BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    



                                                                       



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          |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE            |                   AB 222|
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                                 THIRD READING


          Bill No:  AB 222
          Author:   Adams (R) and Ma (D), et al
          Amended:  7/15/10 in Senate
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE ENERGY, U.&C. COMMITTEE  :  6-1, 7/7/09
          AYES:  Padilla, Benoit, Calderon, Cox, Strickland, Wright
          NOES:  Wiggins
          NO VOTE RECORDED:  Corbett, Kehoe, Lowenthal, Simitian

           SENATE ENV. QUALITY COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 6/28/10
          AYES: Simitian, Runner, Corbett, Hancock, Lowenthal,  
            Pavley, Strickland

           SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE  :  Senate Rule 28.8

           ASSEMBLY FLOOR  :  Not relevant


           SUBJECT  :    Solid waste

           SOURCE  :     BioEnergy Producers Association


           DIGEST :    This bill (1) repeals the term gasification in  
          the California Integrated Waste Management Act, (2) revises  
          and recasts the definition of transformation to exclude  
          from that definition, among other things, anaerobic  
          digestion, as defined, (3) to include in that definition  
          solid waste conversion at a biorefinery, as defined, and  
          (4) revises the definition of "solid waste" and removes  
          "gasification" from that definition.
                                                           CONTINUED





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           ANALYSIS  :    

           Under the California Integrated Waste Management Act (Act)  
          of 1989  :

          1.Requires each city or county source reduction and  
            recycling element to include an implementation schedule  
            that shows a city or county must divert 25% of solid  
            waste from landfill disposal or transformation by January  
            1, 1995, through source reduction, recycling, and  
            composting services, and must divert 50% of solid waste  
            on and after January 1, 2000.  (PRC Section 41780.)

          2.Defines "gasification" to mean a technology that uses a  
            noncombustion thermal process to convert solid waste to a  
            clean burning fuel for the purpose of generating  
            electricity, and that, at minimum, meets all of the  
            following criteria:

             A.    The technology does not use air or oxygen in the  
                conversion process, except ambient air to maintain  
                temperature control.

             B.    The technology produces no discharges of air  
                contaminants or emissions, including greenhouse  
                gases, as defined in HSC Section 38505(g).

             C.    The technology produces no discharges to surface  
                or groundwaters of the state.

             D.    The technology produces no hazardous waste.

             E.    To the maximum extent feasible, the technology  
                removes all recyclable materials and marketable green  
                waste compostable materials from the solid waste  
                stream prior to the conversion process and the owner  
                or operator of the facility certifies that those  
                materials will be recycled or composted.

             F.    The facility where the technology is used is in  
                compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and  
                ordinances.








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             G.    The facility certifies to the board that any local  
                agency sending solid waste to the facility is in  
                compliance with this division and has reduced,  
                recycled, or composted solid waste to the maximum  
                extent feasible, and the board makes a finding that  
                the local agency has diverted at least 30 percent of  
                all solid waste through source reduction, recycling,  
                and composting.

          3.Defines "solid waste disposal," "disposal," or "dispose"  
            to mean the final deposition of solid wastes onto land.   
            (PRC Section 40192.)

          4.Defines "solid waste facility" to include a solid waste  
            transfer or processing station, a composting facility, a  
            gasification facility, a transformation facility, and a  
            disposal facility.  For purposes of Part 5 (PRC Section  
            45000), "solid waste facility" additionally includes a  
            solid waste operation that may be carried out pursuant to  
            an enforcement agency notification, as provided in  
            regulations adopted by the board.;.  (PRC 40194).

          5.Defines "transformation" as incineration, pyrolysis,  
            distillation, or biological conversion other than  
            composting.  "Transformation" does not include  
            composting, gasification, or biomass conversion.  (PRC  
            Section 40201.)

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  Yes    
          Local:  No

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  8/4/10)

          BioEnergy Producers Association (source)
          adaptiveARC, Inc.
          Biomass Coordinating Council
          California Farm Bureau Federation
          California State Association of Counties
          Cities of Bell, Glendale, Hawthorne, Pico Rivera and Vernon
          Clean Cities Coalition
          Clements Environmental
          Fulcrum BioEnergy,Inc.
          Global Energy, Inc.
          ICM, Inc.







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          INEOS Bio
          International Union of Operating Engineers
          Interstate Waste Technologies
          Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors
          Los Angeles County Solid Waste Management Committee
          Long Beach Coalition for a Safe Environment
          Marin Sanitary Service
          Miller De Wulf Corporation
          North Valley Coalition
          New Planet Energy, LLC
          Orange County Board of Supervisors
          Pacific Gas and Electric Company
          Phoenix Biomass Energy, Inc.
          Redwood City Planning
          Remediation Earth, Inc.
          Republic Services, Inc.
          San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors
          San Luis Obispo County Integrated Waste Management  
          Authority
          Sempra Energy
          Solid Waste Association of North America
          Southern California Edison
          Sustainable conservation
          Ternion Bio Industries
          ThermoChem Recovery International, Inc.
          Theroux Environmental
          Waste To Energy, LLC
          Yolo County Board of Supervisors

           OPPOSITION  :    (Verified  8/4/10)

          Alameda County Waste Management Authority and Recycling  
          Board
          Breathe California
          California Chamber of Commerce (unless amended)
          California League of Conservation Voters Council
          California Resource Recovery Association
          Center for Biological Diversity
          Clean Water Action
          Coalition for Clean Air
          Environment California
          Environmental Defense Fund
          Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives
          Global Anti-Incinerator Alliance







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          GreenAction
          Natural Resources Defense Council
          Planning and Conservation League
          Sierra Club California
          Solid Waste Association (unless amended)

           ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT  :    The author's office indicates that  
          this bill repeals the term "gasification" in current code  
          and that it will also change the definition of  
          transformation to exclude anaerobic digestion, but include  
          solid waste conversion at a biorefinery.

           ARGUMENTS IN OPPOSITION  :    The California Chamber of  
          Commerce states, "While California is aggressively working  
          to meets its ambitious environmental and energy goals, a  
          number of issues are arising that are causing delays in  
          building the infrastructure and system the state needs.   
          For this reason, it is even more important that the state  
          looks for ways to develop a basket of tools to meet our  
          goals.  Unfortunately, the amendments of July 15th pose a  
          further obstacle by creating new permitting barriers by  
          imposing Siting Element requirements that do not currently  
          exist.  Further, codifying in statute that solid waste  
          processed by the merging of all conversion technologies  
          count as disposal reflects quite a major setback..  
           


          DLW:cm  8/4/10   Senate Floor Analyses 

                         SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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