Carbon Emission Life Cycle Assessments 101, 102, and 103. Schools in session with John Beath
Sean Grady interviews John M. Beath, P.E. (TX), LCA-CP, CEO and founder of John Beath Environmental, LLC, on the Environmental Transformation Podcast. Beath explains life cycle assessment (LCA), carbon footprints and how companies evaluate emissions across raw materials, manufacturing, transportation and product use.
In this episode, Beath breaks down LCA basics for beginners, including emission factors, primary vs. secondary data and environmental databases. He also discusses LCA 101, LCA 102 and LCA 103, transparent Excel-based modeling, EV vs. internal combustion trade-offs, grid impacts, charging and temperature effects, EPDs, and why plug-in hybrids can be a practical near-term solution for reducing combustion-related air pollution in daily driving.
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,040
The advantage to the plug in
hybrid is that you get the best
2
00:00:03,040 --> 00:00:05,240
of both worlds.
You don't have to build all
3
00:00:05,240 --> 00:00:07,760
those charging stations
necessarily, just charge it at
4
00:00:07,760 --> 00:00:09,960
home.
When your charge runs out, you
5
00:00:09,960 --> 00:00:14,160
run off gasoline, but the
advantage to it is you're
6
00:00:14,160 --> 00:00:17,080
addressing the air pollution
problem from combustion while
7
00:00:17,080 --> 00:00:19,320
you're driving around town on
your battery.
8
00:00:19,800 --> 00:00:22,800
Welcome to the Environmental
Transformation Podcast, where we
9
00:00:22,800 --> 00:00:25,160
bring you interviews with
industry leaders, climate
10
00:00:25,160 --> 00:00:28,600
champions, sustainability
practitioners, EHS and hazmat
11
00:00:28,600 --> 00:00:31,520
professionals making an impact
in their businesses today.
12
00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:34,800
Each leader solving complex
challenges and delivering
13
00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:36,840
solutions within their areas of
expertise.
14
00:00:37,200 --> 00:00:40,320
I'm your host, Sean Grady, and
thanks for joining us today.
15
00:00:40,840 --> 00:00:44,040
Before we jump in, make sure to
follow us on your devices and
16
00:00:44,040 --> 00:00:48,520
visit my website at
www.seankgrady.com and sign up
17
00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:51,000
for our newsletter and e-mail
announcements.
18
00:00:51,160 --> 00:00:54,040
Now let's get started.
Welcome to the Environmental
19
00:00:54,040 --> 00:00:57,200
Transformation Podcast.
I'm your host, Sean Grady, and
20
00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:00,840
today's guest is John Beeth.
He is a Life Cycle Assessment
21
00:01:00,840 --> 00:01:03,760
certified professional and a
registered professional engineer
22
00:01:03,760 --> 00:01:06,120
in Texas.
He's also has more than 20 years
23
00:01:06,120 --> 00:01:09,280
of experience in the
sustainability industry as a
24
00:01:09,280 --> 00:01:12,240
consultant.
He currently serves as CEO of a
25
00:01:12,240 --> 00:01:14,440
sustainability environmental
consulting company.
26
00:01:14,520 --> 00:01:16,680
He's got a bachelor's degree in
Chemical Engineering from
27
00:01:16,680 --> 00:01:20,320
Georgia Tech and has authored 3
short books on the various
28
00:01:20,320 --> 00:01:22,960
aspects of sustainability he
currently serves.
29
00:01:22,960 --> 00:01:25,480
As a member.
Of the board of directors of the
30
00:01:25,480 --> 00:01:28,240
American Center for Life Cycle
Assessment.
31
00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:31,640
So, John, welcome to the show.
Thank you.
32
00:01:31,680 --> 00:01:35,520
Really excited to be here and
good, good set of topics that
33
00:01:35,520 --> 00:01:36,960
you had picked out for us here,
I think.
34
00:01:37,360 --> 00:01:40,800
Yeah, No, we're really happy to
have you on and and you know, we
35
00:01:40,800 --> 00:01:44,680
connected through I think one of
your marketing teams were
36
00:01:44,680 --> 00:01:47,360
looking to maybe get you on the
show and and we're always
37
00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:50,240
looking for good guests.
And so for those listeners out
38
00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:52,720
there that you've got an
interesting topic you'd like to
39
00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:55,760
bring to the show, always
interested to maybe interview
40
00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:58,880
those, those potential
candidates and bring them on
41
00:01:58,880 --> 00:02:02,520
and, and educate our listeners.
So John, before we get in, could
42
00:02:02,520 --> 00:02:05,480
you give us a little background
on how you get started in life
43
00:02:05,480 --> 00:02:08,720
cycle assessments and or
analysis and and also the
44
00:02:08,720 --> 00:02:10,720
sustainability business that
you're running today?
45
00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:13,800
Yeah, sure.
It's been quite a journey for
46
00:02:13,800 --> 00:02:16,120
me.
I tell people that I'm
47
00:02:16,120 --> 00:02:19,880
recovering process engineer.
I got tired of designing things
48
00:02:19,880 --> 00:02:23,160
that were not destined to be
built quickly, and that's what
49
00:02:23,160 --> 00:02:24,640
junior engineers and refinery
do.
50
00:02:24,640 --> 00:02:28,080
I found out, and they never told
me that when I moved into the
51
00:02:28,240 --> 00:02:31,200
profession to begin with.
So I found a way to escape the
52
00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:34,160
environmental department and
they convinced me that that
53
00:02:34,160 --> 00:02:37,480
wasn't where they sent old
soldiers to die, that in fact
54
00:02:37,480 --> 00:02:39,400
you actually could have a role
in the world.
55
00:02:39,400 --> 00:02:43,320
And it happened that that was
back in the 80s and things were
56
00:02:43,320 --> 00:02:46,400
beginning to take shape in the
environmental sector in in a
57
00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:49,000
bold new way.
And I was able to do a lot of
58
00:02:49,000 --> 00:02:51,000
first of its kind sort of
activities.
59
00:02:51,840 --> 00:02:56,240
And Fast forward, I was the guy
who turned out the lights of the
60
00:02:56,240 --> 00:02:59,560
refinery and sort of moved on
into the consulting world and
61
00:02:59,880 --> 00:03:02,680
joined a big box consulting
company, was there for quite a
62
00:03:02,680 --> 00:03:05,440
while.
And while I was there, I had a
63
00:03:05,760 --> 00:03:08,600
client one day that called me
and asked if we could do a life
64
00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:12,520
cycle assessment for them.
And like most eager consultants,
65
00:03:12,680 --> 00:03:15,480
I accept the job.
And then right after the call I
66
00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:19,000
called my colleagues in the UK
and said what the heck is a life
67
00:03:19,000 --> 00:03:23,600
cycle assessment and how do I do
1 And that was, you know, that
68
00:03:23,600 --> 00:03:28,200
was in like 2006.
So, you know, that was 20 years
69
00:03:28,200 --> 00:03:30,200
ago and a lots happened since
then.
70
00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:34,800
I left that company at some
point and founded my own company
71
00:03:34,800 --> 00:03:37,080
now just almost exactly 11 years
ago.
72
00:03:37,600 --> 00:03:39,960
And that company was just me at
the time.
73
00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:41,480
And now it's a lot more than
that.
74
00:03:42,240 --> 00:03:44,760
I wanted to focus on
sustainability and life cycle
75
00:03:44,760 --> 00:03:47,240
assessment and carbon footprints
and that sort of thing.
76
00:03:47,240 --> 00:03:50,080
And so that's what this company
has enabled me to do.
77
00:03:50,520 --> 00:03:51,840
So that's.
Great.
78
00:03:52,000 --> 00:03:53,520
That's good.
I mean, yeah.
79
00:03:53,520 --> 00:03:56,680
So.
So the punishment ended up being
80
00:03:56,720 --> 00:03:59,920
kind of like your passion.
Yeah, absolutely.
81
00:03:59,920 --> 00:04:02,560
It's true.
And maybe just a few more words
82
00:04:02,560 --> 00:04:05,400
on, you know, what happened with
that experience, just to sort of
83
00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:08,560
round that out.
So they told me that they wanted
84
00:04:08,560 --> 00:04:11,120
to prove that their solar panels
that they were making were
85
00:04:11,120 --> 00:04:13,680
green.
And I said to myself, well, of
86
00:04:13,680 --> 00:04:15,720
course they're green.
And they said no, no, an
87
00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:18,680
investor told them the only way
to do that was to do a life
88
00:04:18,680 --> 00:04:21,720
cycle assessment.
So I rounded up a team, we went
89
00:04:21,720 --> 00:04:24,800
to the plant, we cataloged the
raw materials, the utilities,
90
00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:27,880
the emissions, the waste, the Co
products, the yields, all that
91
00:04:27,880 --> 00:04:30,520
stuff.
And that's the kind of data you
92
00:04:30,520 --> 00:04:34,240
need to assess a product across
its life cycle, from the removal
93
00:04:34,240 --> 00:04:36,040
of raw materials from the earth
all the way through
94
00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:39,280
transportation, manufacturing,
distribution, installation, use,
95
00:04:39,280 --> 00:04:43,360
maintenance, all that stuff.
And people do carbon footprints
96
00:04:43,360 --> 00:04:46,520
as a streamlined version of that
for lots of reasons.
97
00:04:46,920 --> 00:04:51,320
But what's driving that business
now is customer requests,
98
00:04:51,320 --> 00:04:54,920
investor demands in an effort to
make claims to try to increase
99
00:04:54,920 --> 00:04:57,600
market share.
So that's how the game has
100
00:04:57,640 --> 00:05:01,160
evolved over time, and that's
the kind of exposure we get
101
00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:04,760
through our client work.
Well, so, so let's break down
102
00:05:04,760 --> 00:05:06,800
for the, the novice here,
because there's a lot of
103
00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:10,680
listeners who follow the podcast
and join along who, you know,
104
00:05:10,680 --> 00:05:14,160
they, they may be practitioners
in this space, but there's a lot
105
00:05:14,160 --> 00:05:18,640
who aren't, They're just kind of
casual interested parties.
106
00:05:18,720 --> 00:05:21,480
They, they, they work in the
environmental industry, but they
107
00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:24,840
maybe not in be involved in
sustainability type activities
108
00:05:24,840 --> 00:05:27,560
where life cycle analysis is, is
required.
109
00:05:27,560 --> 00:05:30,160
So let's break this down.
What's the process?
110
00:05:30,160 --> 00:05:34,160
How does this concept work, you
know, in, in real practice?
111
00:05:34,160 --> 00:05:38,520
And and let's let's break this
down so we can get them prepared
112
00:05:38,520 --> 00:05:39,800
for the rest of the
conversation.
113
00:05:40,080 --> 00:05:43,120
All right.
Well, you know, it is, it is a
114
00:05:43,120 --> 00:05:44,720
little bit complicated, I'll
admit.
115
00:05:44,920 --> 00:05:48,960
But at the basis what you're
really trying to do is take a
116
00:05:48,960 --> 00:05:56,200
flow rate of material and assign
it to an emission factor and
117
00:05:56,200 --> 00:06:01,720
then end up with a result.
So I call that A * B = C, and
118
00:06:01,800 --> 00:06:04,600
it's no different than in
traditional environmental world
119
00:06:04,800 --> 00:06:06,360
how you would do an emissions
inventory.
120
00:06:07,040 --> 00:06:10,360
What's different about this
though is that if you're doing a
121
00:06:10,360 --> 00:06:14,480
carbon footprint, at least what
you're chasing really is those
122
00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:20,440
instances where whatever you're
doing creates a CO2, methane or
123
00:06:20,440 --> 00:06:24,200
N2O emission to the atmosphere.
And most often that's
124
00:06:24,400 --> 00:06:28,000
combustion, unless you have a
pipeline of methane and then
125
00:06:28,000 --> 00:06:29,960
methane is going to leak out of
the pipeline directly.
126
00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:31,720
You know, you don't need
combustion for that.
127
00:06:32,760 --> 00:06:36,040
For most other things it you
know, it's about combustion.
128
00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:38,760
And so if you're a manufacturing
plant, it's pretty
129
00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:41,160
straightforward.
You have fired process heaters.
130
00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:44,240
You can understand what that is.
But when you look across the
131
00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:47,200
life cycle now, it's not just
what you're doing inside your
132
00:06:47,200 --> 00:06:49,280
plant.
Instead, I'm including the raw
133
00:06:49,280 --> 00:06:52,760
materials that are coming to you
and how they were made.
134
00:06:53,120 --> 00:06:56,040
And so there's energy.
Say you've got a bulldozer and
135
00:06:56,040 --> 00:06:58,160
it's going to mine that material
out of the ground.
136
00:06:58,160 --> 00:06:59,920
Well, there goes some CO2 from
that.
137
00:07:00,160 --> 00:07:02,480
And the next thing I'm going to
do is I'm going to grind it up
138
00:07:02,480 --> 00:07:05,400
maybe, OK, there's some
electrical energy that goes into
139
00:07:05,400 --> 00:07:07,600
that at the power plant.
There's CO2 for that.
140
00:07:07,880 --> 00:07:09,920
Now I'm going to put it in the
truck and I'm going to haul it.
141
00:07:10,200 --> 00:07:13,960
And so guess what the the truck
is burning some sort of fuel or
142
00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:16,800
it's electric, one or the other.
In either case, it's energy.
143
00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:19,600
It ties back probably to
combustion at some point.
144
00:07:19,880 --> 00:07:25,040
And so again, CO2, so we're an
inventory that adds up all those
145
00:07:25,040 --> 00:07:27,680
steps down the line, even
through the end of the
146
00:07:27,680 --> 00:07:30,800
manufacturing to distribution.
Again, we got some trucks.
147
00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:32,520
Maybe it goes into the use
phase.
148
00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:36,120
And if it's something simple
like a plastic bottle, you might
149
00:07:36,120 --> 00:07:38,520
say, well, this doesn't really
have a use phase, does it?
150
00:07:38,800 --> 00:07:41,560
Well, in reality it does because
guess what?
151
00:07:41,760 --> 00:07:44,760
A lot of people like their
drinking water and they like it
152
00:07:44,800 --> 00:07:46,240
cold.
So what do they do?
153
00:07:46,480 --> 00:07:48,880
They put it in the refrigerator.
Well, now that's part of the
154
00:07:48,880 --> 00:07:50,440
life cycle for your product as
well.
155
00:07:51,000 --> 00:07:52,680
Yeah.
You know, when you think about
156
00:07:52,680 --> 00:07:56,040
that, Oh my gosh.
I mean, all the actual inputs
157
00:07:56,040 --> 00:08:02,320
that you need to consider to
assess a full, I guess, complete
158
00:08:02,320 --> 00:08:06,160
picture of the life cycle
analysis, that could be pretty
159
00:08:06,160 --> 00:08:09,560
daunting just trying to
understand all the inputs.
160
00:08:09,560 --> 00:08:15,000
And then how do you derive, you
know, emission factors for all
161
00:08:15,000 --> 00:08:19,400
that work?
Well, if you had to go get a CO2
162
00:08:19,400 --> 00:08:22,160
meter and meter every single one
of those things I just
163
00:08:22,160 --> 00:08:24,160
described, you'd bankrupt
yourself.
164
00:08:24,480 --> 00:08:27,920
So the way it works is that
people have already been there,
165
00:08:27,920 --> 00:08:30,520
done that.
And so they're creating a
166
00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:32,600
library of information you can
draw from.
167
00:08:32,919 --> 00:08:36,720
And so there are environmental
databases that store that kind
168
00:08:36,720 --> 00:08:40,440
of experience based data that
you can then draw on.
169
00:08:40,679 --> 00:08:43,440
Probably the largest one of
those is is called Eco Invent
170
00:08:43,720 --> 00:08:46,920
and they have thousands of
factors in there for things you
171
00:08:46,920 --> 00:08:49,280
can't even imagine that you
might need a factor for.
172
00:08:49,640 --> 00:08:53,240
And and that's not by any means
the only place where you go and
173
00:08:53,240 --> 00:08:56,360
that's behind the paywall.
So not everybody gets to use
174
00:08:56,360 --> 00:08:58,960
that.
But the idea is you're, you're
175
00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:01,520
adding to some experience and
you have what's called primary
176
00:09:01,520 --> 00:09:05,680
data because in some cases, you
know how much what, what's the
177
00:09:05,680 --> 00:09:08,840
electric bill for your plant to
make these plastic bottles?
178
00:09:08,960 --> 00:09:10,880
Well, OK, I know what my
electric bill is.
179
00:09:10,880 --> 00:09:14,160
I know how many of these I made.
So now I can give you what's
180
00:09:14,160 --> 00:09:17,560
called, you know, a really
accurate primary database
181
00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:20,840
estimate of what my emissions
for this was.
182
00:09:21,080 --> 00:09:25,600
But if I'm a company and I don't
make the polyethylene beads that
183
00:09:25,600 --> 00:09:29,520
are used to blow mold the
plastic, then I have to trust
184
00:09:29,520 --> 00:09:31,600
some secondary data probably for
that.
185
00:09:31,840 --> 00:09:34,680
And I might go to this database,
I might go to the company and
186
00:09:34,680 --> 00:09:36,840
say, have you got a carbon
footprint?
187
00:09:36,840 --> 00:09:39,600
And by the way, if you want me
to buy your product, you know, I
188
00:09:39,600 --> 00:09:41,760
really want you to share that.
Otherwise, I'm going to find
189
00:09:41,760 --> 00:09:44,040
somebody else who's willing to
share that.
190
00:09:44,280 --> 00:09:46,080
And you know, I'll buy their
product.
191
00:09:46,360 --> 00:09:49,080
Are you, are you when you're
doing these assessments for
192
00:09:49,080 --> 00:09:53,680
clients and you're, and you're
going through this process, are
193
00:09:53,680 --> 00:09:57,800
you finding that a lot of these
suppliers of these raw materials
194
00:09:57,800 --> 00:10:01,960
are providing their carbon
emission factors or input that
195
00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:04,400
for the impact of the product
they're selling?
196
00:10:04,400 --> 00:10:09,880
So that way every metric ton or
whatever they're gallon that you
197
00:10:09,880 --> 00:10:16,400
can use that as an input.
It's a mixed bag and I think it
198
00:10:16,400 --> 00:10:18,840
depends a lot on what industry
sector you're in.
199
00:10:19,520 --> 00:10:24,080
In the building product space,
you find a lot of people are
200
00:10:24,440 --> 00:10:26,840
embodying that into what's
called an environmental product
201
00:10:26,840 --> 00:10:29,840
declaration or an EPD.
Some of the building trades are
202
00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:33,840
more and more are beginning to
see a requirement for you to not
203
00:10:33,840 --> 00:10:36,440
only share the data, but share
it in that form.
204
00:10:37,680 --> 00:10:41,680
But in lots of other sectors,
it's a lot more random in terms
205
00:10:41,720 --> 00:10:45,640
of, well, if I'm selling a
product to another business, you
206
00:10:45,640 --> 00:10:48,000
know, they may make it
conditional that you have to
207
00:10:48,000 --> 00:10:51,040
provide some data to me or or
I'm not going to buy your
208
00:10:51,040 --> 00:10:52,920
product.
As we move into consumer
209
00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:55,960
products, it's even more squishy
there.
210
00:10:56,080 --> 00:11:00,360
The reason people will do these
kinds of studies is because they
211
00:11:00,360 --> 00:11:05,160
they maybe have an investor that
wants to get data about that, or
212
00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:06,680
maybe they want to make a market
claim.
213
00:11:07,000 --> 00:11:09,560
So if they're going to make a
market claim, they're going to
214
00:11:09,560 --> 00:11:13,240
try to get as much primary data
as they can, but they are going
215
00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:17,920
to find those firewalls that
that you mentioned, you know, is
216
00:11:17,920 --> 00:11:20,920
the supplier willing to share?
Well, that's a changing
217
00:11:20,920 --> 00:11:22,760
environment.
And what you're finding is
218
00:11:22,960 --> 00:11:27,080
people that are outside the US
where the regulatory environment
219
00:11:27,080 --> 00:11:31,720
environment is pushing faster.
Yeah, more likely, like Europe
220
00:11:31,720 --> 00:11:34,120
and Asia as well.
You'll find that much more
221
00:11:34,120 --> 00:11:37,600
likely to share that information
because they've been conditioned
222
00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:42,400
by companies that are in those
locations that that's how things
223
00:11:42,400 --> 00:11:44,080
are done.
Right, right, right.
224
00:11:44,200 --> 00:11:47,760
Well, that's, that's awesome.
I mean, so when we look at, you
225
00:11:47,760 --> 00:11:51,600
know, your journey here, the
catalyst of you starting of this
226
00:11:51,600 --> 00:11:53,840
business, you've been in the
environmental, you know,
227
00:11:53,840 --> 00:11:56,000
business over 40 years as an
engineer.
228
00:11:56,280 --> 00:11:59,200
What was the specific gap where
the problem you were trying to
229
00:11:59,200 --> 00:12:02,520
solve in the industry that drove
you to write these books that
230
00:12:02,520 --> 00:12:04,560
you you you wrote, you wrote
three books.
231
00:12:05,120 --> 00:12:08,600
And once you share a little bit
about your books and talk about
232
00:12:08,600 --> 00:12:11,040
that, and then, you know, what
was the lack of understanding of
233
00:12:11,040 --> 00:12:14,960
the process or the prohibitive
cost of the existing tool that
234
00:12:14,960 --> 00:12:16,640
was like you were trying to fix?
Like what was?
235
00:12:16,640 --> 00:12:20,560
Tell us a little bit about this.
Well, I, I won't try to pretend
236
00:12:20,560 --> 00:12:23,800
that I have the universal
solution to that problem, but I
237
00:12:23,800 --> 00:12:25,440
took some steps down that
highway.
238
00:12:25,720 --> 00:12:29,880
And so, yeah, the, the thing
that was in my mind was that
239
00:12:30,680 --> 00:12:33,160
one, I piled up a lot of
experience.
240
00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:35,080
My company's piled up a lot of
experience.
241
00:12:35,400 --> 00:12:38,440
I, I felt like, you know, I'm
moving on in my career, it's
242
00:12:38,440 --> 00:12:40,240
time for me to start sharing
some of that stuff.
243
00:12:40,480 --> 00:12:42,080
So that was definitely a
motivator.
244
00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:45,400
But more importantly, a lot of
the information that's out there
245
00:12:45,560 --> 00:12:49,000
is pretty hard to digest.
You know, it's written for R&D
246
00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:52,120
engineers and nerdy science
types.
247
00:12:52,440 --> 00:12:55,560
And if you want a nerd out and
go to those detailed elements,
248
00:12:55,560 --> 00:12:57,680
that's great.
But for people who aren't
249
00:12:57,680 --> 00:13:00,960
working in that space every day,
they need a bit of a translator.
250
00:13:01,200 --> 00:13:05,080
And so that's the rule A.
Little bit so the average guy
251
00:13:05,400 --> 00:13:07,120
who knows math can do some
stuff.
252
00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:10,360
Exactly.
And so there were three books
253
00:13:10,360 --> 00:13:13,880
that ended up coming.
And Full disclosure, I did them
254
00:13:13,880 --> 00:13:17,360
in part because that's how I
continue to remain certified as
255
00:13:17,360 --> 00:13:20,960
a certified professional is you
have to publish or parish to a
256
00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:23,000
certain extent.
And so that was part of my
257
00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:25,560
pathway to, to holding on to my
credentials.
258
00:13:25,560 --> 00:13:28,160
But I also wanted to do the
things that I told you.
259
00:13:28,160 --> 00:13:30,920
So it's it's a balancing act.
Anyway, three books.
260
00:13:31,480 --> 00:13:35,960
One was a specific need for a
friend that we had who was an
261
00:13:35,960 --> 00:13:39,520
organic farmer.
And I felt like all the things
262
00:13:39,520 --> 00:13:42,680
that have been written about how
to footprint a farm were really
263
00:13:42,680 --> 00:13:44,560
hard to, to get your arms
around.
264
00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:49,000
And so written so that a farmer
could actually do their own
265
00:13:49,000 --> 00:13:53,520
footprint and need a master's
in, you know, environmental
266
00:13:53,520 --> 00:13:55,520
engineering to be able to walk
through that.
267
00:13:55,800 --> 00:13:59,120
So it's very simplistic.
It's very, pardon the pun, down
268
00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:02,640
to earth, but you know, that's
the sort of thing that I felt
269
00:14:02,640 --> 00:14:04,200
like was really neat.
So let me.
270
00:14:04,680 --> 00:14:05,920
Let me generate a direct real
quick.
271
00:14:05,920 --> 00:14:09,000
Do you get any interest from,
say, universities, agricultural
272
00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,680
universities that come and talk
about this in a class or course
273
00:14:11,680 --> 00:14:13,880
or anything?
Probably because not many of
274
00:14:13,880 --> 00:14:17,560
them go browsing around on our
website and try to find that it,
275
00:14:17,800 --> 00:14:19,760
it is something that I'd love to
be able to do.
276
00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:22,200
But frankly, no, that hasn't
been an issue.
277
00:14:22,440 --> 00:14:25,000
We're kind of in our little
silo, you know, we're, we're the
278
00:14:25,000 --> 00:14:28,040
company that nobody knows
anything about and that's one of
279
00:14:28,040 --> 00:14:30,160
the reasons we're trying to
change that is to get some of
280
00:14:30,160 --> 00:14:31,560
this information out there.
So.
281
00:14:31,680 --> 00:14:33,200
Well, we'll help you do that,
yeah.
282
00:14:34,080 --> 00:14:36,360
People will know who the
translators are and and who they
283
00:14:36,360 --> 00:14:39,480
might be able to rely on.
So that leads me to the second
284
00:14:39,800 --> 00:14:41,520
effort.
And these are numbered by the
285
00:14:41,520 --> 00:14:45,440
way, LCA one O 1, LCA one O 2
and LCA one O 3.
286
00:14:45,640 --> 00:14:48,760
Kind of tongue in cheek, but.
It's like going taking my
287
00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:51,160
college courses, you know?
Yeah, exactly.
288
00:14:51,160 --> 00:14:54,000
And that's that's the intent
except college, not College in
289
00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:59,000
this case.
SO1O2 is a little bit more of a
290
00:14:59,000 --> 00:15:02,320
heavy duty nature.
And this was inspired because of
291
00:15:02,320 --> 00:15:06,000
the fact that there's so many
come people that are coming into
292
00:15:06,000 --> 00:15:12,000
the electric vehicle space that
have an agenda and they gather
293
00:15:12,000 --> 00:15:15,920
up some data and they try to to
convince people that they're
294
00:15:15,920 --> 00:15:18,840
right and that here's why you
should move in a certain
295
00:15:18,840 --> 00:15:21,200
direction.
And I got really tired of that.
296
00:15:21,600 --> 00:15:25,520
And so we got hired by an oil
company and by trade association
297
00:15:25,520 --> 00:15:28,000
to really look objectively into
that.
298
00:15:28,000 --> 00:15:30,480
And we did and we learned an
awful lot about that.
299
00:15:30,480 --> 00:15:32,440
And so the book is a
methodology.
300
00:15:32,720 --> 00:15:37,520
It's how do you analyze a
situation in a very objective,
301
00:15:37,520 --> 00:15:40,920
scientific, comprehensive way
and draw some good conclusions
302
00:15:40,920 --> 00:15:42,440
about the trade-offs that
happened there.
303
00:15:42,640 --> 00:15:43,920
So that's what that book is
about.
304
00:15:44,400 --> 00:15:48,680
The third one, LCA one O 3 was a
horse of completely different
305
00:15:48,680 --> 00:15:51,040
color.
This was I'm tired of people
306
00:15:51,040 --> 00:15:53,960
coming to me and saying, you
know, I can't do carbon
307
00:15:53,960 --> 00:15:56,880
footprints because I I can't
afford the the price of a big
308
00:15:56,880 --> 00:16:00,040
database, but I really want to
have something I can roll around
309
00:16:00,040 --> 00:16:03,840
in and try some things.
So one day the idea popped in my
310
00:16:03,840 --> 00:16:07,960
head that there's a database
that's free from the government,
311
00:16:08,160 --> 00:16:12,760
that is environmental emission
factors for all of the things
312
00:16:12,760 --> 00:16:15,280
that go into a car.
And if you think about a car,
313
00:16:15,280 --> 00:16:17,640
it's plastic, there's metal,
there's wire, there's glass,
314
00:16:17,640 --> 00:16:20,880
there's all this cool stuff.
And all those factors are in
315
00:16:20,880 --> 00:16:22,320
that database.
So I said, well, why don't I
316
00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:25,520
just extract those that
information out there, put it in
317
00:16:25,520 --> 00:16:29,760
a table, put a nice little front
end in it and create some
318
00:16:29,760 --> 00:16:33,280
examples where you actually
footprint some comparisons and
319
00:16:33,280 --> 00:16:35,160
roll that into a book.
And so that's what I did.
320
00:16:35,400 --> 00:16:38,480
And so not only is the book out
there, but also you have the
321
00:16:38,480 --> 00:16:41,640
ability to download the the
workbook itself and actually
322
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:45,520
play around with it yourself.
Well, so how many companies can,
323
00:16:45,560 --> 00:16:49,680
you know, view the LCA as a
black box and handle it by, you
324
00:16:49,680 --> 00:16:51,960
know, expensive specialist now?
I mean it seems like there's a
325
00:16:51,960 --> 00:16:54,520
little big business in this
space for that.
326
00:16:55,120 --> 00:16:58,280
How does your hands on approach
solve the problem of
327
00:16:58,280 --> 00:17:01,280
accessibility for the average
engineer or small business
328
00:17:01,280 --> 00:17:03,680
owner?
Yeah, that's, that's a subject
329
00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:05,240
that's really near and dear to
my heart.
330
00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:06,960
You really struck A chord when
you got that.
331
00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:11,960
So the, the simple solution that
I just described to you, LCA one
332
00:17:11,960 --> 00:17:16,000
O 3, the the little workbook I
have only focuses on raw
333
00:17:16,000 --> 00:17:18,319
materials.
It's a piece of that supply
334
00:17:18,319 --> 00:17:20,440
chain.
But what we find is a lot of
335
00:17:20,680 --> 00:17:25,400
products that are made might
find 90 or even more percent of
336
00:17:25,400 --> 00:17:27,920
the overall footprint might be
in the raw materials.
337
00:17:28,200 --> 00:17:31,280
So if you want to do
comparisons, that's a good place
338
00:17:31,280 --> 00:17:34,160
to start.
It is by no means a tool that's
339
00:17:34,160 --> 00:17:38,200
going to replace an LCA database
because it's only looking at the
340
00:17:38,200 --> 00:17:40,720
front end of your problem.
But it allows you to get in,
341
00:17:40,720 --> 00:17:42,840
roll around, understand the
process.
342
00:17:43,240 --> 00:17:47,480
Now parallel from that, I, I am
extremely concerned about
343
00:17:47,480 --> 00:17:52,080
working with black spot, black
box LCA databases because I've
344
00:17:52,080 --> 00:17:54,600
been working with them
throughout my career.
345
00:17:54,800 --> 00:17:58,840
And I don't like the, the way
you can't really see the work.
346
00:17:58,960 --> 00:18:01,040
You can't really understand what
it's doing.
347
00:18:01,600 --> 00:18:05,720
And so for the last 10 years,
we've been working to develop a
348
00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:08,880
parallel solution.
Basically, it's an Excel
349
00:18:08,880 --> 00:18:12,760
workbook that does everything
that the Open LCA model does
350
00:18:13,200 --> 00:18:16,600
with a couple of restrictions,
OK, But it does those
351
00:18:16,600 --> 00:18:19,880
calculations in the same
detailed way, not just for for
352
00:18:19,880 --> 00:18:22,160
carbon, but for other
environmental impacts like
353
00:18:22,560 --> 00:18:27,160
sidification, ozone depletion,
energy toxicology, all the
354
00:18:27,160 --> 00:18:30,600
things that are part of these
environmental impact factor
355
00:18:30,800 --> 00:18:35,480
sets.
So we did that because we really
356
00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:38,040
wanted to be able to answer the
question for our clients that
357
00:18:38,040 --> 00:18:40,880
say, OK, you got this answer
from your database.
358
00:18:41,080 --> 00:18:44,000
How do you know it's right?
How do you check that?
359
00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:47,960
And so we said, OK, well, you
know, what do you do normally
360
00:18:47,960 --> 00:18:51,000
when someone says to check that,
well, you get a piece of paper
361
00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:53,800
and you write down some numbers
and you look up the factors and
362
00:18:53,800 --> 00:18:57,360
you basically do manually, you
know, a, a set of calculations
363
00:18:57,360 --> 00:19:00,760
for, you know, one of the
elements, say a raw material to
364
00:19:00,760 --> 00:19:03,360
see if it looks like the box is
doing its right way.
365
00:19:03,720 --> 00:19:06,240
Well, or you might use Excel to
do that.
366
00:19:06,440 --> 00:19:08,360
And so that led to the leap of
faith.
367
00:19:08,360 --> 00:19:11,120
Faith that was OK.
Well, why don't we just do all
368
00:19:11,120 --> 00:19:13,120
those calculations and then
we'll know for sure.
369
00:19:13,320 --> 00:19:15,560
We've checked everything.
And then we said, well, if we're
370
00:19:15,560 --> 00:19:19,040
going to go to the trouble to do
that, maybe there's a reason why
371
00:19:19,040 --> 00:19:22,880
our clients may want to do that.
Because then it becomes a what
372
00:19:22,880 --> 00:19:25,840
if tool that's transparent.
They can see all the activities,
373
00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:29,200
they can QA it, and they're
going to get a huge amount of
374
00:19:29,200 --> 00:19:35,200
benefit from it by people using
it who aren't people that are in
375
00:19:35,560 --> 00:19:39,440
the LCA database tool every day.
Because that takes to be
376
00:19:39,440 --> 00:19:41,760
effective with those things.
Any kind of complicated
377
00:19:41,760 --> 00:19:44,240
software, any kind of modeling
software, if you're not working
378
00:19:44,240 --> 00:19:46,000
with it regularly, you're going
to struggle.
379
00:19:46,320 --> 00:19:49,640
But the nice thing with Excel is
you can look at it, you know, I
380
00:19:49,640 --> 00:19:52,400
don't care what you were working
on 30 minutes ago or for the
381
00:19:52,400 --> 00:19:56,080
last two months, you can look at
that Excel and kind of go, yeah,
382
00:19:56,080 --> 00:19:58,120
I see what's going on here.
OK, that's great.
383
00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:02,880
And by that transparency, it's
also a really good QA tool on
384
00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:05,200
your data.
So as you're looking at it and
385
00:20:05,200 --> 00:20:09,360
we have a tie to some graphs and
tables so that when you put in
386
00:20:09,360 --> 00:20:11,800
the results, you can see right
in front of you what's
387
00:20:11,800 --> 00:20:14,080
happening.
And if you see things that you
388
00:20:14,080 --> 00:20:17,960
aren't expecting, you can you
can drill down into them and
389
00:20:17,960 --> 00:20:20,440
then obviously you can make
changes to it and see how the
390
00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:23,000
results play out.
So we're really excited about
391
00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:25,080
it.
We're doing our second project
392
00:20:25,080 --> 00:20:27,880
now to use that tool and we
have.
393
00:20:28,800 --> 00:20:31,760
Cross checked it against the
open LCAA to see if we could get
394
00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:33,800
exactly the same results and we
did.
395
00:20:34,280 --> 00:20:37,680
So that's where we are.
Hello ET Nation, I want to thank
396
00:20:37,680 --> 00:20:39,400
you for listening to the podcast
if.
397
00:20:39,400 --> 00:20:42,240
You're enjoying the interviews.
We bring you Consider supporting
398
00:20:42,240 --> 00:20:46,280
the program by visiting my
website at seankgrady.com and
399
00:20:46,280 --> 00:20:48,960
buy me a cup of coffee.
Proceeds will go towards helping
400
00:20:48,960 --> 00:20:52,360
me continue producing timely
content and offset production
401
00:20:52,360 --> 00:20:55,280
costs.
I'd also like to take a moment
402
00:20:55,280 --> 00:20:57,800
and recognize a few of our
sponsors of the show who have
403
00:20:57,800 --> 00:21:00,880
been amazing partners and our ET
Nation legends.
404
00:21:01,400 --> 00:21:04,040
If you're looking for a drilling
an environmental contracting
405
00:21:04,040 --> 00:21:07,240
firm to help you delineate the
extent of contamination at your
406
00:21:07,240 --> 00:21:10,480
site, then look no further than
Cascade Environmental.
407
00:21:11,040 --> 00:21:14,920
Cascade has over 37 offices
across the country and offers a
408
00:21:14,920 --> 00:21:18,080
huge range of environmental and
geotechnical drilling, site
409
00:21:18,080 --> 00:21:20,800
characterization, and
remediation services.
410
00:21:21,200 --> 00:21:24,320
With their huge fleet of
equipment nationwide coverage,
411
00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:28,280
Cascade is a great choice to
support your environmental and
412
00:21:28,280 --> 00:21:31,160
infrastructure needs.
To learn more, check out their
413
00:21:31,160 --> 00:21:37,200
website at cascade-env.com.
That's cascade-env.com.
414
00:21:37,400 --> 00:21:39,880
Hey, are you looking for an
equipment rental company to help
415
00:21:39,880 --> 00:21:43,400
you with your next wastewater
remediation or waste management
416
00:21:43,400 --> 00:21:46,360
project?
E Tank is the only environmental
417
00:21:46,360 --> 00:21:50,120
equipment rental company in the
industry that offers 100%
418
00:21:50,120 --> 00:21:53,920
guaranteed certified clean
temporary liquid storage tanks
419
00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:58,000
at no additional cost.
This protocol gives Peace of
420
00:21:58,000 --> 00:22:01,440
Mind for the previous customer
by limiting their downstream
421
00:22:01,440 --> 00:22:05,240
liability as well as the future
customer by preventing any cross
422
00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:08,280
contamination for all of their
rental tanks.
423
00:22:08,880 --> 00:22:13,360
E Tank also runs a one-of-a-kind
complete maintenance program for
424
00:22:13,360 --> 00:22:16,240
all rental items including
liquid tight roll off
425
00:22:16,240 --> 00:22:21,080
containers, fluid transfer pumps
and filtration items.
426
00:22:21,440 --> 00:22:24,240
The next time you are presented
with an environmental challenge,
427
00:22:24,240 --> 00:22:27,720
call E Tank to come up with the
solution for your problem.
428
00:22:28,560 --> 00:22:31,000
I want to thank one of our
sponsors, Wastelink.
429
00:22:31,120 --> 00:22:34,800
Wastelink is the all in one
software platform transforming
430
00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:37,560
how environmental professionals
manage waste, connecting
431
00:22:37,560 --> 00:22:41,520
generators, service providers,
and disposal facilities in a way
432
00:22:41,520 --> 00:22:44,720
that is simple, connected, and
transparent.
433
00:22:45,520 --> 00:22:48,680
Your platform helps streamline
everything from waste profiling
434
00:22:48,680 --> 00:22:52,720
and routing to inventory
management and billing, giving
435
00:22:52,720 --> 00:22:55,640
you the tools you need to
operate more efficiently and
436
00:22:55,640 --> 00:22:58,240
reduce cost.
Whether you're a generator
437
00:22:58,240 --> 00:23:02,520
looking for better options or a
service provider seeking greater
438
00:23:02,520 --> 00:23:04,920
efficiency, Waste Link has you
covered.
439
00:23:05,280 --> 00:23:07,920
If you're ready to take control
of your waste management
440
00:23:07,920 --> 00:23:12,440
processes and optimize your
business, visit wastelink.com to
441
00:23:12,440 --> 00:23:15,480
schedule a demo today.
Well, I mean, so why is this,
442
00:23:15,480 --> 00:23:18,600
why is the transparency of, you
know, in formulas and the
443
00:23:18,600 --> 00:23:22,200
ability of the user to, you
know, basically see the guts of
444
00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:25,800
this, this actual process and
all the calculations that you
445
00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:28,800
put into the, you know, into the
formulas there inside the Excel.
446
00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:31,320
Why is that so important and so
vital for the credibility of the
447
00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:36,440
sustainability claims and so?
You know, it is, it is just
448
00:23:36,440 --> 00:23:39,040
that.
And what's interesting is that
449
00:23:39,760 --> 00:23:41,760
when you do a life cycle
assessment, if you're going to
450
00:23:41,760 --> 00:23:44,720
share the results and make a
claim, you're supposed to have a
451
00:23:44,720 --> 00:23:47,960
third party reviewed, which
means theoretically someone's
452
00:23:47,960 --> 00:23:51,040
looking over your shoulder.
Well, additionally, what has
453
00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:54,000
happened with that in large
measure, and I have done third
454
00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:56,400
party review myself.
So I speak from a little bit of
455
00:23:56,400 --> 00:24:00,240
experience, This centroid of how
those reviewers tend to approach
456
00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:04,520
things is there's a list of
things that ISO says have to be
457
00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:07,720
in your life cycle assessment,
you know, has to have go and
458
00:24:07,720 --> 00:24:10,520
scope, has to have system
foundry, has to have functioning
459
00:24:10,520 --> 00:24:12,640
and all these things that are
supposed to be in your report.
460
00:24:13,000 --> 00:24:15,960
And so it becomes a checklist.
Got this, got this, got this,
461
00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:17,720
got this.
OK, great.
462
00:24:18,080 --> 00:24:20,480
Therefore you have a great LCA
report.
463
00:24:20,680 --> 00:24:22,840
I'm your reviewer.
You met all the requirements and
464
00:24:22,840 --> 00:24:25,360
ISO.
Have a nice day, right.
465
00:24:25,680 --> 00:24:28,840
I got a fundamental problem with
that because you didn't say and
466
00:24:28,840 --> 00:24:31,520
by the way, I checked all the
numbers to make sure that you
467
00:24:31,520 --> 00:24:34,920
really did the calculations in
in a comprehensive and effective
468
00:24:34,920 --> 00:24:37,760
way.
And the problem is when you have
469
00:24:37,760 --> 00:24:40,440
a model, the only way that you
could really have a way to do
470
00:24:40,440 --> 00:24:43,520
that would be to literally take
every step that the person who
471
00:24:43,520 --> 00:24:45,880
set up the model did.
Well, who wants to pay for that
472
00:24:45,880 --> 00:24:47,600
twice?
No one, right?
473
00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:51,680
So that's why having this
transparent thing allows the
474
00:24:51,680 --> 00:24:55,120
auditor, the reviewer, to
actually say, yeah, I actually
475
00:24:55,120 --> 00:24:57,160
checked the math.
I can see what's going on.
476
00:24:57,320 --> 00:25:01,760
I know that it's doing the A * B
= C and it's got the right A's,
477
00:25:02,000 --> 00:25:04,960
it's using the right B's.
And yeah, the C answer
478
00:25:05,280 --> 00:25:07,000
benchmarks.
It looks effective.
479
00:25:07,200 --> 00:25:10,800
You know it it, you know it's
the right answer, or within some
480
00:25:10,800 --> 00:25:12,280
range of accuracy anyway.
Sure.
481
00:25:12,440 --> 00:25:13,680
Sure.
No, that's good.
482
00:25:13,720 --> 00:25:17,440
I mean, and I think you, like I
said, it just elevates the, the,
483
00:25:17,800 --> 00:25:20,760
the, the power of the tool and,
and the credibility of the
484
00:25:20,760 --> 00:25:24,240
calculations and the outcome.
So that's, that's excellent.
485
00:25:25,680 --> 00:25:29,040
If we talk about the, the, you
know, selecting factors, you
486
00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:31,840
know, I think a lot of people
are trying to always figure out
487
00:25:31,840 --> 00:25:35,400
where do I get this factors
emission factor for a typical
488
00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,240
type of product or, you know,
raw material.
489
00:25:38,240 --> 00:25:41,560
But that seems like a major
hurdle for for beginners and
490
00:25:41,560 --> 00:25:43,720
knowing which emission factor to
use.
491
00:25:44,400 --> 00:25:48,720
So why do you anchor in your
books the Argonne National Labs
492
00:25:48,720 --> 00:25:53,480
Greek model as as kind of like
your main source of, you know,
493
00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:56,280
factors that you, you know, have
the readers translate to the
494
00:25:56,280 --> 00:26:00,880
most complex data sets?
Well, it doesn't hurt that I've
495
00:26:00,880 --> 00:26:04,400
been working with the people at
Oregon lab for ever since Greek
496
00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:06,400
was, you know, first developed
frankly.
497
00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:09,400
And we've actually contributed
to some of that content.
498
00:26:09,680 --> 00:26:15,520
We created some tools that are
are that slave off of the
499
00:26:15,520 --> 00:26:18,280
information that's in Greek that
they have made part of their
500
00:26:18,280 --> 00:26:20,760
package actually.
So we're extremely familiar with
501
00:26:20,760 --> 00:26:23,360
that.
But that being said, you know,
502
00:26:23,360 --> 00:26:26,200
it's run by the government.
It it's based on a lot of
503
00:26:26,200 --> 00:26:30,160
publicly available government
data like from EIA and other
504
00:26:30,160 --> 00:26:32,840
government agencies.
And it gets updated every year.
505
00:26:33,640 --> 00:26:35,960
And it also gets peer reviewed
fairly well.
506
00:26:36,240 --> 00:26:38,600
And so I have a lot of
confidence in what's in there.
507
00:26:38,760 --> 00:26:42,720
Now the bad news is if this is
not a material that goes in your
508
00:26:42,720 --> 00:26:45,240
car, then you're not going to
find it in there.
509
00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:48,200
So you're going to have to go
somewhere else to find those
510
00:26:48,200 --> 00:26:51,280
factors.
And so a lot of what many people
511
00:26:51,280 --> 00:26:55,000
do is they just in today's world
of AI, you just go to your
512
00:26:55,000 --> 00:27:01,200
computer and you say carbon
footprint for shampoo and you're
513
00:27:01,200 --> 00:27:05,400
going to get some studies for
that and trust but verify.
514
00:27:05,920 --> 00:27:10,360
It's amazing now how AI is going
to be used to if for some of the
515
00:27:10,360 --> 00:27:13,000
work that we're doing in the
environmental space.
516
00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:16,360
And yeah, you just prompted with
a question.
517
00:27:16,360 --> 00:27:18,640
It's going to give you kind of
like, oh, here's all the raw
518
00:27:18,640 --> 00:27:21,960
materials that go into, you
know, shampoo for a carpet and
519
00:27:21,960 --> 00:27:23,880
bam, you.
Know yeah, and you'll get some
520
00:27:23,880 --> 00:27:26,080
answers too but the most
important thing is it's going to
521
00:27:26,080 --> 00:27:29,360
point you to the sources.
And so then then we do as
522
00:27:29,360 --> 00:27:31,920
scientists is we're going to
open up that source by the way,
523
00:27:31,920 --> 00:27:36,000
if it's actually there every now
and then you will find that it
524
00:27:36,000 --> 00:27:38,920
tells you that a source exists
and it doesn't actually we have
525
00:27:38,920 --> 00:27:42,000
had that experience but if you
open it up you're looking for
526
00:27:42,000 --> 00:27:43,880
things like was it peer
reviewed?
527
00:27:44,040 --> 00:27:48,040
How did they do their what sort
of assumptions do they make What
528
00:27:48,040 --> 00:27:50,960
sort of credentials even do the
people have that that worked on
529
00:27:50,960 --> 00:27:53,840
that those are all things that
you can do and then if you're
530
00:27:53,840 --> 00:27:56,520
like most people you want to try
to benchmark that as well.
531
00:27:56,680 --> 00:28:00,000
So I don't want just one study.
I really want 2 studies that I
532
00:28:00,000 --> 00:28:02,640
can compare against each other.
Now I'm feeling really good
533
00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:04,680
about it.
And the third thing I might do
534
00:28:04,680 --> 00:28:09,000
as a practitioner, you know I, I
have these in eco event factors.
535
00:28:09,000 --> 00:28:11,800
I have access to them all you
know they're behind the paywall.
536
00:28:11,880 --> 00:28:15,680
I can use those to benchmark the
study so that way the the client
537
00:28:15,680 --> 00:28:18,800
doesn't have to pay for the eco
invent factor because here it is
538
00:28:18,800 --> 00:28:22,840
it's publicly available in this
study you know and yeah, quietly
539
00:28:23,000 --> 00:28:25,520
I told the client by the way.
I checked it against Eco Invent
540
00:28:25,680 --> 00:28:27,920
and I probably am not going to
be able to say that in the
541
00:28:27,920 --> 00:28:32,120
report, but that gives the a
little bit more confidence,
542
00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:33,200
yeah.
Right, right.
543
00:28:33,240 --> 00:28:35,880
Absolutely.
Well, you know, there's been a
544
00:28:35,880 --> 00:28:40,800
lot of going on in in the
environmental world these days.
545
00:28:40,800 --> 00:28:46,280
EPA has, interestingly enough,
pulled back some new, you know,
546
00:28:46,680 --> 00:28:50,720
rules.
The endangerment clause of air
547
00:28:50,720 --> 00:28:55,120
emission was recently rescinded,
You know, so if we look at,
548
00:28:55,120 --> 00:28:59,160
let's say your LCAA one O yeah,
one O 2, which is around the
549
00:28:59,160 --> 00:29:02,320
electric vehicles, you know, in
your book in the in the electric
550
00:29:02,320 --> 00:29:07,000
vehicles, you challenge
one-size-fits-all narrative in
551
00:29:07,000 --> 00:29:09,920
in electrification.
So what are the most critical,
552
00:29:09,920 --> 00:29:14,080
often overlooked variables such
as grid intensity, battery
553
00:29:14,080 --> 00:29:18,480
weight, you know, and what you
know, can that completely be
554
00:29:18,480 --> 00:29:23,640
flipped with the results of you
know, of the EV versus the the
555
00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:27,200
internal combustion engine
comparison now or you know that
556
00:29:27,200 --> 00:29:29,240
we're these new rules are going
to be affecting.
557
00:29:30,200 --> 00:29:34,640
Well, first of all, the
endangerment finding situation
558
00:29:34,880 --> 00:29:36,840
really doesn't impact much of
anything.
559
00:29:36,840 --> 00:29:41,640
That said, in the book that we
wrote, the fact that some people
560
00:29:41,640 --> 00:29:44,320
in the government have decided
that greenhouse gases don't
561
00:29:44,320 --> 00:29:47,880
threaten, you know, human health
and therefore they're they're
562
00:29:47,880 --> 00:29:50,400
not endangering us.
You know, it's a completely
563
00:29:50,400 --> 00:29:53,640
separate issue.
If if you're still interested in
564
00:29:53,640 --> 00:29:57,040
making an impact on carbon, then
you still want to study the
565
00:29:57,040 --> 00:29:58,960
electric vehicle.
You still want to figure out,
566
00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:01,080
you know, where it makes sense
and where it doesn't.
567
00:30:01,520 --> 00:30:05,320
And not just with electric
vehicles, but anything that is
568
00:30:05,400 --> 00:30:09,800
powered by a fuel source that's
not fossil fuel.
569
00:30:10,040 --> 00:30:11,920
You know, these are the kinds of
things that you may want to
570
00:30:12,080 --> 00:30:14,800
think about.
But for the for the EV in
571
00:30:14,800 --> 00:30:17,080
particular, one of the things
that struck me right on the head
572
00:30:17,080 --> 00:30:20,080
when I first started looking at
it is the temperature impacts.
573
00:30:20,080 --> 00:30:22,800
And people have always talked
about them, you know, in terms
574
00:30:22,800 --> 00:30:26,280
of that being, you know, a
strong part of the process.
575
00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:29,480
And it absolutely is, however,
in ways that you might not think
576
00:30:29,480 --> 00:30:32,040
about directly.
So people think about how the
577
00:30:32,040 --> 00:30:34,200
battery performs when it's hot
outside.
578
00:30:34,440 --> 00:30:36,800
OK, that's great.
But that's not really the the
579
00:30:36,800 --> 00:30:40,160
big effect that's that, you
know, an internal combustion
580
00:30:40,160 --> 00:30:44,240
engine is heating up your cab
when it's hot out or when it's
581
00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:46,560
cold inside, you want it to be
hot inside.
582
00:30:47,320 --> 00:30:50,080
So you get that benefit of the
internal combustion engine with
583
00:30:50,080 --> 00:30:52,200
an EV.
Guess what, No combustion.
584
00:30:52,400 --> 00:30:55,640
So now that's it becomes a tax
on your battery.
585
00:30:55,800 --> 00:30:59,600
Part of your power that you're
counting on has to go into
586
00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:03,040
heating the vehicle.
And that is a carbon footprint
587
00:31:03,240 --> 00:31:06,400
balancing act issue.
But the one that I found even
588
00:31:06,400 --> 00:31:09,520
more intriguing than that was
how you charge your car.
589
00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:13,520
So that battery in order to
protect itself, has temperature
590
00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:17,480
monitoring with it that says,
hey, you're only allowed to
591
00:31:17,480 --> 00:31:20,440
charge me if the temperature is
within a certain range.
592
00:31:20,600 --> 00:31:23,400
And if it's too cold, I'm going
to activate a heating element
593
00:31:23,400 --> 00:31:25,840
and I'm going to heat up the
area around the battery so you
594
00:31:25,840 --> 00:31:28,560
don't damage your battery.
On the other side of the coin,
595
00:31:29,480 --> 00:31:33,240
if it's too hot out there in in
where your your battery lives,
596
00:31:33,440 --> 00:31:36,280
I'm going to engage a fan and
I'm going to try to cool down
597
00:31:36,280 --> 00:31:38,800
that battery.
And I'm not going to let you
598
00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:42,840
charge it until I've cooled down
the cargo space enough to where
599
00:31:42,840 --> 00:31:44,160
the battery is the right
temperature.
600
00:31:44,360 --> 00:31:47,960
Well, you're not going to find
those results on your EPA
601
00:31:47,960 --> 00:31:51,240
sticker for your EV.
They're not part of what happens
602
00:31:51,480 --> 00:31:54,160
because they don't happen as you
operate the vehicle.
603
00:31:54,160 --> 00:31:56,360
They're not part of your
efficiency, but actually they
604
00:31:56,360 --> 00:31:58,960
are if you take a life cycle
approach to this.
605
00:31:59,280 --> 00:32:01,440
So those are really important
things.
606
00:32:01,680 --> 00:32:03,720
Where you charge your vehicle is
really important.
607
00:32:03,720 --> 00:32:07,520
Say you live in Chicago and your
junks in your garage instead of
608
00:32:07,520 --> 00:32:09,760
your car.
No one would ever let that
609
00:32:09,760 --> 00:32:12,720
happen, right?
But if that's your case, then
610
00:32:12,720 --> 00:32:16,000
you're going to pay a huge tax
for heating out this car
611
00:32:16,200 --> 00:32:21,240
outside, whereas instead, if you
charge it in your car or in your
612
00:32:21,240 --> 00:32:24,200
garage, get rid of the junk.
That would be a great place for
613
00:32:24,200 --> 00:32:26,880
you to be.
And furthermore, if you really
614
00:32:26,880 --> 00:32:29,720
want to up your game even a
little bit further, then you
615
00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:33,880
might insulate your garage also
so that now you're not have to
616
00:32:34,040 --> 00:32:37,280
having to take that head start
either when it's hot or cold.
617
00:32:37,280 --> 00:32:40,480
Insulation will help you both
ways with respect to that.
618
00:32:40,800 --> 00:32:44,080
So, but there are, there are
things that matter a lot that
619
00:32:44,080 --> 00:32:46,320
were part of the study that we
did and they're part of the
620
00:32:46,320 --> 00:32:48,480
book.
The key thing obviously is the
621
00:32:48,480 --> 00:32:52,480
grid and what's going on in the
state where you are operating.
622
00:32:52,720 --> 00:32:55,960
It's, it's no secret that as you
look at the say the Eastern
623
00:32:55,960 --> 00:32:59,720
Seaboard state, so you can see,
you know that West Virginia,
624
00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,800
Kentucky, they're a coal
weighted grid.
625
00:33:02,800 --> 00:33:06,680
And so the, the electric
vehicles aren't going to do as
626
00:33:06,680 --> 00:33:10,440
well there in terms of carbon
reduction, right.
627
00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:13,760
And surprisingly, if you look at
EV sales, one of the biggest
628
00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:17,360
places where EVs are selling
right now is in California.
629
00:33:18,000 --> 00:33:21,960
And unfortunately in California,
the grid is really pretty good.
630
00:33:22,280 --> 00:33:26,360
So the net benefit of putting
EVs, if you could pick wherever
631
00:33:26,360 --> 00:33:29,040
you want them, you wouldn't put
them in California.
632
00:33:29,040 --> 00:33:31,960
You would put them, you know,
every single vehicle you could
633
00:33:32,160 --> 00:33:34,160
replace in West Virginia, you'd
try to.
634
00:33:34,440 --> 00:33:38,080
The problem is we have customers
and customers have preferences
635
00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:40,240
and they have geographic
locations.
636
00:33:40,240 --> 00:33:45,000
So are you going to get demand
to line up with what is the best
637
00:33:45,000 --> 00:33:46,920
for the environment overall?
Probably not.
638
00:33:47,200 --> 00:33:50,520
But at least you can understand
what those forces mean and how
639
00:33:50,520 --> 00:33:52,880
to put them in perspective.
And that's what the book tried
640
00:33:52,880 --> 00:33:54,760
to do.
Yeah, cuz when you think about
641
00:33:54,760 --> 00:33:57,760
the grid, I mean not like you
just mentioned, not all
642
00:33:58,000 --> 00:34:04,000
utilities are the same when it
comes to delivering the power
643
00:34:04,000 --> 00:34:07,720
and, and their source of power
and, and the emissions that are
644
00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:10,840
involved with generating that
power for the utility.
645
00:34:11,159 --> 00:34:15,639
And I, you know, having a grasp
of that and where certain
646
00:34:15,639 --> 00:34:19,239
factors are going to play into
the equation versus, you know,
647
00:34:19,239 --> 00:34:22,480
in a location that may be a
hydropowered company or, or, you
648
00:34:22,760 --> 00:34:24,719
know, somewhere like that.
That's that's like you got to
649
00:34:24,719 --> 00:34:28,560
really know your stuff.
And actually just as a side
650
00:34:28,560 --> 00:34:32,239
note, I have to have to react to
your the use of hydropower there
651
00:34:32,600 --> 00:34:35,920
because hydropower is uniquely
different from wind and solar.
652
00:34:36,080 --> 00:34:39,239
They all have a burden that
caused that results from, you
653
00:34:39,239 --> 00:34:42,360
know, the equipment part of it.
And I haven't mentioned capital
654
00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:44,560
equipment, but that's also part
of the footprint.
655
00:34:44,560 --> 00:34:49,480
Theoretically, it's typically a
minor player, but with those
656
00:34:49,480 --> 00:34:52,199
people who are using
hydroelectric power, one of the
657
00:34:52,199 --> 00:34:54,880
things that's been often
overlooked is the impacts from
658
00:34:54,880 --> 00:34:58,600
the reservoir.
So when you create a hydropower
659
00:34:58,600 --> 00:35:01,320
plant, typically there's a
reservoir that's associated with
660
00:35:01,320 --> 00:35:03,640
it.
When you bring that reservoir
661
00:35:03,640 --> 00:35:07,080
into being, what are you doing?
Well, you're flooding land.
662
00:35:07,320 --> 00:35:11,880
And as you do, the biological
growth that was in that area
663
00:35:11,880 --> 00:35:15,840
that you flooded is going to off
gas for years and years and
664
00:35:15,840 --> 00:35:18,400
years.
And they are now starting to
665
00:35:18,400 --> 00:35:22,600
measure exactly what that is and
therefore define the
666
00:35:22,600 --> 00:35:26,120
hydroelectric power plant
footprint as not 0.
667
00:35:26,600 --> 00:35:29,480
It's it's certainly not like
burning fossil fuels, but it's
668
00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:31,640
not 0.
And so that's part of how the
669
00:35:31,640 --> 00:35:35,400
life cycle assessment science
evolves over time as we learn
670
00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:39,160
things and we get a broader
perspective, even more than we
671
00:35:39,160 --> 00:35:41,960
had before, about what really
matters and what doesn't and how
672
00:35:41,960 --> 00:35:42,440
much.
Well.
673
00:35:42,880 --> 00:35:46,040
OK, so let's, let's, let's take
this other kind of interesting
674
00:35:46,040 --> 00:35:49,560
question because I think a lot
of people are like, hey, it
675
00:35:49,560 --> 00:35:55,080
takes as much carbon and impacts
to build an EV car as it does
676
00:35:56,040 --> 00:35:58,560
like a gas combustion, internal
combustion car.
677
00:35:58,840 --> 00:36:00,960
Or maybe it takes more, I don't
know.
678
00:36:01,480 --> 00:36:04,600
But maybe through your
experience, could you kind of
679
00:36:04,600 --> 00:36:09,240
shed some light on the pros and
cons of this just cuz maybe the
680
00:36:09,240 --> 00:36:12,360
listener is just saying, I want
to do what's best to buy the
681
00:36:12,360 --> 00:36:18,080
right car related to its carbon
emission impact, say over its
682
00:36:18,080 --> 00:36:21,160
lifespan that I'm going to have
the car versus me buying a
683
00:36:21,240 --> 00:36:25,880
internal combustion car and just
buying fuel to power it, you
684
00:36:25,920 --> 00:36:27,960
know, over time.
And then the cost benefit
685
00:36:27,960 --> 00:36:30,200
analysis, I mean, what what's
your take on that?
686
00:36:30,200 --> 00:36:32,000
Because I'm sure you're kind of
looking at that as well.
687
00:36:32,600 --> 00:36:34,480
Well, it, it definitely is
complicated.
688
00:36:34,680 --> 00:36:37,440
First of all, a lot of people
will raise their hand and say,
689
00:36:37,440 --> 00:36:40,240
oh, it's the battery.
You know, that's the reason why
690
00:36:40,240 --> 00:36:42,680
these EVs, their, their
footprint really isn't that
691
00:36:42,680 --> 00:36:45,480
great.
And if you assess the battery,
692
00:36:45,600 --> 00:36:48,120
you'll figure out that, you
know, whatever fuel savings
693
00:36:48,120 --> 00:36:52,040
there is gets weighed out by how
carbon intensive it is to make
694
00:36:52,040 --> 00:36:55,400
the battery.
Well, I, I think that's been,
695
00:36:55,480 --> 00:36:59,040
that's been gas lit and proven
not to be the key aspect.
696
00:36:59,040 --> 00:37:02,760
It, it is an important aspect,
but in terms of percentage, the
697
00:37:02,760 --> 00:37:07,080
use phase and the use of the
power plant or internal
698
00:37:07,080 --> 00:37:10,800
combustion is going to wet far
outweigh that element of it.
699
00:37:11,160 --> 00:37:13,720
And we studied this in a very
detailed way for a bus
700
00:37:13,720 --> 00:37:16,920
manufacturer.
We built a, a carbon comparison
701
00:37:16,920 --> 00:37:22,600
tool for them, which basically
compares diesel buses to CNG to
702
00:37:22,600 --> 00:37:26,040
hybrid to electric buses.
And we did this because their
703
00:37:26,040 --> 00:37:29,440
customers really want to know if
I'm if I'm buying a fleet of
704
00:37:29,440 --> 00:37:33,800
buses and I had diesel buses
before and now I have CNG or now
705
00:37:33,800 --> 00:37:36,400
I have electric, what exact
footprint am I going to
706
00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:41,400
difference am I going to make?
Because say I'm a city or a
707
00:37:41,400 --> 00:37:44,840
university, they actually have
carbon reduction plans and they
708
00:37:44,840 --> 00:37:47,680
have to literally fact factor
this kind of information into
709
00:37:47,680 --> 00:37:49,200
it.
So we worked with the
710
00:37:49,240 --> 00:37:52,400
manufacturer of the space of the
year to collect a bunch of data
711
00:37:52,640 --> 00:37:55,920
and try to come to, you know,
what's probably not the be all
712
00:37:55,920 --> 00:37:59,560
end all, but it's a, it's a good
estimation tool to be able to
713
00:37:59,560 --> 00:38:03,280
say, yeah, pretty clearly this
is and this is how it works out.
714
00:38:03,280 --> 00:38:07,480
And as you might expect, the
electric buses are pretty much
715
00:38:07,480 --> 00:38:10,280
always going to win the
equation, but it's by how much?
716
00:38:10,520 --> 00:38:14,000
And it gets to, again, where,
where is the footprint?
717
00:38:14,160 --> 00:38:17,000
But there's, there's another
important aspect which I haven't
718
00:38:17,000 --> 00:38:20,040
brought in so far, but I will.
And that's the role of the plug
719
00:38:20,040 --> 00:38:24,280
in hybrid vehicle, which is
where I've been living in my own
720
00:38:24,280 --> 00:38:25,920
personal space for the last 10
years.
721
00:38:26,480 --> 00:38:30,800
I have personally driven a plug
in hybrid vehicle and I believe
722
00:38:30,800 --> 00:38:33,520
that's the ultimate solution to
the problem for the short term
723
00:38:33,800 --> 00:38:37,840
because the challenge electric
vehicles have is the ability to
724
00:38:37,840 --> 00:38:41,360
have cruise range based on where
the chargers are, the cost of
725
00:38:41,360 --> 00:38:45,000
what charging is and the time it
takes to charge.
726
00:38:45,280 --> 00:38:48,120
All those things are dramatic
issues.
727
00:38:48,120 --> 00:38:50,760
And you know the IRA was going
to fix all of that.
728
00:38:51,040 --> 00:38:53,600
Well, when that got rescinded.
Now where's the money going to
729
00:38:53,600 --> 00:38:56,240
come from not only for the
charging stations that we might
730
00:38:56,240 --> 00:38:58,960
need ultimately, but also so for
the power plants.
731
00:38:59,240 --> 00:39:03,000
We're we're already competing
for power plant bandwidth with
732
00:39:03,000 --> 00:39:07,240
the data centers and how AI is
driving that to a higher level
733
00:39:07,240 --> 00:39:10,360
of power demand.
That's the the EVs are going to
734
00:39:10,360 --> 00:39:12,560
report are going to compete for
that.
735
00:39:12,760 --> 00:39:15,760
The advantage to the plug in
hybrid is that you get the best
736
00:39:15,760 --> 00:39:17,960
of both worlds.
You don't have to build all
737
00:39:17,960 --> 00:39:19,640
those charging stations
necessarily.
738
00:39:19,840 --> 00:39:22,680
Just charge it at home.
When your charge runs out, you
739
00:39:22,680 --> 00:39:26,200
run off gasoline.
But the advantage to it is
740
00:39:26,600 --> 00:39:28,760
you're addressing the air
pollution problem from
741
00:39:28,760 --> 00:39:32,080
combustion while you're driving
around town on your battery.
742
00:39:32,400 --> 00:39:36,080
And when you're out on the
highway, you run out of battery
743
00:39:36,240 --> 00:39:38,480
and now I'm on fossil fuel.
But guess what?
744
00:39:38,480 --> 00:39:41,360
They're you're you're not
exhausting all that information
745
00:39:41,680 --> 00:39:43,960
into the breathing zone of
people.
746
00:39:44,160 --> 00:39:46,360
So it's a, it's a really good
trade off.
747
00:39:46,720 --> 00:39:49,960
So that's not going to get you
to the goal as fast as an EV
748
00:39:50,000 --> 00:39:54,360
will, but it's going to put
points on the board that much
749
00:39:54,360 --> 00:39:57,400
more quickly because we don't
have the charging, we don't have
750
00:39:57,400 --> 00:39:59,880
the power plants to go all the
way to the end of the tunnel.
751
00:40:00,360 --> 00:40:03,960
But we could pretty much convert
every new vehicle to a plug in
752
00:40:03,960 --> 00:40:07,760
hybrid and we would get points
on the board way, way faster if
753
00:40:07,760 --> 00:40:11,240
we did that.
So when you did, you also factor
754
00:40:11,240 --> 00:40:14,720
in the cost of the vehicles and
stuff we did because a lot of
755
00:40:14,720 --> 00:40:18,640
the EVs are a lot more expensive
in a lot of cases than a normal
756
00:40:18,640 --> 00:40:21,240
internal combustion car.
And I'm thinking average Family
757
00:40:21,240 --> 00:40:25,000
Guy who just, you know, needs to
get a good, you know, $15,000
758
00:40:25,000 --> 00:40:29,480
car to, you know, run for a
good, you know, 100,000 miles or
759
00:40:29,480 --> 00:40:32,040
whatever, you know, until he's
ready, whatever it is.
760
00:40:32,040 --> 00:40:36,400
I mean, when I look at those
types of decisions versus an EV
761
00:40:36,520 --> 00:40:40,800
versus like that, I start to go,
it doesn't make as much sense as
762
00:40:40,800 --> 00:40:45,520
an EV versus that because I just
feel like it seems like it's a
763
00:40:45,520 --> 00:40:49,280
better, more cost effective and
less impact since you've already
764
00:40:49,360 --> 00:40:51,560
the car's already been built.
Like I don't not buying a new
765
00:40:51,560 --> 00:40:52,680
car, I'm buying a used car,
right?
766
00:40:52,680 --> 00:40:56,400
You know, type thing.
Well, there's a lot to unpack
767
00:40:56,400 --> 00:40:59,560
with with that.
One of the things about electric
768
00:40:59,560 --> 00:41:03,320
vehicles is the more the vehicle
weighs, and I'm not talking
769
00:41:03,320 --> 00:41:05,760
about the weight of the battery,
we're talking about the vehicle
770
00:41:05,760 --> 00:41:08,320
overall.
The more it weighs, typically
771
00:41:08,520 --> 00:41:10,640
the the less well it's going to
perform.
772
00:41:10,840 --> 00:41:16,520
So that the four door sedan,
really small electric vehicles,
773
00:41:16,520 --> 00:41:18,840
which is kind of why Tesla went
down that road.
774
00:41:19,120 --> 00:41:21,720
The smaller the vehicle, the
better it's going to perform in
775
00:41:21,720 --> 00:41:23,400
all those categories you just
talked about.
776
00:41:23,640 --> 00:41:27,600
But if we're talking a Suburban,
a Yukon, you know, even a pickup
777
00:41:27,600 --> 00:41:30,240
truck, that's a more challenging
space.
778
00:41:30,560 --> 00:41:34,040
And that's why people have been
really slow to conquer that
779
00:41:34,040 --> 00:41:37,160
marketplace.
There's another really dramatic
780
00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:39,440
force here, and I don't know
where that's going to happen,
781
00:41:39,440 --> 00:41:42,440
but it could be a shockwave for
this.
782
00:41:42,440 --> 00:41:47,720
And that is the price of
vehicles for electric in Asia is
783
00:41:47,720 --> 00:41:51,680
shockingly low.
You can buy an electric vehicle
784
00:41:51,680 --> 00:41:57,000
in China for a small fraction of
what things are here in the US,
785
00:41:57,120 --> 00:42:01,520
and of course those those
Chinese vehicles are enjoying
786
00:42:01,520 --> 00:42:03,280
from coming into the US at this
point.
787
00:42:03,440 --> 00:42:07,600
If that were to change, this
whole discussion we had might
788
00:42:07,600 --> 00:42:10,480
change dramatically.
Yeah, well, I mean, I just saw
789
00:42:10,560 --> 00:42:15,040
that didn't didn't Ford going to
start building a smaller unit
790
00:42:15,320 --> 00:42:18,800
type electrical car?
It's like AI don't know 2 seater
791
00:42:18,800 --> 00:42:21,760
truck or something that's like.
Ford is really conflicted and
792
00:42:21,760 --> 00:42:25,160
they they pulled away from the
electric F-150, Yeah.
793
00:42:25,600 --> 00:42:30,280
And I was surprised to see that,
but you know, I think they're,
794
00:42:30,480 --> 00:42:32,360
they're uncertain as a lot of
people are.
795
00:42:32,640 --> 00:42:36,120
And and again, I I'm the voice
for the plug in hybrid as the
796
00:42:36,400 --> 00:42:39,640
the hedge solution that will
that you can do while the
797
00:42:39,640 --> 00:42:43,120
marketplace sorts itself out.
The hybrid to me is the best
798
00:42:43,120 --> 00:42:45,040
choice.
I I would, I would totally agree
799
00:42:45,040 --> 00:42:47,400
with you there, John.
I think that, and I was looking
800
00:42:47,400 --> 00:42:50,240
to get a hybrid just recently,
but ended up going a different
801
00:42:50,240 --> 00:42:55,000
direction, but I, I like the
hybrid because of all the
802
00:42:55,120 --> 00:42:57,400
reasons you just mentioned.
I mean it, you know, you get the
803
00:42:57,400 --> 00:43:02,600
benefit of battery charging and
then you know, when you run out,
804
00:43:02,640 --> 00:43:06,120
you, you, you've got, you know,
you can, you know, fuel, but.
805
00:43:06,360 --> 00:43:10,080
Do what you want and, and just
as an example, during COVID,
806
00:43:10,080 --> 00:43:14,840
when I had my previous vehicle,
I went three months without
807
00:43:14,840 --> 00:43:18,520
buying gas.
And that was really helpful when
808
00:43:18,800 --> 00:43:20,960
you're in COVID and you really
didn't want to be roaming
809
00:43:20,960 --> 00:43:22,720
around, being around other
people and so forth.
810
00:43:22,720 --> 00:43:26,360
So we could just run my errands,
do my thing, come back to my
811
00:43:26,360 --> 00:43:29,240
house and I stayed within the
battery's limits.
812
00:43:29,240 --> 00:43:33,440
Now I upgraded, now I have a, a
Chrysler Pacifica minivan and it
813
00:43:33,440 --> 00:43:36,600
will do 33 miles instead of the
23 that I had before.
814
00:43:36,800 --> 00:43:40,200
So now when I'm in town, I
almost never end up having to
815
00:43:40,200 --> 00:43:44,120
use fossil fuel.
And when I go to Houston to go
816
00:43:44,320 --> 00:43:48,360
take a flight, I live in
Beaumont, TX, that's 80 miles to
817
00:43:48,360 --> 00:43:51,000
that airport.
I'm going to end up using some
818
00:43:51,000 --> 00:43:55,720
gas, but I don't do that all
that often, so it fits my
819
00:43:55,720 --> 00:43:58,520
lifestyle.
Well, I think the big challenge
820
00:43:58,520 --> 00:44:01,760
with a lot of the people
adopting is the, the grid, the,
821
00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:03,840
the charging grid that's out
there.
822
00:44:03,840 --> 00:44:07,240
And and you know, I think that's
the biggest I think limitation
823
00:44:07,240 --> 00:44:09,400
for growth right now is that.
Absolutely.
824
00:44:10,640 --> 00:44:12,320
There's not enough charging
ports.
825
00:44:12,320 --> 00:44:15,080
And I mean, just think of all
the people that live in like
826
00:44:15,680 --> 00:44:19,240
apartments, you know, or rental
things like they, they don't
827
00:44:19,240 --> 00:44:22,400
have the infrastructure to put
that stuff in their their, in
828
00:44:22,520 --> 00:44:25,240
their living spaces.
So you're just not going to get
829
00:44:25,240 --> 00:44:27,160
the big adoption.
I don't think as much as we'd
830
00:44:27,160 --> 00:44:29,640
like to see, but.
Yeah, this is a suburban
831
00:44:29,640 --> 00:44:31,600
solution.
There's there's no other way to
832
00:44:31,600 --> 00:44:32,640
describe it.
Yeah.
833
00:44:32,800 --> 00:44:33,560
Yeah, yeah.
That's good.
834
00:44:33,560 --> 00:44:35,520
That's good.
Well, let's keep going here.
835
00:44:35,680 --> 00:44:38,280
When we talk about, you know,
this policy shift that's
836
00:44:38,280 --> 00:44:40,880
recently happened, you know, the
greenhouse gas engagement
837
00:44:40,880 --> 00:44:44,240
finding being rebuild the
federal motor vehicle standard
838
00:44:44,240 --> 00:44:47,880
for the federal motor vehicle
standards, the regulatory
839
00:44:48,240 --> 00:44:51,760
landscape is shifting
significantly.
840
00:44:52,080 --> 00:44:56,160
In your view, does this make
data-driven LCA more or less
841
00:44:56,160 --> 00:44:57,720
important for automotive
manufacturer?
842
00:44:59,240 --> 00:45:02,400
I think the auto manufacturers
are going to continue to be
843
00:45:02,400 --> 00:45:06,480
pressured by their consumers.
Focus factors like Europe and
844
00:45:06,480 --> 00:45:08,600
others.
Well, not just that, but their
845
00:45:08,600 --> 00:45:11,160
consumers focus.
So just because the government
846
00:45:11,160 --> 00:45:15,080
thinks that climate change is
not an issue, that doesn't mean
847
00:45:15,080 --> 00:45:17,000
the consumers feel that way,
right?
848
00:45:17,720 --> 00:45:20,640
And and so as long as there's
that universe of consumers that,
849
00:45:21,000 --> 00:45:24,160
you know, are willing to be open
to the problem and open to the
850
00:45:24,160 --> 00:45:27,200
solution, but want to use that
cost lens.
851
00:45:27,400 --> 00:45:30,880
And that's a really important
part of LCA is it doesn't
852
00:45:30,880 --> 00:45:35,600
actually provide that cost lens.
There was a phenomenon 15 years
853
00:45:35,600 --> 00:45:39,520
ago called life cycle cost,
which basically was an LCA with
854
00:45:39,520 --> 00:45:43,080
a cost layer on top of it.
And that never really caught on.
855
00:45:43,400 --> 00:45:46,640
But at some point maybe it will
come back in because just
856
00:45:46,640 --> 00:45:51,120
reducing carbon with a passion
without contemplating carefully
857
00:45:51,320 --> 00:45:55,120
what the cost will be of that,
that's not really sustainability
858
00:45:55,320 --> 00:45:58,800
because sustainability is, is
this something that you can keep
859
00:45:58,800 --> 00:46:01,160
doing Well?
If it's something that is
860
00:46:01,360 --> 00:46:04,120
hurting your lifestyle because
you're spending too much money
861
00:46:04,120 --> 00:46:08,080
on it, then you went too far.
So the balancing act is to say I
862
00:46:08,080 --> 00:46:11,560
want a carbon benefit, but I
want to pay a fair price for it.
863
00:46:12,000 --> 00:46:14,400
And so that's, that's what the
consumer should be thinking
864
00:46:14,400 --> 00:46:17,280
about, whether he's a business
consumer, you know, whether he's
865
00:46:17,280 --> 00:46:20,040
buying a car or whatever.
It's cost and benefit.
866
00:46:20,280 --> 00:46:21,800
That's how engineers are
trained.
867
00:46:22,000 --> 00:46:23,520
That's how we should be
thinking.
868
00:46:23,920 --> 00:46:27,160
Well, do you think this policy
policy shift is going to maybe
869
00:46:27,840 --> 00:46:30,920
produce more hybrids versus
fully electrics?
870
00:46:32,200 --> 00:46:35,320
I think what's going to produce
more hybrids is the fact that
871
00:46:35,720 --> 00:46:41,040
you really can't make a trip
across the country in an EV
872
00:46:41,120 --> 00:46:43,200
without it being extremely
inconvenient.
873
00:46:43,960 --> 00:46:46,920
And I think most people that buy
cars have it in their mind
874
00:46:46,920 --> 00:46:48,160
they're going to take a
vacation.
875
00:46:48,520 --> 00:46:51,160
And do they really want to plan
their vacation around where the
876
00:46:51,160 --> 00:46:54,040
charging stations are?
Some people will say, yeah, I'm,
877
00:46:54,360 --> 00:46:56,160
I'm all in the car, but I'm
going to do that.
878
00:46:56,360 --> 00:46:58,560
But that's really not even my
boat.
879
00:46:58,960 --> 00:47:01,600
So, you know, I think that's
what's going to drive it more
880
00:47:01,600 --> 00:47:03,760
than anything else.
And of course, the IRA was going
881
00:47:03,760 --> 00:47:06,760
to put those charging stations
out there at a huge cost.
882
00:47:07,560 --> 00:47:10,720
And for whatever reason, we
don't have that part of the IRA.
883
00:47:10,920 --> 00:47:14,440
So that's not going to happen.
So how quickly will we get the
884
00:47:14,440 --> 00:47:18,520
kind of charger density we need
to make EVs ubiquitous without
885
00:47:18,520 --> 00:47:21,560
the government spend into that?
I think it's going to be a slow
886
00:47:21,560 --> 00:47:26,560
process.
Well, you know, so with EPA
887
00:47:26,560 --> 00:47:29,160
stepping back a bit on this with
the greenhouse gas standards
888
00:47:29,160 --> 00:47:31,960
now, do you believe like
independent environmental
889
00:47:31,960 --> 00:47:35,280
product declarations will become
of the primary way mark the the
890
00:47:35,280 --> 00:47:38,160
market rather than the
government determines which
891
00:47:38,160 --> 00:47:42,400
vehicles are truly green now?
That's a good question.
892
00:47:42,400 --> 00:47:45,880
You know, only a few
manufacturers have so far gone
893
00:47:45,880 --> 00:47:49,800
down the EPD route.
In fact, they're, they're, I'm
894
00:47:49,800 --> 00:47:53,440
not aware of really many US
manufacturers that have done it.
895
00:47:53,440 --> 00:47:55,640
There are some foreign
manufacturers that have.
896
00:47:57,000 --> 00:48:00,040
So will the EP DS become more
more prevalent?
897
00:48:00,400 --> 00:48:04,400
I think as as people get more
comfortable with how they're
898
00:48:04,400 --> 00:48:07,200
done and as we start to
streamline the process, which
899
00:48:07,200 --> 00:48:10,800
there are efforts underway to do
that by both consultants and
900
00:48:10,800 --> 00:48:15,440
program operators that are the,
are the places where these EP DS
901
00:48:15,440 --> 00:48:18,520
are stored.
That process is evolving pretty
902
00:48:18,520 --> 00:48:22,720
rapidly in part because people
are using AI to streamline it to
903
00:48:22,760 --> 00:48:24,960
a small extent, although trust
but verify.
904
00:48:25,280 --> 00:48:27,440
That's my watchword whenever you
bring that up.
905
00:48:29,520 --> 00:48:32,280
But it it's, it is a changing
landscape.
906
00:48:32,560 --> 00:48:35,800
I think people are still going
to be involved with carbon for
907
00:48:36,040 --> 00:48:39,720
quite some time to come.
And it's always been, you know,
908
00:48:39,720 --> 00:48:42,720
a roller coaster of up and down
based on different events, kind
909
00:48:42,720 --> 00:48:46,200
of like the stock market.
And I think that's going to
910
00:48:46,200 --> 00:48:48,120
continue.
I, I don't think the
911
00:48:48,120 --> 00:48:51,480
endangerment finding is changing
anybody's pulse, but maybe it
912
00:48:51,480 --> 00:48:55,880
just does under score that
market face forces come and go
913
00:48:55,880 --> 00:48:58,880
all the time.
And, you know, there's, there's
914
00:48:58,920 --> 00:49:02,240
a, an action reaction sort of
thing that happens with, with
915
00:49:02,240 --> 00:49:04,200
consumers.
The auto manufacturers
916
00:49:04,200 --> 00:49:09,600
definitely are are paying huge
attention to their customers and
917
00:49:09,600 --> 00:49:13,960
they're paying attention to
their their bankers and the
918
00:49:13,960 --> 00:49:16,720
private equities that control
their supply chain.
919
00:49:16,720 --> 00:49:20,280
And so it's a complicated
landscape, but no one is
920
00:49:20,280 --> 00:49:24,080
completely closing their eyes to
the carbon world because it
921
00:49:24,080 --> 00:49:27,000
impacts us, even if the
government doesn't have rules
922
00:49:27,160 --> 00:49:30,000
for lots of reasons.
Yeah, no, I I agree.
923
00:49:31,840 --> 00:49:35,200
So where do you think we go next
with this whole, you know,
924
00:49:36,360 --> 00:49:41,120
carbon, you know, footprint life
cycle assessment process,
925
00:49:41,280 --> 00:49:45,000
especially given the nature of
your books being around, you
926
00:49:45,000 --> 00:49:48,200
know, car emission factors and
and others.
927
00:49:48,200 --> 00:49:49,280
What?
What do you think we're going to
928
00:49:49,280 --> 00:49:53,120
be, you know, moving forward?
I think this.
929
00:49:53,480 --> 00:49:55,520
Because it seems like the market
is really kind of like, oh,
930
00:49:55,520 --> 00:49:59,640
they're pivoting right now.
I, I think the science is, is
931
00:49:59,640 --> 00:50:03,600
going to get better.
I think the accuracy and
932
00:50:03,840 --> 00:50:08,800
defensibility and reliability of
this work is going to get better
933
00:50:08,800 --> 00:50:11,120
because, you know, it is the
evolving science still.
934
00:50:11,720 --> 00:50:16,520
So that is going to change the
role of EP DS and how important
935
00:50:16,520 --> 00:50:19,160
that's going to be is, is yet to
be defined.
936
00:50:19,160 --> 00:50:23,000
And one of the things about EP
DS that people don't really get
937
00:50:23,280 --> 00:50:25,880
is, is that that's only part of
the process.
938
00:50:26,080 --> 00:50:29,680
So you quantify what your
emissions are and you basically
939
00:50:29,680 --> 00:50:32,560
are checking a box saying, Yep,
here's my emissions, I have an
940
00:50:32,560 --> 00:50:35,840
EPD.
That is not a reduction plan.
941
00:50:36,000 --> 00:50:39,000
That is not a guarantee as to
what your performance is going
942
00:50:39,000 --> 00:50:41,000
to be all the time.
It is.
943
00:50:41,000 --> 00:50:44,480
It is a lot of different things,
but you know where that's going
944
00:50:44,480 --> 00:50:47,080
to go exactly.
It's kind of hard to say.
945
00:50:49,160 --> 00:50:53,520
Do you, do you feel like, you
know, down the road here we'll
946
00:50:53,520 --> 00:50:59,000
see like cars, you know, like we
see in our cars now you're
947
00:50:59,000 --> 00:51:03,160
driving and you get like, you
know, metrics like average miles
948
00:51:03,160 --> 00:51:06,520
per gallon, you know, you, you,
you know where you know what
949
00:51:06,520 --> 00:51:09,000
you're getting for your, your
trips and things like that.
950
00:51:09,000 --> 00:51:12,120
Do you think eventually we're
going to start seeing CO2
951
00:51:12,120 --> 00:51:15,960
emission factors pop up on your
screen on your car and then
952
00:51:15,960 --> 00:51:19,800
showing you like on a weekly,
daily, monthly, whatever yearly
953
00:51:20,000 --> 00:51:22,960
assessment of your impact on
emission for by driving your
954
00:51:22,960 --> 00:51:26,320
car?
I don't see any reason why that
955
00:51:26,320 --> 00:51:29,640
couldn't happen because, you
know, in electric vehicles in
956
00:51:29,640 --> 00:51:32,640
particular and in plug in
hybrids, all that data is there.
957
00:51:33,160 --> 00:51:36,640
It's just a matter of actually,
you know, coding the the screens
958
00:51:36,640 --> 00:51:39,600
to actually display that, you
know, it's it's customer demand
959
00:51:39,600 --> 00:51:41,200
driven.
Are the customers going to want
960
00:51:41,200 --> 00:51:43,640
to see that?
Are they, are they interested in
961
00:51:43,640 --> 00:51:46,480
carbon footprints for their meal
when they go to a restaurant or,
962
00:51:46,760 --> 00:51:50,040
you know, supplies they buy in
the hardware store That's,
963
00:51:50,040 --> 00:51:52,400
that's not going to happen
tomorrow, the next day, you
964
00:51:52,400 --> 00:51:56,160
know, you're seeing it in Europe
in increasing levels and to a
965
00:51:56,160 --> 00:51:57,880
certain extent in Asia as well.
So.
966
00:51:58,720 --> 00:52:00,800
Calories on the back of your
your packaging.
967
00:52:00,800 --> 00:52:02,640
It tells you exactly.
Exactly.
968
00:52:02,640 --> 00:52:06,280
And there was a move afoot in
the UK to extend that packaging
969
00:52:06,280 --> 00:52:09,480
to include carbon footprint.
And they got about 1/3 of the
970
00:52:09,480 --> 00:52:12,160
way down that highway and they
just, they basically ran out of
971
00:52:12,160 --> 00:52:16,640
money and they stopped.
So it, it is very costly to do
972
00:52:16,640 --> 00:52:20,280
that thing for, for some
products, you know, for sure.
973
00:52:20,560 --> 00:52:26,320
But for EVs and, and even
conventional gas combustion
974
00:52:26,320 --> 00:52:29,240
engines that have digital
displays, you know, pretty easy
975
00:52:29,240 --> 00:52:31,320
to, to make that sort of
information available.
976
00:52:31,320 --> 00:52:34,560
So, so yeah, I think, I think
it's coming and, and I think it,
977
00:52:34,920 --> 00:52:38,480
it has a, a good place.
If you have an EV, it coaches
978
00:52:38,480 --> 00:52:41,520
you on, on, you know what's
equivalent to miles per gallon,
979
00:52:41,520 --> 00:52:45,080
you get kilowatt hours per mile.
You, you get that readout.
980
00:52:45,080 --> 00:52:48,280
I get that readout all the time
as I'm real time as I'm driving.
981
00:52:48,520 --> 00:52:52,960
So it's not, it's not couched in
carbon, but in my brain I know
982
00:52:53,280 --> 00:52:56,440
it, you know, if my efficiency
is poor, then my carbon is
983
00:52:56,440 --> 00:52:58,680
higher.
You know, it's a pretty direct
984
00:52:58,840 --> 00:53:01,280
relationship there.
Well, you know, and then when I
985
00:53:01,280 --> 00:53:04,200
look at it and I think of it,
there's a lot of companies that
986
00:53:04,200 --> 00:53:07,120
are putting their sustainability
reports together and they, they,
987
00:53:07,200 --> 00:53:11,040
they track, you know, what's my
carbon impact from my, you know,
988
00:53:11,120 --> 00:53:14,960
vehicle fleet that we have in,
in the, in the, in the company.
989
00:53:15,520 --> 00:53:17,920
Well, how cool would it be if
they could just like run the
990
00:53:17,920 --> 00:53:19,880
metrics right off the darn
vehicles because it's already
991
00:53:19,880 --> 00:53:21,760
there.
They don't have to go figure it
992
00:53:21,760 --> 00:53:23,200
out.
They, you know, they actually
993
00:53:23,200 --> 00:53:27,760
get the actual number because
they know how much was burned
994
00:53:27,920 --> 00:53:29,760
and they can pull that telemetry
right out of there.
995
00:53:30,200 --> 00:53:33,080
There there are some truck firms
that are that are working with
996
00:53:33,080 --> 00:53:34,840
software that do that sort of
thing.
997
00:53:35,120 --> 00:53:38,480
I believe Walmart has a pilot
program in place where they're
998
00:53:38,480 --> 00:53:41,720
trying to do that with their
company owned trucks at least.
999
00:53:42,120 --> 00:53:44,400
So yeah, that's that's
definitely coming.
1000
00:53:44,920 --> 00:53:47,520
Yeah, no, that's good.
Well, John, what?
1001
00:53:47,520 --> 00:53:49,360
What?
What can How can listeners get
1002
00:53:49,360 --> 00:53:52,680
copies of your books and learn
more about your services?
1003
00:53:53,760 --> 00:53:55,600
Yeah, well, there's there's
several ways.
1004
00:53:55,800 --> 00:54:02,600
The easiest is you can look for
LCA 101-1021 O3 in Amazon.
1005
00:54:02,600 --> 00:54:05,720
They're self published there for
a ridiculously low price.
1006
00:54:06,240 --> 00:54:09,920
But if you want to get them even
cheaper or like for free, you
1007
00:54:09,920 --> 00:54:12,920
can also go to our website if
you can navigate through and
1008
00:54:12,920 --> 00:54:14,680
find where the forms you fill
out are.
1009
00:54:14,920 --> 00:54:18,880
Our website is beef dot US and
you'll find a place where you
1010
00:54:18,880 --> 00:54:22,920
can see downloads there.
The the the third book is in a
1011
00:54:22,920 --> 00:54:24,880
different place, which I'm
trying to get moved.
1012
00:54:25,520 --> 00:54:28,960
That's if you look under the LCA
section and go all the way down
1013
00:54:28,960 --> 00:54:31,000
to the bottom of the page.
You'll see the links for that.
1014
00:54:31,280 --> 00:54:35,000
And if you follow that link, the
advantage to that is you get a
1015
00:54:35,280 --> 00:54:38,800
zip file download of not just
the the book and PDF form, but
1016
00:54:38,800 --> 00:54:42,320
also the XL.
The XL is there as well.
1017
00:54:43,000 --> 00:54:44,360
OK, great.
That's awesome.
1018
00:54:44,360 --> 00:54:47,480
That's really good.
Well, John, thanks for coming on
1019
00:54:47,480 --> 00:54:49,560
the show today.
We really appreciate you coming
1020
00:54:49,560 --> 00:54:54,520
and talking to us about the life
cycle analysis and what the
1021
00:54:54,520 --> 00:54:58,440
great work you've been doing
around developing this Excel
1022
00:54:58,440 --> 00:55:00,480
calculation spreadsheet that can
be used.
1023
00:55:00,480 --> 00:55:03,480
To to help people understand
what their carbon impact is and
1024
00:55:03,560 --> 00:55:05,840
I really appreciate that.
Thanks for listening and
1025
00:55:05,840 --> 00:55:08,160
watching the show.
If you enjoyed the show then
1026
00:55:08,160 --> 00:55:10,880
please share it with your
friends and Co workers on social
1027
00:55:10,880 --> 00:55:13,000
media and tell somebody in
person.
1028
00:55:13,520 --> 00:55:15,360
Thanks for being with us, ET
Nation.
CEO
John Beath is a life cycle assessment certified professional and registered professional engineer in Texas. He has more than 20 years of experience as a sustainability consultant, currently serving as CEO of a sustainability and environmental consulting company. He has a bachelors’ degree in chemical engineering from Georgia Tech and has authored three short books on various aspects of sustainability. He currently serves as a member of the board of directors of the American Center for Life Cycle Assessment.
His consulting experience includes serving as a partner for a large consulting company for 14 years, and forming his own consulting company (JBE) ten years ago.
His industrial experience includes serving as a refinery environmental manager, and corporate regional manager for a major oil company.
His contributions to client sustainability have included developing numerous product carbon footprints, life cycle assessments and tools, serving as a third-party reviewer for life cycle assessments, and developing a comprehensive LCA training program.


