Despite being a deeply blue state, the oil industry has a firm financial grip on California, making fossil fuel restrictions challenging as law making is swayed by the millions of dollars that the industry has pumped into lobbying.
The Environmental Protection Agency has awarded the state $3 million, and the Portland metro area $1 million, to develop strategies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and develop clean energy economies.
Fifteen states have considered adding measures to their constitutions to preserve the fundamental right to clean air, water, soil and other environmental priorities. Montana, Pennsylvania and New York already have established green amendments.
Sixteen cities are meeting to exchange ideas and plan urban forests to provide shade, absorb stormwater runoff and filter air pollution. Urban forestry can mitigate the health risks of a warming climate.
Natural gas and electricity consumption by buildings are the city’s greatest source of greenhouse gas emissions, and yet there aren’t any city-mandated climate standards that buildings must meet.
The Mackinac Island Ferry Co., formerly known as Star Line, will replace two diesel engines with electric propulsion motors on its Chippewa vessel, then will transition the rest of its seven steel vessels to all-electric.
The state’s first auction for pollution allowances sold all of its nearly 6.2 million allowances, each of which represented one metric ton of greenhouse gas emissions. The settlement price was $48.50 per ton.
Toxic chemicals, such as PFAS, are found in an increasing number of water sources and can be found in nearly every American’s bloodstream. States across the nation want to limit the use of these compounds to reduce health risks.
The plan would require building upgrades and renovations in an effort to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on buildings with over 50,000 square feet of space. The cost to owners and tenants is an estimated $3.1 billion.
As polluters pay up for absolution, state treasuries and public pension funds might be able to capitalize on carbon offset credits. Public forests and timberland investments could yield untapped value.
The state has ambitious goals to end natural-gas usage over the next several years as a way to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions. But storms and fires are more routinely causing residents to go days or weeks without power.
The first year of the state’s Climate Action Plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050 was marked by billions being pledged on facilities to help the state meet that goal. But there still is a lot of work to be done.
While some of the new policies’ impacts may not be immediate, the new laws will change the state’s future when it comes to oil and gas buffer zones, carbon capture and storage, renewable energy and more.
Advocates claim that, to reach New York’s goal of a zero-emission electricity grid by 2040, there must be a push to electrify all new buildings across the state starting in 2024.
The plan would help make steep cuts in harmful emissions and protect public health, but it could come with significant costs to homeowners, businesses and the power grid. New York aims to cut emissions by 40 percent by 2030.
The state aims to cut emissions by 50 percent by 2035 and by 90 percent by 2050. The transportation sector accounts for almost 40 percent of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions. The new rule is based on California’s.
