About this program

What is it? | Why does it matter? | Who is involved?
How does it work? | History & background | Rule | Where are we in the process?
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History & background

New Mexico’s transportation fuel landscape

Transportation is the second largest source of climate pollution in New Mexico, accounting for nearly 23% of the state’s total emissions¹, Transportation includes different types of travel, such as personal cars, delivery trucks, freight vehicles, trains, and airplanes.

Stacked bar chart titled "Gross Statewide Annual Emissions, 2005 and 2023 (MMTCO2e)" comparing greenhouse gas emissions by sector. In 2005, total emissions reached approximately 96 MMTCO2e, with Industry as the largest share at 49.5%, followed by Transportation (16.4%), Agriculture (11.6%), Electricity (16.9%), Buildings (4.2%), and Waste and Materials (1.4%). In 2023, total emissions dropped to approximately 76 MMTCO2e, with Industry remaining dominant at 49%, Transportation rising to 22.5%, Agriculture at 13.2%, Electricity declining sharply to 8.6%, Buildings at 5.3%, and Waste and Materials at 1.4%. A dashed horizontal line at approximately 54 MMTCO2e appears to indicate an emissions reduction target.

Most climate pollution from transportation is carbon dioxide emitted from burning fossil fuel, like gasoline and diesel, in vehicle engines. Within the transportation sector, fossil fuel represents the biggest portion of New Mexico’s energy consumption. Some fuel used in NM is already considered “clean” fuel, including ethanol, biodiesel, and natural gas.

Stacked area chart titled 'Annual fuel consumption in New Mexico (in millions of megajoules)' showing fuel consumption from 2012 to 2022. The vertical axis ranges from 0 to 300,000 millions of megajoules per year. Seven fuel types are stacked: Motor gasoline (BOB) forms the largest base layer in teal, followed by Ethanol in light blue, Diesel in orange, Biodiesel in yellow-green, Hydrocarbon gas liquids in light purple, Natural Gas in dark gray, Jet Fuel in pink, and Other in black at the top. Total consumption remains relatively stable between approximately 230,000 and 270,000 millions of megajoules over the period, with a notable dip around 2020.

New Mexico’s climate goals

The Clean Transportation Fuel Program plays a critical role in meeting the state’s climate goals for the transportation sector. To learn more, see New Mexico’s Climate Action Plan.

Other state programs

New Mexico is the fourth state in the U.S. to enact a low-carbon fuel program. Other states with similar programs include:

California: Low Carbon Fuel Standard

Oregon: Clean Fuels Program

Washington: Clean Fuel Standard

Canada and British Columbia also have low-carbon fuel programs.