THE OVERARCHING GOAL OF THE PROJECT IS TO ADVANCE THE DEPLOYMENT OF SUSTAINABLE HYDROGEN INFRASTRUCTURE IN NEW YORK STATE (NYS) BY ADDRESSING KEY CHALLENGES RELATED TO SITING, PERMITTING, AND INSTALLATION WHICH CAN BE REPLICATED ACROSS THE COUNTRY. THIS WILL BE ACHIEVED THROUGH A MULTIFACETED APPROACH, INCLUDING COLLABORATIVE ENGAGEMENT WITH STAKEHOLDERS, COMPILATION OF BEST PRACTICES, DISTRIBUTION OF HYDROGEN SAFETY TO FIRST RESPONDERS AS A NEW TRAINING PROGRAM, DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNITY-BASED RESOURCES. THE EXPECTED OUTCOMES INCLUDE STREAMLINED PERMITTING PROCESSES, ENHANCED SAFETY PROTOCOLS, INCREASED PUBLIC AWARENESS AND ACCEPTANCE OF HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGY, AND THE ACCELERATED DEPLOYMENT OF ZERO-EMISSION VEHICLES. ULTIMATELY, THE PROJECT AIMS TO CONTRIBUTE TO THE REDUCTION OF CARBON EMISSIONS, IMPROVED AIR QUALITY, AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE HYDROGEN ENERGY ECONOMY IN NYS.
THE SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION OF THE PROJECT’S INNOVATIVE APPROACH WILL YIELD SEVERAL BENEFITS: (1) PAVE THE WAY FOR A STREAMLINED PERMITTING PROCESS; (2) ENHANCE SAFETY PROTOCOLS,
FOSTERING GREATER CONFIDENCE IN THE SAFETY OF HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGIES; (3) CONTRIBUTE TO GREATER
ACCEPTANCE OF HYDROGEN INFRASTRUCTURE; AND (4) PROVIDE A SCALABLE AND REPLICABLE MODEL THAT CAN
BE ADAPTED FOR SIMILAR PROJECTS ACROSS THE UNITED STATES.
CURRENT STATE-OF-THE ART: THE CURRENT STANDARD IN THE U.S. IS THE HYDROGEN STATION PERMITTING
GUIDEBOOK PUBLISHED BY THE CALIFORNIA GOVERNOR’S OFFICE OF BUSINESS AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN 2020. ALTHOUGH A VALUABLE RESOURCE IN CALIFORNIA WHEN PUBLISHED, IT FALLS SHORT IN ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES OF PERMITTING ON A STATE-BY-STATE BASIS.
THE PROJECT TEAM WILL ANALYZE GAPS AND DEVELOP A DOCUMENT THAT OUTLINES DIRECT ACTIONABLE STEPS THAT WILL GUIDE STATION DEVELOPERS AND CONSULTANTS IN REALIZING THE MAXIMUM PRACTICAL BENEFITS OF UTILIZING THE GUIDE.
OUR SPECIFIC INNOVATION LIES IN OUR COMPREHENSIVE AND COLLABORATIVE APPROACH TO ADDRESSING HYDROGEN DEPLOYMENT CHALLENGES, WHICH WILL OVERCOME BARRIERS PREVENTING WIDESCALE ADOPTION OF HYDROGEN AND FUEL CELL TECHNOLOGIES, ENABLING AND ACCELERATING DEPLOYMENT, AND RAISE AWARENESS OF HYDROGEN TECHNOLOGIES AND SAFETY, INCLUDING IN DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES.
A KEY CHALLENGE IS REMOVING THE CURRENT RESTRICTION ON LIQUID HYDROGEN (LH2) WITHIN NEW YORK CITY (NYC). METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY (MTA) NEEDS ACCESS TO LH2 TO SUPPORT ITS TRANSITION PLANS FOR 1,000 ZERO-EMISSION BUSES BY 2025 AND A 100% ZERO- EMISSION FLEET BY 2040. THIS LH2 PERMITTING HURDLE MUST BE OVERCOME TO ENABLE FUEL CELL BUSES IN NYS. GASEOUS 450 KG HYDROGEN SUPPLY TRAILERS ARE CURRENTLY THE ONLY OPTION IN NYC. THE PROJECT TEAM WILL EDUCATE AUTHORITIES HAVING JURISDICTION (AHJS) TO WORK TO BUILD A FRAMEWORK TO PERMIT NEWER 1,000 KG FUEL DELIVERY TRAILERS TO ENABLE LARGER FILLS FOR BUS AND TRUCK APPLICATIONS IN NYC. THESE INNOVATIVE TRAILERS WILL BE INTRODUCED TO PERMITTING BODIES ACROSS NYC THROUGH EDUCATION AND TECHNICAL MEETINGS. OUR PROJECT TEAM WILL PRESENT A TRAILER SIZE EXCEPTION FRAMEWORK FOR THE NEW YORK CITY FIRE DEPARTMENT (FDNY) TO ACCEPT THESE TRAILERS AND GET THEM APPROVED WITH A DOT PERMIT.
THROUGH EDUCATIONAL INITIATIVES AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, THE PROJECT WILL DEVELOP A SCALABLE MODEL WHICH CAN BE APPLIED IN OTHER STATES, INCLUDING THOSE WITH H2HUBS. THE PROJECT'S SUCCESS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO ESTABLISH A PRECEDENT FOR COMPARABLE INITIATIVES NATIONWIDE, FOSTERING WIDESPREAD ADOPTION OF HYDROGEN INFRASTRUCTURE.$1,000,000
· FY2025 · Department of Energy