For comparison, 82% of Vermont dairy farms have less than 200 cows. Small farms that could use their excess methane repurposed as “renewable natural gas” as an extra income stream can’t take advantage of the benefits, either, since you’d need at least 500 cows to make the digester profitable. These polluting facilities are often placed in low-income communities and communities of color. The facilities used to make “renewable natural gas”” release toxic pollution in the process of creating gas. These communities are historically and currently more likely to have major highways cutting through them, with cars spewing harmful pollution into homes and businesses. Burning it may also produce harmful compounds such as silicon dust and formaldehyde – a known carcinogen.Īs is often the case, low-income communities and communities of color will experience the worst impacts of this pollution. When “renewable natural gas” burns, for example, it releases nitrous oxide, a compound that creates smog and ozone. “Renewable natural gas” will hurt our climate more than it helps – but what about other impacts? They’re pretty bad, too, especially when it comes to our health. The bottom line: The United States just does not have the resources to replace fracked gas with “renewable natural gas”.Įven if there was enough of this supposed “wonder” fuel to go around, the gas industry’s claims that it will solve our climate crisis are both wrong and dangerous. Vermont Gas Systems, one of only two providers in New England, sells its “renewable natural gas” for nearly three times as much as plain old fracked gas. Importing it into our region isn’t an option, either, because it’s not only scarce, but also expensive. could only replace about 5% of its fracked gas with “renewable natural gas”. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the U.S. Nationwide, the prospects are limited, too. New England states have some of the lowest potential for “renewable natural gas” production. So, the term “renewable natural gas” is just a cover for what this fuel actually is: methane. And one recent report found that as much as 10% of that methane may leak during production. It’s a highly processed biogas that contains at least 90% methane, which is a more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. It is made from manure, industrial food waste, landfill gas, and more. “Renewable natural gas”, also known as biomethane, can be used for all the same things as fracked gas – from heating to cooking to driving. “Renewable Natural Gas” Will Not Help Us Reach Our Climate Goals Instead, they are both shameless attempts by the fossil fuel industry to convince New Englanders to pay for more polluting pipelines. “Renewable natural gas” is not a large-scale climate solution. Both of these products also cost consumers more than actual renewable energy, with none of the environmental benefits. It’s largely manufactured, and an extremely limited resource that will do little or nothing at all to cut climate-damaging emissions. “Renewable natural gas”” is not renewable or natural. Their goal: To sell more dirty gas while pretending these new products can help solve our climate crisis.īut don’t let the nice names fool you. And that’s why they’ve started calling for investments in two new products that they’re calling “renewable natural gas” and power-to-gas. That’s why they’re using the coronavirus outbreak to ask for handouts from the government. In New England, we pay high winter electricity prices due to our reliance on this dirty fossil fuel, and we’ve experienced firsthand the devastation that can result from using it.īig Gas is more interested in their profits than our safety. Photo: EcoPhotographyįor well over a century, fracked gas has been polluting our air and water. "Renewable Natural Gas" is not a large scale climate solution.
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