Podcast Summary:
In this episode from Ethanol Producer Magazine, host Katie Schroeder and Christianson Partner Kari Buttenhoff unpack the sweeping amendments the California Air Resources Board (CARB) made to California’s Low Carbon Fuels Standard (LCFS) and their implications for the ethanol industry.
Key Highlights:
- Compliance Curve Acceleration: CARB is tightening carbon reduction targets due to surplus credits and falling LCFS credit prices.
- GREET Model Update: Transitioning from GREET 3.0 to 4.0 to reflect more current emissions data.
- Sustainability & Traceability Requirements: New guardrails for crop-based fuels to monitor land use change and deforestation, with phased implementation through 2031.
- Penalties & True-Up Mechanism: Facilities exceeding or outperforming their CI scores will now face penalties or earn credit adjustments.
- Verification Expansion: Hydrogen and electricity pathways must now undergo verification, aligning with liquid fuels.
- Verifier Rotation Rules: Ethanol producers must rotate verification firms every six years, with strict conflict-of-interest rules.
- State-Level Impacts: Oregon and Washington may lean on California’s rules rather than replicate them, reducing audit burdens in some cases.
- Open Questions: Uncertainty remains around partial sustainability coverage, fiber classification, and corn oil attestation requirements.
