BILL NUMBER: SB 1213 INTRODUCED
BILL TEXT
INTRODUCED BY Senator Wieckowski
(Coauthors: Senators Glazer and Hill)
(Coauthors: Assembly Members Baker, Campos, Chiu, Frazier, Gordon,
Levine, Mullin, and Ting)
FEBRUARY 18, 2016
An act to add Section 39719.3 to the Health and Safety Code, and
to add Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 25680) to Division 15 of
the Public Resources Code, relating to renewable energy, and making
an appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 1213, as introduced, Wieckowski. Renewable energy: biosolids:
matching grants.
Existing law requires the State Energy Resources Conservation
Commission to administer various grant programs, including a program
to provide incentives for liquid fuels fermented from biomass and
biomass-derived resources.
The California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 designates the
State Air Resources Board as the state agency charged with
monitoring and regulating sources of emissions of greenhouse gases.
The act authorizes the state board to include the use of market-based
compliance mechanisms to achieve its goals. Existing law requires
all moneys, except for fines and penalties, collected by the state
board from the auction or sale of allowances as part of a
market-based compliance mechanism to be deposited in the Greenhouse
Gas Reduction Fund.
This bill would require the commission to develop and implement
the Biosolids to Clean Energy Grant Program to provide 50% matching
funds to local wastewater agencies for biosolids to clean energy
capital projects. The bill would continuously appropriate $20,000,000
annually from the fund to the commission for purposes of the
program. The bill would, for the 2016-17 fiscal year, appropriate an
additional $12,000,000 from the fund to the Bay Area Biosolids to
Energy Coalition for the design and construction of a regional
biosolids to clean energy project located in the San Francisco Bay
Area.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(a) California wastewater agencies generate 2.75 million tons of
biosolids each year.
(b) Biosolids management primarily consists of agricultural land
application and landfill disposal.
(c) Agricultural land application is discouraged by many local
governments, leading to increased landfill disposal and methane
emissions. Most agricultural land application sites are located far
from urban areas and wastewater treatment facilities, causing
biosolids to be trucked many miles, resulting in increased petroleum
consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
(d) The Legislature, pursuant to Section 41780.01 of the Public
Resources Code, established the policy goal of the state that not
less than 75 percent of solid waste generated be source reduced,
recycled, or composted by year 2020, and annually thereafter.
(e) In his 2015 inaugural address, the Governor called upon the
state to reduce fuel consumption by 50 percent by 2030.
(f) In the San Francisco Bay area, hauling of biosolids by only 19
wastewater agencies contributes to one million trucking miles and
consumption of 153,000 gallons of petroleum.
(g) Chapter 547 of the Statutes of 2015 requires electric
utilities, by 2030, to increase to 50 percent the amount of
electricity derived from renewable resources.
(h) Biosolids are a renewable resource for energy generation and
can be converted to energy and useful byproducts without incineration
using various technologies, including, but not limited to,
supercritical water oxidation technology, which utilizes oxygen and
high pressure to create steam or hot water which, in turn, can
generate electricity.
(i) Biosolids are generated locally and biosolids to energy
projects can be deployed regionally as part of expanded regional
distributed generation projects serving local microgrids.
(j) California leads the nation in innovation and research and
development. Conversion of biosolids to energy has been proven on a
small scale. A public-private partnership among local agencies, state
government, and private enterprises to demonstrate a commercial
scale biosolids to energy project is consistent with California's
leadership in promoting and creating renewable energy.
SEC. 2. Section 39719.3 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to
read:
39719.3. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of the Government Code,
the sum of twenty million dollars ($20,000,000) annually is hereby
continuously appropriated from the fund to the State Energy Resources
Conservation and Development Commission for the Biosolids to Clean
Energy Grant Program developed pursuant to Chapter 7.8 (commencing
with Section 25680) of Division 15 of the Public Resources Code.
SEC. 3. Chapter 7.8 (commencing with Section 25680) is added to
Division 15 of the Public Resources Code, to read:
CHAPTER 7.8. BIOSOLIDS TO CLEAN ENERGY GRANT PROGRAM
25680. For purposes of this chapter, "biosolids to clean energy
capital project" or "project" means a capital project that uses
biosolids to generate useful heat energy or electricity, liquid or
gaseous fuels, or useful byproducts using nonincineration technology
in a manner or location that also reduces the emissions of greenhouse
gases as compared with biosolids management practices in use at the
time of the enactment of this chapter, such as through a reduction in
trucking biosolids to offsite landfill or land application sites.
25681. The commission shall develop and implement the Biosolids
to Clean Energy Grant Program to award, on a competitive basis,
grants to local wastewater agencies providing 50-percent matching
funds for biosolids to clean energy capital projects.
25682. An applicant for a grant shall submit to the commission an
application on a form prescribed by the commission. The applicant
shall specify the sources of the matching funds for the project.
25683. In awarding a grant pursuant to this chapter, the
commission shall consider the following:
(a) The cost-effectiveness of the project.
(b) Any other factors deemed appropriate by the commission.
25684. The commission shall implement this chapter using moneys
appropriated pursuant to Section 39719.3 of the Health and Safety
Code and from any other moneys appropriated for purposes of this
chapter.
SEC. 4. (a) In addition to the amount appropriated pursuant to
Section 39719.3 of the Health and Safety Code, for the 2016-17 fiscal
year, the sum of twelve million dollars ($12,000,000) is hereby
appropriated from the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, established
pursuant to Section 16428.8 of the Government Code, to the State
Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission to provide
50-percent matching funds to the Bay Area Biosolids to Energy
Coalition for the design and construction of a regional biosolids to
clean energy project located in the San Francisco Bay area.
(b) For purposes of this section, "biosolids to clean energy
project" means a project that generates electricity by creating steam
or hot water through the conversion of biosolids without
incineration using supercritical water oxidation technology utilizing
oxygen and high pressure.