Lancaster, California, the nation's first city to embrace hydrogen power, 
reached out to Japan to enlist partner municipalities in the development and 
use of hydrogen as a new generation clean fuel. 

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1332435/COL_20201111_01.jpg 

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1332434/COL_20201111_02.jpg 

R. Rex Parris, Mayor of Lancaster, hosted Japanese government officials on 
November 6 to discuss pairing Lancaster, a city just north of Los Angeles, with 
a "smart" city in Japan which is equally devoted to integrating hydrogen into 
its power grid, fuel distribution, storage, and use.

Mayor Parris has committed to a hydrogen transition at previous City Council 
meetings and has challenged other cities around the world to choose hydrogen as 
well. Lancaster has a proven record of being the first in renewable energy 
solutions, demonstrating an ability to execute on energy initiatives. He is 
confident that Japan may be the first stop on a pathway for cities around the 
world to shift into using hydrogen. 

Mayor Parris developed a vision for hydrogen as a new way to further 
decarbonize the city – a mission he embarked on over a decade ago. He attracted 
companies that have already built innovative hydrogen projects and are being 
developed with major companies like Hitachi Zosen Inova. The Mayor then 
developed a comprehensive plan for the City to achieve their hydrogen goals, 
announcing it publicly at City Council meetings to involve local residents and 
educate the public on the benefits of hydrogen to Lancaster. Recently, more 
companies and other cities have seen Lancaster's success and want to join the 
movement by following the city's plan.

Hydrogen has wide-reaching benefits including improving the air quality, 
providing a secure and reliable energy source, reducing greenhouse gas 
emissions, and creating highly skilled jobs. Hydrogen is abundant in our 
environment. Hydrogen can be produced from diverse domestic resources with the 
potential of near-zero greenhouse gas emissions. Hydrogen as an alternative 
fuel stems from its ability to power fuel cells with domestic production, fast 
fueling times, and high efficiency. About half of the US population lives in 
areas where air pollution levels are high enough to negatively impact public 
health and the environment.

"Hydrogen is the future, it is the decarbonization strategy of the future, and 
we will lead the effort with other cities following in Lancaster's footsteps," 
Mayor Parris told the delegation from Japan, which included Mr. Imai, Consul of 
the Consulate General of Japan and Mr. Saeki, Executive Director of the Japan 
External Trade Organization. "Lancaster is America's first hydrogen city." 
Lancaster is beginning sister-city type relationships with other cities seeking 
to emulate Lancaster's strategy, sharing a roadmap. Mayor Parris envisions 
other Tier-2 cities as excellent candidates. "The transition to hydrogen does 
not have to be limited to the world's most famous large cities. In fact, cities 
our size can do some things they can't. Current plans include building out 
hydrogen fueling stations for light-duty and heavy-duty vehicles. We support 
the state's goals for GHG reductions and hydrogen is a great way to get there 
faster." It should be noted, in a recent grant from the State of CA, most of 
the $100 million grant was dedicated to large, urban population centers. 
Lancaster is not deterred.

After the development of a huge solar generation capacity, Lancaster City 
Council realized that the City had the power to dramatically impact the energy 
status quo. Many changes couldn't happen at the state or federal level. 
Lancaster formed its own utility company, Lancaster Choice Energy, and offered 
residents locally-generated green energy at lower prices and generating revenue 
for the City. Lancaster continued on to become the first city to go net-zero, 
generating more clean energy than consumed. Lancaster was also the first city 
to require all new homes to have solar and with community partners were able to 
build the first large scale all-electric bus fleet. 

"Along the way, we realized that electrons are not necessarily the best medium 
for storing energy," the mayor explained of the shift in strategy. "Hydrogen 
can be stored easily and for long periods of time, even in the existing gas 
grid. It's the perfect resource for balancing the grid with our large amount of 
intermittent renewable resources, which only work when the sun shines and the 
wind blows."  

Currently, SGH2 is bringing a green hydrogen production facility to Lancaster. 
The plant will gasify recycled mixed paper waste to produce green hydrogen that 
reduces carbon emissions by two to three times more than green hydrogen 
produced using electrolysis and renewable energy, and is five to seven times 
cheaper. Developed by NASA scientist Dr. Salvador Camacho and SGH2 CEO Dr. 
Robert T. Do, a biophysicist, and physician, the City of Lancaster will host 
and co-own the green hydrogen production facility, "The world needs some good 
news right now, and we have it. Affordable, mass-produced, reliable green 
hydrogen is the missing link needed to decarbonize the world," said Dr. Do. 

Other projects in Lancaster include a gasification plant and Hitachi Zosen 
Inova's $100 million anaerobic digestion plant which generates renewable 
natural gas (RNG) from organic waste for conversion to clean hydrogen. 

"HZI sees hydrogen becoming an important part of the energy infrastructure 
first in California, then throughout the U.S.," said Lex Heslin, Senior Project 
Developer for energy company Hitachi Zosen Inova. "At the state level, 
California is embracing hydrogen and gaining nation-wide attention. Today, an 
article in the New York Times cited California's recent momentum in hydrogen 
energy transition and its potentials. Lancaster is determined to do more than 
expected on the local level."

Hydrogen has been gaining traction around the world as governments commit to 
clean energy. Lancaster is committed to hydrogen, attracting investors, 
building state-of-the-art facilities, and supporting new companies with 
advanced permitting, city procurement, infrastructure support, fleet building, 
and consumer education. "Hydrogen is the future and we invite other cities to 
join us on the path to decarbonization as a way to tackle Climate Change." 
Vision and high-level commitment by Mayor Parris along with the development of 
a comprehensive plan to achieve a transition to hydrogen has led to approval 
and buy-in from City Council and the public leading to success in attracting 
hydrogen investment. The focus now is on broadening outreach to include 
education, research and development, and targeted international cooperation 
with like-minded cities.

For other cities interested in pursuing hydrogen as a path to deep 
decarbonization, Mayor Parris suggests the following path:

    -- Choose an effective advocate to lead the hydrogen effort and build a 
       team. 

    -- Conduct a review of the city's gas and electricity load, delineating 
       any renewable energy assets. 

    -- Prepare a comprehensive hydrogen uptake plan for the city. 

    -- Communicate the plan broadly, develop consensus, and go through your 
       City Council process. 

    -- Work closely with the city and other economic development resources to 
       attract hydrogen company investment. 

    -- Reach out to other cities like Lancaster that have been through this 
       process to learn best practices and how to execute on a citywide 
       hydrogen strategy.

"We invite all cities, small and large, to accept our challenge to become a 
hydrogen-powered city and to join us on the path to a clean energy future," 
Mayor Parris said. "We will be pleased to assist you."

SOURCE City of Lancaster

CONTACT: +1.661.723.6000, cityoflancasterca.org