Letters

Towns across the East End are in the process of creating climate action plans, with an eye toward reducing emissions and becoming carbon neutral. Residents and businesses will all have a role in implementing these plans, so we should all get involved in these conversations now.

As the president of a family-owned home heating company serving the East End, I want to make sure conversations about these plans don’t leave out key options. We need to give people affordable options that can be implemented right now.

Biofuels can reduce emissions immediately and are made from sources like cooking grease and rendered animal fat.

While electrification will likely play a role in achieving climate goals, it will also take time to upgrade the current power grid and generation methods to accommodate the increased demand. The state acknowledged that it will miss its 2030 renewable energy target by three years, due in part to several wind projects being knocked off track. The state’s independent grid operator continues to warn of fraying reliability in the next decade without additional electric generation capacity.

That’s not to say that biofuels or renewable fuels are not on the agenda at all. Southampton Town, in its blueprint enacted last year, called for all new town-owned vehicles to be electric or alternative fuel-based. East Hampton similarly found in its renewable energy roadmap that biofuels made from renewable resources “can have a significant impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.” Biofuels can be at the forefront of the “all-of-the-above” energy transition the governor has espoused.

Where some may transition to electric heat pumps as their heating source now, others may not be prepared for the shift because of, among other reasons, costs associated with upgrading and maintaining their systems. That’s where biofuels, which can be utilized with existing home infrastructure, can be a solution that both manages cost and lowers emissions.

Lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions for biodiesel — used in home heating fuel — are estimated to be up to 88 percent lower than their petroleum-based counterparts. Lifecycle emissions from renewable diesel are up to 68 percent lower.

New York State now requires the use of a 5 percent blend of biodiesel in heating oil, a blend that is scheduled to gradually increase. At Quogue-Sinclair, we’re already providing all of our oil customers with 20 percent blends, while at the same time experimenting with all-biodiesel fuel — yes, 100 percent — that would deliver the most significant emissions reductions.

The state looks to make rapid progress; biofuels are available right now and are compatible with existing heating systems and vehicles.

As communities plan, or plan to plan, they owe it to us to provide all available options for their citizens and the environment.

Brenda C. Sinclair

President

Quogue-Sinclair Fuels

Hampton Bays