As you may already know, the Compressed Gas Association (CGA), is an association made up of more than 160 companies worldwide, from multinational corporations to family-owned businesses.
Compressed gases provide the invisible ingredient in millions of products used in everyday life. Together, our members supply products to industries that account for nearly 30% of the U.S. gross domestic product. Every job our industry creates generates 2.3 additional jobs elsewhere in the economy.
Just this past year, we embarked on an important mission to protect a gas that we all interact with in one way or another, every day, Carbon Dioxide.
CO2: A Greenhouse Gas
According to the U.S. EPA, CO2 is the primary greenhouse gas emitted through human activities, representing 79% of total emissions, followed by methane (11%), nitrous oxide (7%) and fluorinated gases (3%). Greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere, which scientists say leads to global warming.
The main human activity that emits CO2 is the combustion of fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil) for energy and transportation. Certain industrial processes and land-use changes also emit CO2.
However, Carbon Dioxide is also a very important and critical ingredient in many industries. Today, use of CO2 in North America for critical applications amounts to approximately 0.23% of the total industrial CO2 emissions.
Essential Applications
In addition to our biological need for carbon dioxide, CO2 has many beneficial uses in today’s society. Here are just a few:
- Carbon dioxide, either as a gas, liquid, or solid (dry ice), is often used to preserve or freeze foods. Liquid carbon dioxide or dry ice is used to quickly freeze foods. Quickly freezing foods preserves their color and texture by limiting the formation of ice particles which can affect these qualities.
- Carbon dioxide gas is used to preserve packaged foods and fruits by displacing oxygen in packaging.
- Carbon dioxide is used throughout the meat and poultry industry in such applications as animal stunning and to keep meat cool during blending.
- Dry ice is often used in many medical applications such as flash freezing biological samples, removing growths, providing refrigeration for vaccines and other cooled medications during transportation.
- Carbon dioxide is used to create enhanced growing atmospheres in green houses and similar growing environments. The enhanced atmosphere promotes better, faster growth with higher product yields.
- Carbon dioxide is used in water and wastewater treatment to control pH.
- Dry ice is used across many industries to clean surfaces and increase sanitation without introducing environmental toxins that are produced using other cleaning materials.
Importantly, because there are few, if any, alternatives for CO2 in many of these applications, and because the amount CO2 used is minimal in comparison to that being emitted by transportation, electrical generation, and industrial processes, it is ESSENTIAL to maintain CO2 availability for these uses.
The CO2 Solutions Coalition
In the Summer of 2023, CGA launched the CO2 Solutions Coalition to defend and support reliable carbon dioxide supply for these essential applications.
The coalition’s membership includes the Compressed Gas Association (CGA), American Beverage Association (ABA), the Gases and Welding Distributors Association (GAWDA), and the International Beverage Distributors Association (IBDEA). The coalition also has participation from more than 10 other industry groups representing the end users of CO2.
Our long-term goal for the coalition is to establish policies that protect and encourage evolution of the market for suppliers and users of CO2, including opportunities to build value into lifecycle analysis and tax policy recognizing the key use of this product for critical industries.
In order to reach our goal, we will need to:
Educate
This campaign will seek to connect CO2 Solutions Coalition members with decision-makers in Congress, Federal Agencies, and influential third parties to educate on, and build champions for, the critical and beneficial uses of CO2 in consumer products. Recognizing the immediate impact forthcoming Treasury Department guidance on implementation of the expanded 45Q tax credit may have for this industry, our initial outreach will target influencing this guidance.
Advocate
Seek congressional action to address CO2 markets, including carbon capture policy. This may include working with current sponsors of carbon capture-related legislation to advocate for changes to the bills as introduced, working with Hill allies to increase support for existing proposals, or seeking introduction of new legislation that reflects the Coalition’s needs.
Legislative and Regulatory Priorities
The coalition places paramount importance on informing Members of Congress about the vital role of CO2. This involves a strategic approach to ensure a nuanced understanding of the implications associated with the 45Q tax credit, which has the potential to redirect market priorities toward CO2 sequestration, potentially overshadowing its utilization.
To this end, the coalition is working with the US Treasury and has met with 15+ members of Congress in the last half of 2023 and plans to continue meetings to educate lawmakers on the importance of CO2.
Other priorities include:
- Seeking Guidance on the “80/20 Rule”
- Establishing Practical Procedures and Streamlined Process for Lifecycle Analysis (LCA)
See our letter to Treasury seeking guidance on the 80/20 rule and LCAs by visiting https://bit.ly/cga-q1gawdamag. By addressing these priorities, the CO2 Solutions Coalition aims to contribute to a regulatory landscape that promotes the responsible utilization of CO2. We are proud to be working with GAWDA on this important issue and we will continue to prioritize and defend the reliable supply of CO2.
You can learn more about the Coalition at CO2 Solutions.org.
If you’d like to get involved, we are always looking for members who can tell us about CO2 shortages and the impacts they have on your business.
