THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	2971
THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2022
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

relating to renewable energy.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature recognizes that the rate and intensity of climate change is greater than predicted. According to remarks made by the United Nation's General Assembly President in 2019, less than a decade remains to stop irreversible damage and avert catastrophe from climate change.

Climate change is caused by excessive greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The most prevalent greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide, which forms when fossil fuels, such as wood, coal, oil, or natural gas, are burned. According to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, once carbon dioxide is emitted, it stays in the atmosphere for three hundred to one thousand years.

Twenty years ago, the legislature established the State's renewable portfolio standards model to ensure that Hawaii's electric utility companies transition from using fossil fuels to renewable energy. At the time, all biomass, including trees and wood pellets, was still considered a carbon neutral and renewable energy source. However, when mature trees are cut and large portions of stem wood are burned to generate electricity, the emission of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere increases while the amount of carbon dioxide captured and stored from the atmosphere decreases. Recent data also has shown that newly planted trees are not effective until they have matured two or three decades later. With less than a decade to avoid a global climate disaster, tree plantations are not the most effective solution as they, and any carbon-rich soils that were disrupted to plant them, would emit more carbon than they can store.

The legislature finds that existing forests, especially older and middle-aged forests, are a vital component to control climate change. To ensure that the planet remains habitable for generations to come, not only must greenhouse gas emissions decrease drastically, but existing mature forests, which have superior carbon-sequestration abilities, must be preserved.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to remove from the definition of "renewable energy" the energy generated or produced from trees, wood pellets, and other tree products made for burning.

SECTION 2. Section 269-91, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending the definition of "renewable energy" to read as follows:

""Renewable energy" means energy generated or produced using the following sources:

(1) Wind;

(2) The sun;

(3) Falling water;

(4) Biogas, including landfill and sewage-based digester gas;

(5) Geothermal;

(6) Ocean water, currents, and waves, including ocean thermal energy conversion;

(7) [Biomass, including] Herbaceous biomass crops, agricultural and animal residues and wastes, and municipal solid waste and other solid waste[;], excluding trees, wood pellets, and other wood products made for burning;

(8) Biofuels; and

(9) Hydrogen produced from renewable energy sources."

SECTION 3. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 4. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.

INTRODUCED BY:

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Report Title:

Renewable Energy; Renewable Portfolio Standard; Biomass; Trees; Wood Pellets; Tree Products

Description:

Removes from the definition of renewable energy the energy generated or produced from trees, wood pellets, and other tree products made for burning.

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.