Petroleum

• Today, Environment and Climate Change Canada and Health Canada announced the draft regulations to further reduce emissions from the petroleum sector of harmful volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which are airborne pollutants that contribute to smog.
• These changes would improve air quality in neighbourhoods and communities across the country that are close to oil and gas facilities.
• The draft regulations reflect an on-going commitment to environmental justice and the need to address disproportionate environmental harms on communities near industrial sites.
• Exposure levels are higher in communities near large emission sources, including Indigenous and low-income communities already facing increased health burdens.

• DUBLIN, Feb. 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Global Market for Biofuels 2024-2035" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.
• The biofuels market has grown significantly as nations and companies pursue renewable, low carbon alternatives for replacing petroleum across transportation applications like passenger vehicles, aviation, marine and heavy freight, while serving broader circular economy sustainability aims.
• The Global Market for Biofuels 2024-2035 provides a comprehensive analysis of the global biofuels market and emerging alternatives through 2035.
• Types covered include:
  Market analysis including key players, end use markets, production processes, costs, production capacities, market demand for biofuels including:

• HOUSTON, Feb. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CITGO Petroleum Corporation, along with longtime Marketer Folk Oil Company, recently launched an electric vehicle (EV) charging pilot program designed to meet the needs of EV drivers in Battle Creek, Mich.
• The CITGO location at 15551 11 Mile Road now offers both regular transportation fuel and EV charging stations.
• "Instead of a store receiving a monthly rent for EV Charger installation, the CITGO program provides upfront assistance, while still giving the Marketer full ownership of the installed EV charger."
• "With so many moving parts in the EV space, we're here to provide a streamlined program that covers everything from charger selection to post-installation maintenance."

• Leading Australian economists Ross Garnaut and Rod Sims this week sought to shake up the carbon policy debate in Australia, by proposing a tax on the nation’s fossil fuel production.
• They claim it could raise A$100 billion in its first year and position Australia at the forefront of the low-carbon revolution.
• The proposal has been rejected by the federal government and the Nationals, as well as business groups and the fossil fuel industry.

How would the tax work?

• It involves a “carbon solutions levy” applied to all fossil fuel extraction sites in Australia (around 105 sites), and on all fossil fuel imports to Australia.
• The tax would presumably be calculated according to the emissions generated when the fuels are burned.
• Garnaut and Sims say proceeds in the first year of the levy would be well over A$100 billion.
• And as Garnaut also outlined in his speech, climate change threatens Australia’s economy, which remains heavily dependent on exporting fossil fuels.

Is the levy a good idea?

• The purpose of a carbon tax, or levy, is to ensure polluting companies pay for the damage they cause.
• In theory, the taxes make polluting production processes more expensive than the alternatives, reducing demand for those products.
• The world, including Australia, has committed to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050.
• After more than a decade of the so-called “climate wars” in Australia, the term “carbon tax” remains politically unpalatable.

The rest of the world got the memo

• Notably, from 2026 a European Union tariff on carbon-intensive imports will come into effect.
• The policy is designed to level the playing field for EU manufacturers that must pay a penalty for their own pollution.
• In coming years, we can expect other jurisdictions to implement similar policies to guard their domestic industries.
• And finally, imposing a carbon levy in Australia would ensure we get to keep the revenue for ourselves.

Will such a levy ever happen?

• But as the world comes to terms with the economic reality of climate change, Australia risks being left behind.
• As Garnaut told the ABC, everyone is a winner under the plan, except fossil fuel companies which, he conceded, “will hate it”.
• But climate change is wreaking havoc on human communities, on natural systems, and on the global economy.
• A carbon levy of the type proposed is an eminently sensible approach to get to net zero.

Ian A. MacKenzie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.