Friday, 19 January 2007 00:05
Gov. Schwarzenegger Signed an Executive Order for Low Carbon Fuel Standards
Yesterday Gov.
Schwarzenegger signed an
Executive Order now mandating a Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) for the state
of California. The order seeks to reduce the carbon component of fuels
for passenger vehicles by at least 10 percent by the year 2020. The reduction
carbon emissions is an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and the
state’s dependency on fossil type fuels. "Reducing
the carbon content of transportation fuels sold in California by just 10
percent means we will replace 20 percent of our gasoline consumption with lower-carbon
fuels, more than triple the size of the state's renewable fuels market, and add
seven million alternative fuel vehicles to our roads," Schwarzenegger
said in a press release.
The Executive Order directs
the State Secretary of Environmental Protection to work with the California
Energy Commission, the University of California and other agencies to create a
draft compliance schedule for the 2020 deadline. The state's Air Resources
Board is also being directed to review Low Carbon Fuel Standard protocols by
early summer and begin a regulatory process to implement it. The governor wrote
the LCFS is one step in implementing California's landmark greenhouse gas
legislation signed into law last year.