About LCFS

The LCFS regulation was approved by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) in 2009 as a way to reduce the carbon intensity (CI) of transportation fuel in California by ten percent by 2020 from the 2010 baseline. The LCFS regulation was re-adopted in 2015 to extend the goal to 2030 and to be in-line with Senate Bill (SB) 32 goals. LCFS regulation is designed to encourage the use of cleaner low-carbon fuels in California, encourage the production of those fuels, and therefore, reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

The program is based on the principle that each fuel has “life cycle” GHG emissions that include CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, and other greenhouse gas contributors. This life cycle assessment examines the GHG emissions from well-to-tank, including direct emissions associated with producing, transporting, and using the fuels, as well as significant indirect effects on GHG emissions, such as changes in land use for some biofuels. The CI scores assessed for each fuel are compared to a declining CI benchmark for each year. Low carbon fuels below the benchmark generate credits, while fuels above the CI benchmark generate deficits. Credits and deficits are denoted in metric tons of GHG emissions. Providers of transportation fuels must demonstrate that the mix of fuels they supply for use in California meets the LCFS carbon intensity standards, or benchmarks, for each annual compliance period. A deficit generator meets its compliance obligation by ensuring that the amount of credits it earns or otherwise acquires from another party is equal to, or greater than, the deficits it has incurred.

Regulated entities that generate fuels with lower CI’s than traditional petroleum-based fuels or use less carbon intensify processes to generate fuel can generate credits through the LCFS program. Starting in January 2021, LCFS fuel pathway application must be validated by a third-party LCFS CARB-accredited verification body. Additionally, regulated entities’ annual Fuel Pathway Reports, Fuel Transaction Reports, and/or Project-Based Crediting Reports must also be verified by a LCFS CARB-accredited verification body starting in 2021 for 2020 data. Credits are issued after a positive Verification Statement has been received by CARB.

Rincon’s Expertise

Rincon has been a CARB-accredited verification body for the Mandatory Reporting Rule (MRR) since the regulation inception and is currently responsible for verifying over 40 percent of GHG emissions in California under the MRR. We are known by CARB and our clients as leaders in the industry with high ethical standards and quality of work.  In December 2019, Rincon attended the LCFS training hosted by CARB and became accredited in the state’s only full lifecycle assessment verification program – one of the 23 accredited verification bodies in the United States, ten of which are located in California.