EarthShift Global Leads Team Chosen for Major Canadian Fuel Standard LCA
EarthShift Global Leads Team Chosen for Major Canadian Fuel Standard LCA
This is a major project for Canada and its fuel sector, with the Clean Fuel Standard aiming to reduce life cycle carbon intensities of fossil fuels over time by setting increasingly stringent reduction requirements for fuels used in transportation, industry and buildings. It will mark an important step forward in the nation’s efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
The project’s benefits are expected to become apparent by 2030, when Canada’s carbon emissions from all fuels will be reduced by 30 million tonnes per year (the equivalent of 7 million vehicles’ annual emissions).
We’re proud to be working with distinguished engineering and professional services firm WSP and outstanding software developer Introspective Systems Inc. (a neighbor of ours in Portland, ME). Together we will create a rigorous, scientifically valid, ISO-conformant modeling tool for calculating the life cycle carbon intensities of the full range of liquid, gaseous, and solid fuels used in Canada – a big job, with wide-ranging impact.
Our project team also includes a team of four industry and academic experts from Canadian institutions who will support and enhance the project with data and expert oversight of the methods and calculations.
The LCA model and software will provide essential new understanding of the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of each fuel’s production and use, incorporating information about raw materials (feedstock), supply chains, and fuel conversion and combustion technologies. The resulting insights will inform development and implementation of the CFS by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC), which awarded the LCA modeling contract.
“We knew from our background in public policy development that the required combination of expertise simply didn’t exist in any single organization,” said Lise Laurin, CEO of EarthShift Global. “The upside of that is that we were able to bring together powerhouse practitioners in each discipline from our existing partnership network. This team is uniquely qualified to support Canada’s large and regionally variable energy sector and the Canadian people who will benefit from the Fuel LCA tool for decades to come.”
Our newly established Canadian branch and Halifax, NS-based Senior Sustainability Analyst Nathan Ayer will be important elements in the project, and we look forward to collaborating with our partners and developing a model that can serve the Canadian public for decades to come.