Cogeneration, or combined heat and power, is the use of a power station, usually a turbine, to simultaneously generate both electricity and usable heat. Conventional power plants are not capable of effectively using heat that is produced as a byproduct of electricity generation. Cogeneration captures the heat by-product for domestic or industrial heating purposes. This usually occurs very close to the plant or in district heating systems, which are common in Scandinavian countries. Heat can also be used in absorption chillers for cooling purposes. Cogeneration increases the efficiency of fuel consumption and is valuable method of reducing carbon emissions.
Under AB32, all cogeneration facilities must report their emissions starting on June 1st, 2009, and must have reporting verified every three years for facilities under 10MW, and every year for facilities over 10MW.
Overall, any facility that is capable of generating over 1MW of electricity, and emits over 2,500 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide is required to report emissions to the Air Resources Board.
