Albany bills seek to encourage biofuels, other alternatives for heating oil, transportation

ALBANY — Low-carbon, alternative fuels, everything from soybean oil to leftover restaurant cooking oil, could power vehicles and home heating systems in New York State under proposed legislation aimed at creating a “bridge” to electrification as the state aims to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions.

State lawmakers in January introduced a bill known as the “Clean Fuel Standard,” aimed at curbing transportation emissions by incentivizing companies to start incorporating low-carbon, non-petroleum fuels into their fossil fuel mix.

Another bill introduced last month aims to increase the use of fuels made from biological sources, known as “biofuels” in home heating by allowing the use of renewable diesel, a type of biofuel that is made from vegetables, animal fats and other renewable feedstocks.

Alternative fuels typically have lower emissions than fossil fuels and could be used in the interim as the state moves away from fossil fuels to electrification under New York’s comprehensive climate law, bill sponsors told Newsday.

“It is my belief that the Clean Fuel Standard would have an immediate impact on greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector and can be that bridge to electrification,” Assemb. Carrie Woerner (D-Malta), the bill’s Assembly sponsor said.

The state’s Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, adopted in July 2019, sets a goal of getting all electricity from emission-free sources by 2040 and reducing statewide emissions by 85% from 1990 levels by 2050 in an effort to combat global warming.

“Using low-carbon fuels is a way for us to immediately get a significant reduction in both methane and carbon emissions,” said State Sen. Kevin Parker (D-Brooklyn), who is sponsoring both bills.

“This is not a silver bullet. This is an intermediary step,” he said. “We need to have an all-of-the-above approach.”

The push for alternative fuels comes after the state last summer said it will miss by a few years its first goal of getting 70% of energy from renewable sources by 2030. There are concerns that New York won’t be able to solely rely on intermittent renewables such as wind and solar to meet its goals, particularly after the Trump administration suspended new leases and permits for offshore wind. Gov. Kathy Hochul is pushing for new “advanced nuclear,” but critics call new nuclear costly and “dangerous.”

Environmental groups caution that biofuels aren’t necessarily as clean as advertised and could distract from the state’s ultimate goal of electrification.

“There’s still emissions associated with these fuels,” said Kevin Garcia, senior transportation planner for the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance. “They’re prolonging the use of fossil fuel infrastructure and also delaying us from reaching our climate mandates and going fully electric.”

Some home heating oil companies on Long Island already are using high concentrations of biofuel mixed with diesel, creating what’s known as “biodiesel.”

Ray Hart, who runs Hart Home Comfort based in New Hyde Park, began offering B100 biodiesel, meaning its composed of 100 percent biofuel with no blended fossil fuel, about six years ago and hopes the state will pass legislation increasing its use.

“I think the consumer is concerned about the same things we’re all concerned about: better future, cleaner environment,” said Hart, who chose to make the switch for his family’s future. “It was a gut feeling that it was the right thing to do.”

Alternative fuels, sometimes known as “clean fuels,” are just that, an alternative to traditional gasoline and diesel and can include sources such as electricity, ethanol, hydrogen and biofuels, which can be made from trees, crops, and even food.

Biofuels, including biodiesel, are traditionally mixed with petroleum-based diesel fuels to lower emissions in home heating. Renewable diesel is similar to biodiesel but is refined differently.

Bio- and renewable diesel can be taken from waste. For example, if 80 percent of a soybean is crushed to create meal for livestock feed, 20 percent used to just be waste, but now it can be used for fuel, said Rocco Lacertosa, chief executive officer of the New York State Energy Coalition, an association of home heating fuel dealers in New York City, Westchester County and on Long Island.

“We can reduce emissions up to 78% and sometimes higher depending on the different feed stocks that are used,” he said.

Alternative fuel, like petroleum-based fuels, is a commodity, so prices fluctuate with the market, but biodiesel has remained relatively close in price to regular diesel. For example, in October 2024, the average retail cost of diesel nationally was $3.64 per gallon compared with B20 biodiesel at $3.53 per gallon and B99/B100 biodiesel at $4.04 per gallon, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s alternative fuel price report.

There are many questions as to whether something is a “clean fuel,” said Peter Lehner, managing attorney of the Sustainable Food & Farming Program at Earthjustice, a nonprofit, public interest environmental law group. This includes whether the production of the fuel is clean, does the product create local air pollution and when it’s used, and is it clean in terms of conventional air pollution and in regards to the climate, he said.

“[A]s a matter of current reality, the vast majority of biofuels do not come from waste,” Lehner said. Most of these materials, such as corn, soybeans, trees and even manure, are intentionally produced for the purpose of creating fuel, he said. And with that comes concerns about water and energy use, chemicals from fertilizers and emissions from the transportation of the fuel to its final destination, he said.

“If you’re really collecting wastes and making biodiesel from that, it may be an environmentally positive thing,” Lehner said, but if you’re using soybeans grown on millions of acres in the Midwest, “that’s going to be an environmentally very detrimental product.”

And while collecting waste, such as used cooking oil, could be beneficial, it’s expensive to drive around to get it, he said.

It’s hard to verify whether a biofuel is actually from waste, Lehner said. Much depends on the language of the legislation in clarifying what is used to create the fuel and how it’s sourced, he said.

California was the first state to pass a Low Carbon Fuel Standard aimed at increasing production and use of low-carbon fuels for transportation.

New York’s proposed legislation similarly aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by assigning carbon intensity levels to all types of transportation fuels and then setting target levels for all fuels sold. A market is then created in which low-carbon fuel producers get credits that high-carbon fuel producers can purchase — essentially requiring them to pay to pollute. The goal is to incentivize an overall reduction in greenhouse gas emissions over time.

Certain alternative fuels, for example, ethanol made from corn, are already being mixed with gasoline in some fuel oils. And renewable diesel is being used in New York City by the fire and police departments, Lacertosa said.

Compared with electric vehicles, which require a great deal of investment and infrastructure, clean fuels are compatible with existing equipment, Woerner said. “It is a proven, effective strategy to reduce greenhouse gases.”

The legislation also would give the state more time to enhance the electric grid and further develop the market around electric vehicles, she said. The bill failed to pass in previous legislative sessions, but Woerner said she’s hopeful it will this year.

Environmental groups, including the New York City Environmental Justice Alliance and Earthjustice, are opposed to the standard, saying it creates a market for biofuels that doesn’t currently exist, rather than continuing to build out the market for electric.

And biofuels still create emissions, which disproportionately impact low-income communities of color known as environmental justice communities, Garcia said.

The home heating bill would amend current state law and expand the use of biofuels by allowing the use of renewable diesel along with biodiesel.

The 2021 state law required all heating oil sold in New York to contain 5 percent biodiesel in July 2022. That requirement will increase to 10 percent in July of this year and will go to 20 percent in 2030.

Adding renewable diesel as an option would “increase economic and supply optionality for the marketplace, add value for the full supply chain,” according to the Senate bill justification memo. Because there’s a limited supply of biodiesel, adding renewable diesel would give companies another alternative fuel option to use when creating their biofuel-petroleum blends.

Brenda Sinclair, who owns Quogue-Sinclair Fuel Inc, headquartered in Hampton Bays, which serves about 3,500 to 4,000 homes and businesses, provides B20 biodiesel to all her oil customers.

“Our customers are really receptive to it,” she said, adding that it burns clean, runs well and they don’t mind the state tax credit available for using biofuel in their home heating systems.

There’s no need for new equipment and customers have less issues, she said. “It’s remarkably seamless.”

Sinclair has about five homes buying B100 biodiesel, and she hopes to expand its use this spring. It’s the best thing for the environment as well as our customers, she said. “It’s a win for everybody.”