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Trump to Weaken Environmental Rules to Speed Infrastructure Permits
President Trump on Wednesday is set to unilaterally weaken one of the nation’s bedrock conservation laws, the National Environmental Policy Act, limiting public review of federal infrastructure projects to speed up the permitting of freeways, power plants and pipelines. In doing so, the Trump administration will claim hundreds of millions of dollars of savings over almost a decade by significantly reducing the amount of time allowed to complete reviews of major infrastructure projects, according to two people familiar with the new policy. [ read more … ]
Wind Energy
N.J. Agency Releases Draft Offshore Wind Strategic Plan
The New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) has released its draft Offshore Wind Strategic Plan (OWSP), putting in motion the roadmap to meet the state’s goal of producing 7.5 GW of offshore wind power by 2035. Central to the plan is successfully reaching that goal – which will represent half of New Jersey’s projected 2035 load – in a cost-effective manner while developing the necessary infrastructure in a way that protects natural resources, according to NJBPU. The OWSP is intended to be a guide to establishing a new offshore wind industry to benefit New Jersey residents and mitigate climate change by developing a clean, renewable energy source. [ read more … ]
States
Massachusetts lawmakers face pressure to pass 100% renewable bill this session
As the end of Massachusetts’ state legislative session draws near, activists, municipal officials, businesses, and civic organizations are urging lawmakers to take action on a bill that would require a 100% renewable electricity transition by 2045 — and making plans for next steps if the measure is not passed this year. “We want to make sure that this year does not go by without strong and decisive action on clean energy at the Statehouse,” said Ben Hellerstein, state director for Environment Massachusetts. [ read more … ]
Campaign 2020
Is Biden’s 100% clean electricity plan doable?
Rob Gramlich, president of the Grid Strategies LLC consulting firm, said that replacing existing fossil generation with zero-carbon sources is just a start. If the U.S. fulfills a complete zero-carbon agenda, that means electrifying many of today’s motor vehicles and trains running on gasoline and diesel fuels, and buildings that now heat with gas. “We need to look at the grid completely differently if we want to support electrification of transportation and buildings. We could be looking at a 50% increase in demand for electricity, and we will need a much more robust grid” to do that, he said. In Gramlich’s view, that means a much bigger commitment to strategic transmission development, and Congress has balked at that. [ read more … ]
Biden, in new climate plan, embraces more aggressive steps
Joe Biden unveiled a proposal Tuesday to transform the nation’s energy industry, pledging to eliminate carbon pollution from power plants by 2035 and spend $2 trillion to turbocharge the clean energy economy. The plan would significantly reduce the United States’ reliance on fossil fuels, and the 15-year timeline for a 100 percent clean electricity standard is far more ambitious than anything Biden has previously proposed. [ read more … ]
‘Priority one’: Biden’s gambit to redeem climate politics
Joe Biden is making a big bet on climate politics. The presumptive Democratic nominee for president unveiled an expanded version of his climate plan yesterday that proposes spending $2 trillion over four years to address rising temperatures. That’s by far Biden’s biggest spending plan. [ read more … ]
EVs
Electric-Car Subsidies Make Renaults Free in Germany
Car buyers in Europe can now get their hands on a brand-new electric vehicle for less than the typical cost of a mobile-phone contract. Thanks to newly generous subsidies, some are even free. Shoppers have swarmed virtual showrooms in Germany and France — the region’s two largest passenger-car markets — after their national governments boosted electric-vehicle incentives to stimulate demand. Their purchase subsidies are now among the most favorable in the world, according to BloombergNEF. [ read more … ]
Relief Funds
Fossil fuels win big as nations dole out recovery funds
The research coalition says it’s conducted the most detailed survey of post-COVID-19 economic recovery planning and spending to date. Its data shows governments of the Group of 20 largest economies have directed some $151 billion toward fossil fuel sectors. “Clean energy,” which the groups define as mainly wind and solar power but also hydropower, received some $89 billion in spending. [ read more … ]
Moo
Burger King addresses climate change by changing cows’ diets
Burger King is staging an intervention with its cows. The chain has rebalanced the diet of some of the cows by adding lemon grass in a bid to limit bovine contributions to climate change. By tweaking their diet, Burger King said Tuesday that it believes it can reduce a cow’s daily methane emissions by about 33%. Cows emit methane as a by-product of their digestion, and that has become a potential public relations hurdle for major burger chains. [ read more … ]
Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.