Every Bit Counts in the Battle against Climate Change

(Diesel Technology Forum) ... Among Secretary-General Guterres’ policy proposals is the idea that only “radical changes” – such as a “full shift towards electric vehicles” – are acceptable “climate-smart practices” that will “improve the health and save the lives of millions of people around the world.” We respectfully disagree.

Radical change in fuel or technology types across wide sectors of the global economy are neither practical nor technologically feasible over short timeframes. Developed and developing countries have different economic and infrastructure considerations and localized needs that value different transportation and energy solutions.

Meeting the climate challenge as defined by the United Nations – reducing greenhouse gas emissions and limiting temperature rise to below 2°C while also improving air quality – will require leveraging all possible innovations, inventions and technologies, both new and existing, near-term and longer-term, and proven and experimental. It is also vital to recognize that meaningful progress toward achieving goals in the longer term does not imply sacrifice of progress in the near-term. Calls for switches to emerging technologies with high expectations but at a nascent scale and an uncertain longer timeline must be balanced against existing and proven technologies at dominant scale, where incremental change delivers large dividends.

To that end, we call for delegates at the United Nations Summit to include the following in their plans:

1) Global climate strategies must value and embrace energy efficiency in all its forms.

Energy efficiency should be valued no matter how it is achieved, not its shape or size, “radical” or not. While substantial discussion centers around a shift to non-fossil-fuel-based options for transportation, the commercial availability and scalability of these technologies does not exist today nor in the foreseeable future for most commercial applications beyond small passenger vehicles. Therefore, while the prospect of zero-emissions full-scale electrification exists for some sectors, the reality is that it does not exist in the near term.

2) Accelerate the introduction of efficient, low-carbon conventional technologies and fuels.

Diesel engines are versatile in their ability to utilize not only conventional fossil-based petroleum diesel, but also high-quality advanced renewable biodiesel fuels. Both new and existing diesel engines of all kinds can immediately lower the carbon footprint of their operation by utilizing these low-carbon biofuels.

Given the diversity of global economic needs and varying access to refined petroleum products, more than one fuel solution is deployed today. Around the world, diesel engines successfully operate using a full range of biodiesel fuel blends and types, feedstocks and concentrations made from waste sources such as animal byproducts or the byproducts of soybean processing. No other engine or fuel technology can claim such a broad capability as diesel, which can be a vital local asset, one responsive to local fuel sources and needs.

The use of high-quality renewable low-carbon fuels is today delivering immediate climate benefits. For example, in California in 2018, biodiesel and renewable diesel fuels eliminated 4.3 million tons of CO2, exceeding the reductions delivered by ethanol. The San Francisco Metropolitan Transportation Agency removed more than 10,000 tons of CO2 in a single year, just by using renewable diesel fuel in 632 transit buses.

3) Utilize only the most advanced generation of near-zero emissions diesel engines and fuels.

Diesel engines are the workhorses of the global economy. In every corner of the world, these engines make progress possible – whether it be the planting and harvesting of agricultural products, the movement of people and goods, the mining of essential minerals, the delivery of clean drinking water, or the support of vital public health infrastructure such as wastewater treatment or continuous electricity. For many of these applications, diesel engines today are the only practical solution.

Nature-Based Solutions: Diesel engines were originally invented to run on vegetable oils. Today, both new and existing diesel engines in revenue and public service around the world utilize high-quality blends of biodiesel made from a variety of global feedstocks. Advanced renewable diesel fuels processed in refinery settings from a diverse array of waste products offer even further decarbonization benefits. These advanced, non-fossil-based fuels even further reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 50 percent, compared to fossil fuels.