Dear CARB,
Your Draft Scoping Plan 2022 does not address the need
for quantitative reductions in Greenhouse Gas emissions from fossil
fuels by 2045. This the surest way to guarantee that California
will meet its goals - other methods like natural working lands and
even Carbon Capture and Storage will not get us to zero emissions
with a high degree of reliability:
Here is what I propose:
As per California Goals Greenhouse Gas
emissions need to be down 40% by 2030 and 100% down by 2045. From
the current emissions of about 400 MMTCO2e (million metric tons of
carbon dioxide equivalent) we need to be at ZERO MMTCO2e by
2045.
To meet these goals the approach should be
simple (current percent % greenhouse gas emissions appear within
parentheses for all sectors):
1. Electrical
Energy (11% in state, and 8% imported – to 0.0 % by
2045): Replace all large natural gas power plants with
solar or wind plus battery – use smaller natural gas power
plants for base load. As electrification of all sectors proceeds,
pursue the same strategy for all added electric energy, eventually
replacing the small natural gas power plants with green hydrogen
power plants.
2. Transportation:
(37% down to 0.0% by 2045): Begin to replace all gasoline
and diesel vehicles with EVs and fuel cell vehicles – devote
all resources to establishing infrastructure for Solar charged EVs
and Hydrogen produced from solar, wind or geothermal. Starting from
about 31 million fossil fuel vehicles today - begin replacing
fossil fuel vehicles at the rate of 1.35 million vehicles per year
so all such vehicles are off the road by 2045. Maximize innovative
transit operating on solar energy.
3. Industry
(21% down to 0.0 by 2045): Electrify all energy uses and
what cannot be electrified, power that with green hydrogen produced
mainly by solar.
4. Agriculture
(8% down to 0.0 by 2045): Electrify all diesel tractors
and harvesting machines and incentivize developing fuel cell
tractors.
5. Commercial
& Residential (9% down to 0 by 2045): All new homes
and buildings to be 100% electric with rooftop solar and then each
year retrofit all structures to replace all natural gas uses with
electric and pure green hydrogen – produced onsite.
6. Green
Hydrogen: Do the R&D and establish solar (plus wind
and geothermal) energy based water electrolysis so as to produce
green hydrogen for all sectors of the economy at a lower
cost. Only such hydrogen should be encouraged and it should
not be blended with natural gas.
7. Other
GHG emissions: Curtail methane emissions from all sources –
fossil fuels, animal agriculture, kitchen bio-waste, off road
engines and other sources. Curtail nitrous oxide emissions from all
sources – fossil fuels, nitrogen fertilizer, off road engines
and other sources.
If you can schedule me, I can present to you a quantitative,
actionable and time bound plan of how to do this. Thanks!