Earthjustice Bioenergy False Solution Fellow
Bioenergy – energy from biological sources including trees, crops, organic and food waste, and manure – is gaining popularity as a climate solution that also creates jobs for farmers, ranchers, and forest owners. If from true waste, this bioenergy may be helpful to slowing climate change. However, most bioenergy now comes from whole trees (not tree and forestry waste), dedicated crops such as corn and soy (not agricultural waste or cellulosic material), and manure methane from factory farms. The true climate impact of these bioenergy sources is worse than that of fossil fuels and if they are expanded, as the agriculture industry is lobbying hard for, would accelerate climate change. This project will help Earthjustice, and our partners push back against expansion of these “false solutions,” especially crop-based biofuels and manure derived biogas, thus helping to reduce the climate impact of these energy sources.
Crop-based biofuels—primarily corn grown for ethanol and soy grown for biodiesel—have a devastating impact on the climate and environment. As demand for these crops to produce biofuels rises, land is converted from grasslands and forests to cropland, resulting in large losses of previously stored carbon and reductions in carbon sequestration. Growing biofuel crops such as corn also requires intense nitrogen fertilization, most of which runs off into surface or ground water or is converted into nitrous oxide, a potent greenhouse gas. Critically, it’s not just the year-to-year new conversion of land that harms the climate. Using land to grow crops for biofuels also means that this land cannot be used for other purposes, including sequestering carbon in grassland or forest land or producing food. In addition, crop production for biofuels increases air, water, and soil pollution and threatens wildlife.
Biogas from industrial animal factories likewise cause serious harm to the climate and environment. Manure and other waste from animals, especially dairy cows and swine, release large amounts of methane, another potent greenhouse gas. Anaerobic digesters – basically covers over the manure pits – catch some of that methane for use as biogas. Yet these are far from the climate solutions claimed. The full lifecycle of manure methane includes the GHG emissions from feed production and enteric emissions from the animals, none of which are captured. Moreover, digesters often leak methane, and when digestate—the material remaining after anaerobic digestion—is stored and spread on fields, it emits methane and even more nitrous oxide than conventional waste. Finally, the high subsidies paid for digesters creates incentives to increase methane production, despite technologies that can manage manure without doing so.
The Bekenstein fellow focusing on bioenergy policy at Earthjustice will analyze state and federal incentives for biofuel and biogas production, review and synthesize their technical and economic shortcomings, and depending on the fellow’s particular interests and experience, conduct related legal or scientific research, with the ultimate goal of producing a white paper or report to support our advocacy.
Qualifications
- Ability and desire to contribute to the creation of a diverse, equitable, and inclusive work culture that encourages and celebrates differences.
- Demonstrated awareness of and sensitivity to the needs and concerns of individuals from diverse cultures, backgrounds, and orientations.
- Excellent legal research, writing, analytical, and communication skills.
- Strong work ethic, good judgment, initiative, and creativity.
- Ability to work independently and as a collegial team member.
- Commitment to public interest work and a passion for the role of Earthjustice and its mission.
- Attention to detail
- Strong analytical thinking
- Creative problem solver
- Good personal time management
Timeline
During the first month, while becoming familiar with bioenergy, the fellow will develop annotated inventories of all state and federal programs supporting and incentivizing the production and use of biofuels and biogas, including new tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act, California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard and similar programs in other states, the 45Y tax incentives, and others. The fellow will also become familiar with, and write tight syntheses of, the scientific and economic arguments as to why these are not, in fact, climate “solutions.” Then, the fellow will spend several weeks exploring legal and policy opportunities to challenge or minimize these incentive programs, including investigating better alternatives, examining existing literature and identifying questions for further research as necessary. The fellow will look for possible synergies among the challenges to the various forms of bioenergy, seeking to develop a stronger argument. Before the conclusion of the fellowship, the fellow will prepare a white paper or report summarizing their findings and outlining specific policy recommendations, vetted with internal and external partners, as well as identifying any economic or scientific issues that require additional research.
Background
Earthjustice is the nation’s leading environmental law organization. Wielding the power of law, Earthjustice partners with our clients to take on the most critical fights of our time—fights to protect the incredible biodiversity and wild places of the planet; to avert climate disaster by transitioning society away from fossil fuels toward clean energy; to safeguard the right of all people to a healthy environment. We are here because the earth needs a good lawyer.
Founded in 1971, Earthjustice has a distinguished track record of achieving significant, lasting environmental protections. We achieve this by hiring people who share a passion for justice and a healthy environment. Our headquarters are in San Francisco with offices in Anchorage, Bozeman, Chicago, Denver, Honolulu, Houston, Juneau, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Seattle, Tallahassee and Washington, D.C.
