifetime miles are based on average vehicle driving distance by vintage and survivability from the VISION model. For midsize cars in the U.S., this is 173,151 lifetime miles. Note that mileage serves to amortize the vehicle production burdens but does not impact the Fuel Cycle.
I assume Natural Gas in this chart is just fossil. It does not include Renewable Natural Gas.
Answer: Yes, the chart only shows average natural gas in the U.S. We could also provide RNG.
For electricity production, are the GHG emissions just associated at the power plant?
Answer: No, this is life cycle, thus it includes all aspects of fuel production and consumption. So, for this, and for every other fuel or material, this goes all the way back to extraction from earth and includes all processes used to provide a usable form of the fuel/material.
Does this model also work for MD and HD commercial vehicles?
Answer: Yes, GREET also has well-to-wheel (WTW) results for many diverse MHDV, and further has the vehicle cycle for Class 6 Pickup and Delivery, and Class 8 Sleeper- and Day-cab MDHV, thus we have cradle-to-grave results for those 3 classes (multiple powertrains).
Can you provide a similar analysis for resource depletion and mining waste during manufacturing, comparing BEVs to ICEVs?
Answer: GREET does not currently have resource depletion analyses.
Can you comment on resource depletion and the effect of battery recycling?
Answer: GREET does not currently have resource depletion analyses. But the effect of battery recycling would be to reduce the rate at which resources are depleted.
I’d be interested in seeing a GREET comparison with a conventional vehicle getting 50 mpg.
Answer: My back-of-the-envelope analysis indicates that improving the gasoline vehicle from 31 to 50 MPGGE (Miles per Gallon of Gasoline Equivalent) would reduce the life cycle GHG emissions to 275 g CO2e/mile (Grams CO2 Equivalent per Mile).
How would a Hybrid compare with an EV?
Answer: A comparable hybrid would achieve ~46 MPGGE, so it would be slightly worse than the 50 MPGGE results noted above, but it would also have a battery, motor, generator, and electronic controller, which would add slightly to the vehicle cycle, but not nearly as much as the battery for the EV.
Can you provide a similar analysis for all air-pollution (not just GHG, but including PM2.5, NOX, SOX, etc.)
Answer: We have such capabilities with the GREET model.
I’d love to see a future seminar when the comparison is a Full Hybrid, PHEV and EV. I think everyone accepts the results for conventional ICE.
Looking at the EV split on the last slide, I didn’t see any upstream emissions. Does this model also include the GHG emissions for production and maintenance of the different types of facilities and the overall life expectancy?
Answer: I believe the question is mistaken, the EVs only have upstream, but no tailpipe emissions. From the frame of the vehicle, all electricity emissions are upstream. We account for all emissions associated with fuel production and energy generation. We do not, in our baseline configuration, account for the construction and maintenance of infrastructure as this is amortized over a very large quantity of delivered product (electricity in this case) and is thus very small.
How would this comparison look for an HEV or PHEV?
Answer: That can be considered using Argonne’s EverBatt model. Within this analysis we use a conservative approach and assume that no recycling credits are provided for recycled batteries. https://www.anl.gov/egs/everbatt
What does the landscape for recycling discharged EV vehicles look like?
Answer: This is outside the scope of this presentation, but Argonne’s ReCell Center (https://recellcenter.org/) is actively looking at advanced EV battery recycling approaches.
How hard is it to swap the batteries in EVs?
Answer: This is beyond the scope of my analyses. But it has not yet been profitably achieved on a broad scale for EVs. This is more of a vehicle design issue coupled with a planning and logistics challenge than an LCA issue.
How do you model environment impact of the increased competition for rare minerals with demand increasing and quality of ore decreasing?
Answer: For the GREET model, we use the best available public data to determine the energy and material input needs of all materials, this is typically static or retrospective in nature. However, as noted, increased demand for materials will place a pressure on global ores with the likely effect of lower ores grades. Such dynamic elements are not included for materials within GREET at present. The general observation, however, is that as ore grade decreases the amount of energy required per tonne of final material should increase (all other conditions being equal).
In partnership with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT’s), Utah Clean Cities and Grand County Economic Development Office hosted one of these workshops with the goal to collect input on the rural electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure toolkit Charging Forward Toolkit directly from local rural leaders and communities.
Grand County Economic Development helped to facilitate a meeting between stakeholders including the US Department of Transportation, the US Department of Energy, and the Utah Clean Cities Coalition on the prospect of electric vehicle (EV) infrastructure funding in our region as part of an EV corridor including Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. Utah Clean Cities Coalition is serving as the prime of this project and their executive director, Tammie Bostick.
USDOT is actively working with Clean Cities Coalitions to organize workshops with rural communities across the country to (1) obtain feedback on the toolkit content and inform a revised version, planned for Summer 2022; and (2) facilitate knowledge exchange within rural communities on getting started with EV charging projects. USDOT is seeking feedback on this first version of the toolkit—with a goal to release a revised version this summer. The workshops bring together 10-20 stakeholders from a single community or region, with participants representing diverse community and planning roles.
“We are excited to focus one of these workshops on Moab and surrounding areas. Being in Moab today is an incredible opportunity for all of rural Utah. Today, We bring together leadership with the possible vision of electrified transportation. Our goal in bringing resources to rural Utah communities is to ensure equity, funding access, and the tools to secure opportunities to build out zero emission technologies and renewable fuels” said Tammie Bostick, Executive Director of Utah Clean Cities.
This workshop is also a part of the Utah Clean Cities Coalitions Drive Clean Rural USA – Rural Utah Project focused on helping rural counties transition to cleaner fuels and vehicles. This project provides outreach, education, and technical assistance to local county decision makers to support opportunities for transitioning fleets to cleaner fuels and vehicles. Support county governments transition their fleets to cleaner fuels and vehicles.
http://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UCC_logo_web.png00Kelly Barretthttp://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UCC_logo_web.pngKelly Barrett2022-04-07 09:55:222022-07-07 10:02:42Utah Hosts USDOT to Collect Feedback on their Charge Forward Initiative
Salt Lake City, UT, March 22, 2022 — Utah Clean Cities rallied with key Utah leadership in the transportation sector and with clean air advocates today at the Atlas Disposal green-fleet ribbon cutting in west Salt Lake. The event was moderated by Free Reyes of Lancer Energy and the speakers included: Thom Carter, Governor’s Energy Advisor; Kim Frost, Utah Clean Air Partnership; Tammie Bostick, Utah Clean Cities; and Dell Loy Hansen, Atlas founder. Over sixty clean air advocates and transportation leaders toured the new facility and applauded the breadth and depth of ingenuity in this modern facility with large solar arrays and high tech fueling options.
Atlas Disposal has invested over $5 Million in a new Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fueling station and fleet of 16 CNG Refuse Trucks. This new fueling station is located on their property in west Salt Lake City off of I-80 near the airport. The station can fuel up to 40 refuse trucks simultaneously and includes a public access station for fast-filling CNG/RNG at 14 GGE per minute– making it the fastest CNG filling station in Utah.
Using state-of-the-art technologies with fast-fueling innovation is what sets this advanced station above the rest for fleet satisfaction and environmental stewardship commitment,“The super station we are touring today is a testimony of sound business practices and regard to the carbon-constrained air shed along Utah’s Wasatch front,” stated Tammie Bostick, director of Utah Clean Cities, a non-profit organization dedicated to clean fuels, clean air and clean strategies, “ We here at the Atlas station, renewable fuels at the pump, renewable energy in the form of solar electricity, and a off-grid fast charger from FreeWire technologies that operates on battery storage for resilience and shaves peak energy demands for efficiency.” added Bostick. The fueling station and electric vehicle DC fast charger uses electricity from its on-site 325kW solar canopy array with 400kWH of battery storage that has the peak output capability of 120kW.
The new technologies in a modern CNG fleet have significantly lower emissions than its diesel counterparts: 50% less fine particulate matter and 90% less carbon monoxide. “We all share ownership and responsibility for Utah’s air quality. We applaud Atlas for leading its industry by making this significant investment in new clean natural gas refuse trucks to help contribute to a better air quality solution.” stated Kim Frost, executive director at Utah Clean Air Partnership (UCAIR).
Nick Sikich, president at Atlas Disposal was closely involved with the decisions that led to the Atlas mission to commit fully to renewable natural gas and electric fueling, “There is no silver bullet to solving Utah’s air quality, but every small change adds to a collective bigger step toward better health, a better economy, and better overall quality of life for all of us. Atlas Disposal is excited to announce a new eco-friendlier fleet of 16 CNG Refuse trucks and a new innovative CNG/RNG fueling station that is open to the public. Lowering our emissions is of utmost importance to us as a company and guides our overall operating decisions.”
Atlas Disposal Industries was established in March of 1998 in response to the new recycling mandates that were passed by the State of California. With an active team focused on educating local businesses about their recycling potential, Atlas emerged as the fastest growing waste management and recycling removal company in the area. Today, Atlas Disposal is one of the largest waste management and recycling service providers with operations in Sacramento, Salt Lake City, and Phoenix. Atlas Disposal has the advantage of local customer service and billing to respond quickly to any questions or concerns that customers might have. ReFuel Energy Partners, a division of Atlas Disposal, currently operates public CNG fueling stations in Sacramento, San Jose, and now Salt Lake. Atlas Disposal believes in being good stewards of the communities they serve by letting their core value of environmental preservation help guide their business decisions.
Through the Beyond Zero Green Fleet Program, Utah Clean Cities, UCC, seeks to recognize those in Utah’s transportation sectors who have committed to developing zero-emission fleet goals through the adoption and expansion of alternative fuels and advanced vehicle technologies.
The mission of the Utah Clean Cities Coalition is to advance the energy, economic, and environmental security of the United States by supporting local decisions to adopt practices that reduce the use of petroleum in the transportation sector. Working closely with the Department of Energy’s Clean Cities programs, federal and state government, as well as our local stakeholders, we leverage our resources to bring funding into Utah to support the development and deployment of advanced fuel infrastructure and vehicles with an emphasis on renewable energies and technologies.
NEWS ALERT: US DOT ISSUES GUIDANCE FOR STATE DOTS TO IMPLEMENT THE NATIONAL EV FORMULA PROGRAM
DOT Issues Guidance for States
Feb. 10, 2022
The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) released guidance for state departments of transportation related to implementation of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. The NEVI Formula Program will provide dedicated funding to states to strategically deploy EV charging infrastructure and establish an interconnected network to facilitate data collection, access, and reliability.
DOT also published the Request for Nominations for the 6th round of alternative fuel corridor designations.
U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm and U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg signed a memorandum of understanding to create the Joint Office of Energy and Transportation to support the deployment of $7.5 billion from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to build out a national electric vehicle charging network that can build public confidence, with a focus on filling gaps in rural, disadvantaged, and hard-to-reach locations.
https://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/horizontal_logo_baa57ff6-e1644533000390.png154400Kelly Barretthttp://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UCC_logo_web.pngKelly Barrett2022-02-10 22:41:152022-02-10 22:47:50US DOT Issues Guidance for State DOTS to Implement the National EV Formula Program
President Biden, U.S. Department of Transportation Releases Toolkit to Help Rural Communities Build Out Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure
Wednesday, February 2, 2022
Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to Provide $7.5 Billion for EV Charging Network Across America
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of Transportation today released a new, free resource to help rural communities across the country take full advantage of federal funding for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations. The guide, titled Charging Forward: A Toolkit for Planning and Funding Rural Electric Mobility Infrastructure, can help connect community members, towns, businesses, planning agencies, and others with partners needed for these projects. President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law includes a total of $7.5 billion to build out a nationwide network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers.
The toolkit contains best practices for planning EV charging networks and tips to navigate federal funding and financing to help make these projects a reality. DOT will also be holding workshops with rural communities to utilize the toolkit most effectively.
This toolkit is being released in anticipation of the distribution of $7 billion in funds to accelerate the deployment of a national electric vehicle charging network from the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Of these funds, $4.75 billion will be distributed by formula to states, and an additional $2.5 billion will be distributed through a competitive grant program that will support innovative approaches and ensure that charger deployment meets Administration priorities such as supporting rural charging, improving local air quality and increasing EV charging access in disadvantaged communities. Together, this is the largest-ever U.S. investment in EV charging and will be a transformative down payment on the transition to a zero-emission future.
“Drivers in rural areas often have the longest commutes and spend the most money on gas, which means big benefits from having access to electric cars and pickup trucks if they are affordable and easy to charge where they live and drive,” said Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “The investments in the President’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for a national EV charging network are an important step toward ensuring that EVs aren’t a luxury item and that everyone in America can benefit from clean transportation.”
The Department of Transportation, along with the Department of Energy and the White House are conducting outreach and providing resources including this new toolkit to help ensure all Americans, including those in rural, disadvantaged, and hard-to-reach locations, benefit from EV technology.
This toolkit follows other examples of recent progress towards expansion of EV infrastructure including a memorandum of understanding signed by Secretary Buttigieg and U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer M. Granholm, which sets the stage for the two agencies to collaborate on implementation of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law’s electric vehicle provisions.
Further, today’s announcement follows progress on the Biden-Harris Administration delivering the benefits of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to rural communities. Last week, DOT announced more than $1.2 billion for the Appalachian Development Highway System. Yesterday, the Department of Interior announced $1.15 billion to help 26 states cap and remediate orphan oil and gas wells that will help many rural areas. Last month, DOT also announced a historic investment in bridges, including off system bridges that greatly benefit rural communities
The toolkit was developed as part of the Rural Opportunities to Use Transportation for Economic Success (ROUTES) Initiative at USDOT, which coordinates rural infrastructure policy at the Department. The ROUTES Initiative was first created in 2019 and codified in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. ROUTES provides technical assistance and easy-to-access resources for rural transportation stakeholders, including this toolkit. More information on the ROUTES Initiative can be found at www.transportation.gov/rural.
The Department will also host a webinar to present the toolkit in more detail on February 9 at 1:30 PM ET. The webinar is free to attend, register here.
Over the coming weeks and months, USDOT will hold additional workshops with rural communities and stakeholders to obtain feedback on the toolkit and provide information to help rural communities get started with electric vehicle charging projects. An updated toolkit will be available this summer that incorporates feedback from these workshops, expanded information on new programs, and new information on topics such as transit and school bus electrification.
https://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Charging-Forward_graphic-report-cover-2-e1644347470686.jpeg481600Kelly Barretthttp://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UCC_logo_web.pngKelly Barrett2022-02-08 19:11:432022-02-08 19:16:54Charging Forward: A Toolkit for Planning and Funding Rural Electric Mobility Infrastructure
Utah is making great strides toward protecting the environment with clean energy
(Leah Hogsten | The Salt Lake Tribune) A Utah electric vehicle charging station, Jan. 6, 2020.By Tammie Bostick | Special to The Tribune
| April 16, 2021, 10:31 a.m.
Utah is making tremendous progress on advancing smart mobility solutions to help protect the environment and improve air quality across the state. In both the public and private sectors, Utahns are coming together in the spirit of collaboration to help build a cleaner, more sustainable energy future by investing in forward-thinking strategies and technologies.
These efforts are a clear signal that Utah’s residents, businesses and communities are ready to embrace climate-friendly clean energy solutions. However, for us to fully realize the potential of clean fuels, clean air and clean strategies, we need our leaders in Washington to continue amplifying bipartisan solutions that support infrastructure investment and innovation in America’s clean energy sector. The climate denial policy decisions elected officials make at both the state and federal levels have enormous consequences on the work we and countless others do to advance clean transportation solutions across the state.
Working with the federal government has been critical to this success. Utah Clean Cities is leading partnerships with the U.S. Department of Energy Vehicle Technologies Office with two innovative Smart Mobility programs: EVZion and CORWest.
As the name implies, EVZion focuses on demonstrating a zero-emissions, electric vehicle (EV) shuttle system in partnership with Kanab and the East Zion Initiative. The benefits of transitioning to an all-electric fleet of shuttles will be tremendous. The design plan of the theater-view shuttle will allow visitors to see and to be “moved” by the wonder of Zion park.
The CORWest project is aimed at connecting eight Intermountain West regional states — Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, and Colorado — through a series of electric corridors. Both programs alone will help improve Utah’s air quality — taken together as a whole, they will have a tremendous impact, especially when applied to large fleets, such as a shuttle fleet.
The recent 2021 Utah legislative session greatly enhanced many Utah projects through tax incentives and have the potential to power-up Utah’s smart mobility deployment with state-of-the-art technologies and fuels that are renewable, net zero and in some cases, carbon-benefitting. Cradle-to-cradle strategies that prevent greenhouse gases from being emitted represent the ultimate goal for climate action.
Direct action is needed to reduce and minimize the production, sale and use of fossil fuels. This strategy is critical to making meaningful progress in regard to climate mitigation. We are in a position to deploy smart mobility strategies today in our nation. We are especially positioned to lead this movement in resource-rich Utah with abundant options for renewable energy and clean fuels.
Our energy sector in Utah is advantageously positioned to educate and mobilize the workforce of the future now. Our universities, community colleges, regional vocational schools are ideally situated and ready to train, retrain and reskill a resilient workforce.
Utah’s education system is one that will grow with the advancement of state-of-the-art renewable power generation, key infrastructure expansion, clean energy production. Moreover, Utah is training future professionals to operate, maintain and provide the technical support of the new, emerging and progressed energy sector.
At the federal level, there appears to be a growing bipartisan consensus on the need to support similar clean energy and transportation policies with funding supporting critical infrastructure. The first major energy innovation package passed in over a decade, the Energy Act dedicates $35 billion over the next five years to advance a range of clean energy efforts.
There is no doubt in my mind that we can rise to the challenges we face when it comes to securing a cleaner energy future for everyone. It will take all of us working together as allies to get the job done.
Tammie Bostick is executive director of Utah Clean Cities Coalition and also serves as vice president of Transportation Energy Partners, a collaborative federally focused group supporting the Clean Cities Coalition Network. She is on the governor’s Motor Vehicle Review Board and is an ASPIRE Innovation Partner with Utah State University. Utah Clean Cities works to support Utah’s transition to a cleaner energy and smart mobility future advancing clean energy and technology initiatives statewide by supporting organizations and fleets in their efforts to reduce vehicle emissions and contribute to a better air quality for Utah
https://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/https-2F2Fcdn.evbuc_.com2Fimages2F364705792F2297002114092F12Foriginal.jpg400800Kelly Barretthttp://utahcleancities.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/UCC_logo_web.pngKelly Barrett2021-04-21 10:10:102022-05-06 16:12:08Tammie Bostick: Working together for a cleaner Utah
