Southern California Gas Co. (SoCalGas) announced it will offer renewable natural gas (RNG) at 31 fueling stations across Southern California. This includes 25 stations in the company’s service area and an additional six stations further south in the San Diego area. These stations are part of an RNG pilot program that was approved by the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) last month.

RNG is produced from the methane generated in landfills, wastewater treatment plants, food processing, and dairy. Depending on its source, the fuel could be low-carbon or even carbon-negative. Using methane, a greenhouse gas, as fuel can keep the gas from contributing to climate change while reducing the use of traditionally sourced natural gas.

SoCalGas has published a Request for Offer (RFO) and expects to complete gas purchase agreements in the near future. RNG can be stored and delivered through the utility company’s existing natural gas infrastructure, and available when needed, unlike solar and wind energy.

By piloting RNG, SoCalGas hopes to reduce emissions in the transportation sector, which is responsible for about 40% of the stats’s greenhouse has emission and more than 80% of its smog-forming (NOx) emissions.

This initiative is part of a larger effort to promote RNG. Earlier this year, the utility announced it would join forces with utilities in France and Canada to research and develop a renewable natural gas, as well as technologies such as po9wer-to-gas. The utility assists fleets in the state in obtaining funds to purchase heavy-duty natural gas trucks, and has shown support for California Senate Bill (SB) 1383, the most aggressive law in the nation designed to tackle short-lived climate pollutants.