Net zero greenhouse gas emissions goal: carbon dioxide removal: regulations.

Senator Becker's carbon dioxide removal legislation establishes new standards for how California will count carbon removal efforts toward its net-zero emissions goals. The bill requires that only qualified carbon dioxide removal (CDR) methods meeting specific durability and verification criteria can be used to counterbalance greenhouse gas emissions under state requirements.

The legislation creates a framework distinguishing between different types of emissions and their corresponding removal requirements. Emissions from fossil fuels must be balanced with durable carbon dioxide removal that provides long-term storage, while emissions from natural carbon cycles can be offset through qualified removal with equivalent storage duration. The bill defines qualified CDR as processes that permanently remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere using approved biomass sources or direct air capture, explicitly prohibiting the use of carbon capture for enhanced oil recovery.

Under the new requirements, entities must separately report their emissions and any CDR used for counterbalancing, including details about the types and durations of both. The State Air Resources Board maintains authority to adopt protocols for carbon dioxide utilization and storage methods, with the bill removing the previous January 2024 deadline for protocol development. These provisions operate alongside existing carbon market mechanisms and voluntary offset programs, which remain unaffected by the new standards.

The legislation responds to state planning documents indicating California will need approximately 75 million metric tons of carbon dioxide removal annually by 2045 to achieve its mandated net-zero emissions target. According to the bill's findings, while CDR should not delay emissions reductions, scientific assessments indicate it will be necessary for addressing residual emissions that persist even after phasing out fossil fuel combustion.