New England’s largest fossil fuel electric plant is shutting down

The Mystic Generating Station in Everett is set to shut down Friday.

As New England’s largest fossil fuel-powered electric plant, its closure represents a significant shift in energy production for the region.

Joseph LaRusso, a senior advocate and manager of the clean grid initiative at the Acadia Center, says shuttering the plant shows the era of burning fossil fuels for electricity may have peaked, at least in New England.

“Not very many gas plants are going to be built in the future, right? It’s going to be wind, solar, hydro, battery storage and so on,” he said. “So its closure is significant.”

To read the full article from wbur, click here.

Massachusetts to recharge solar programs for low-income residents with $156M federal grant

A $156 million federal grant is expected to fund a transformative investment in residential solar for low-income households in Massachusetts, advocates and officials say.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Solar for All program awarded Massachusetts the money for its plans to provide zero-interest loans, financial subsidies, and technical assistance to solar projects benefiting low-income households and public housing facilities. The state’s proposal was largely designed to take advantage of existing programs and resources to maximize the impact of federal funding.

Massachusetts’ proposal is structured around initiatives in three program areas: small residential buildings, multi-family housing, and community solar. The programs will be administered by a coalition of agencies including the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center, the Boston Housing Authority, and MassHousing.

“They got a really strong coalition of major players involved,” said Kyle Murray, Massachusetts program director for climate nonprofit the Acadia Center. “While it’s disappointing that we did not get the full award, I cannot stress enough how much this money is going to be a game-changer for getting solar to low-income and disadvantaged communities.”

To read the full article from Energy News Network, click here.

Pay what you can for electricity and gas? Why RI advocates are pushing for such a plan

PROVIDENCE – Advocates are again calling on the General Assembly to pass legislation that would allow low-income Rhode Islanders to pay only what they can afford for their utility bills.

What’s also new is support from green energy advocates, who say that high electric rates are an impediment to people switching from fossil fuel-burning furnaces to cleaner electric heat pumps.

Emily Koo, Rhode Island program director for the Acadia Center, said that transitioning buildings away from fossil fuels is key to reducing planet-warming greenhouse gases associated with buildings, which account for about a third of total emissions in the state.

Without addressing the building sector, she said, Rhode Island won’t reach net-zero emissions by 2050 as required by the Act on Climate, a state law enacted three years ago.

She also said any concerns that lower rates might encourage people to use more energy could be addressed by capping the annual benefit or limiting lower rates to typical energy usage.

“Progress on both affordability and decarbonization must be made simultaneously and with haste,” she said in written testimony.

The Conservation Law Foundation supports a PIPP for similar reasons, as does the City of Providence’s Department of Sustainability.

State regulators with the Division of Public Utilities and Carriers and the Public Utilities Commission raised no objections to the legislation.

Members of the Rhode Island Business Coalition, including the East Greenwich and Greater Newport chambers of commerce, are opposed because of the prospect that the program would shift costs to other ratepayers and increase their bills.

To read the full article from the Providence Journal, click here.

Virginia is out of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative

Virginia’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative is officially over. At least for now. Gov. Glenn Youngkin pulled us from the partnership Dec. 31, and the program did not appear in the state budget passed earlier this month.

Democrats were largely in favor of the plan. It funded multiple local programs. Locally, Charlottesville and Albemarle County received nearly $650,000 to address flooding and nearly $10 million for housing projects. In the first 10 years of its existence, the initial nine states that joined RGGI decreased their carbon emissions from power plants by nearly half, according to a study by the environmental advocacy group Acadia Center. Virginia appeared to be on that trajectory, dropping its emissions by 16.8% in two years, according to a lawsuit filed by conservation groups suing to force Virginia back into the RGGI partnership.

To read the full article from Charlottesville Tomorrow, click here.

Massachusetts DPU Approves Everett LNG Contracts

The Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities has approved agreements between Constellation Energy and the state’s investor-owned gas utilities to keep the Everett LNG import facility operating through May 2030. 

The Everett Marine Terminal (EMT) is the only facility in the state that can import and directly inject LNG into the gas network, but it has faced an uncertain future, with Constellation’s cost-of-service agreement with ISO-NE expiring at the end of this month. Constellation owns both Everett and the Mystic Generating Station, Everett’s anchor customer, which is set to retire at the same time. 

Joe LaRusso, senior advocate at the Acadia Center, said the DPU’s approval of the contracts is “potentially in conflict with Order 20-80,” particularly if the contract timelines are intended to align with Enbridge’s pipeline expansion effort. 

He said the reporting requirements should give the DPU ample information on the utilities’ gas demand trajectories, with the “open question” being whether the DPU allows the companies to reduce their reliance on Everett by securing additional pipeline capacity. 

To read the full article from RTO Insider, click here.

No new gas hookups on Aquidneck Island? Idea floated to curb need for Portsmouth LNG plant.

PORTSMOUTH – State energy regulators are in an unusual position as they consider whether to extend the life of what was supposed to be a temporary liquefied natural gas facility in Portsmouth that has attracted the ire of neighbors.

While the Energy Facility Siting Board heard evidence that there’s a need, at least for now, for the use of LNG to back up Rhode Island Energy’s natural gas system on Aquidneck Island, stakeholders in the approval proceedings also said they want to company to do everything it can to quickly make the plant obsolete.

A moratorium would also undoubtedly force change. The idea was first put forward in 2021 by the Conservation Law Foundation and the Acadia Center, environmental groups that argued a ban was justified after the passage of the Act on Climate, the state law that requires Rhode Island to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.

To read the full article from the Providence Journal, click here.

EVs, heat pumps seen creating Northeast grid crunch

Electrifying New England’s transportation and heating sectors will lead to a potential 17 percent increase in power demand by 2033, the region’s grid operator said.

The upward trend is putting pressure on developers and regulators to accelerate new generation and transmission projects.

“Our current policies regarding energy efficiency and distributed generation — particularly solar — are already putting us on a different path for the future,” said Kyle Murray, Massachusetts program director at the environmental nonprofit Acadia Center, in a statement.

To read the full article from E&E News, click here.

Opinion: No, heat pumps won’t break CT’s grid

A recent CT Mirror op-ed presents a misleading picture of the impact that electric heat pumps will have on Connecticut’s electricity system.

Moving customers off fossil gas by electrifying homes and businesses with appliances such as heat pumps will be a key component of achieving Connecticut’s climate and clean energy requirements. While major investments in the grid will be necessary over the coming decades, we must move quickly to upgrade the grid while simultaneously installing heat pumps, moving to electric vehicles, and deploying other advanced clean energy technologies.

The claim that “[too] many heat pumps would bring grid failure” to Connecticut is a misleading message at a time when there is an urgent need to rapidly electrify our buildings. The grid must undoubtedly expand to facilitate the decarbonization we need across buildings, transportation, and other sectors of the economy. But there are many solutions that can make grid operations more flexible and mitigate the expected demand growth.

Battery storage and demand response, for example, can help reduce strain on the grid by shifting load to different times of the day to avoid peak periods and to match surplus, low-cost renewables. When paired with automated controls, distributed energy resources can provide flexible, behind-the-meter resources that meet customer demand while easing congestion and driving down costs. And grid-enhancing technologies (GETs) can better optimize the power flowing through transmission and distribution lines, avoiding the need for expensive upgrades.

Electric heat pumps are not just the “energy fad of the day.” They will be an essential component of the clean energy transition and are already bearing fruit. For example, in 2023, Maine exceeded its 100,000 heat pump deployment target two years early and created a new target of an additional 175,000 heat pumps by 2027. And that is in a state whose population is almost a third of Connecticut’s.

Although Connecticut is still in the process of updating its Comprehensive Energy Strategy (CES), we can look to the results of recent decarbonization studies in other states to understand the critical role that rapid deployment of heat pumps plays in achieving ambitious climate targets.

The Massachusetts Clean Energy and Climate Plan (CECP) for 2050 offers a helpful picture of the potential pathways that are available to Connecticut for meeting its emissions reduction goals. The CECP study modeled the “least-cost pathway to achieve net zero in 2050” and concluded that widespread electrification of buildings and transportation was the cheapest way to decarbonize the state’s economy.

The least-cost scenario calls for 80% of homes in Massachusetts to install a heat pump and for 97% of light-duty fleet to be electric by 2050. Despite significant anticipated electric load growth by 2050 — and the need for grid investments to support that electrification — this scenario was still found to be the most cost-effective path to achieving the state’s decarbonization goals. By electrifying buildings and transportation sectors, we can achieve the lowest cost solution to addressing climate change while also creating thousands of full-time jobs and delivering significant health benefits to Connecticut’s residents.

Biodiesel and renewable propane are not the answers to our energy challenges. Biofuels have widely varying lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions that are highly dependent on the feedstocks used to make them. The problem with biofuels as a building decarbonization solution is that the supply of climate-beneficial biofuels derived from waste feedstocks, like used cooking oil, is extremely limited. We’ll need that limited supply of beneficial waste-derived biofuels to decarbonize the most challenging industries to electrify, such as aviation and shipping.

Today, the majority of biofuels are made from energy crops like soy and corn that provide little to no climate benefit. Biodiesel derived from true waste products represents only a tiny sliver of overall biodiesel production. There is no way to scale waste-derived biofuels at anywhere near the levels necessary to function as a viable building decarbonization solution.

Moreover, the claim that “Conservation — not conversion — is the only proven method to lower emissions and costs” is misleading. Even if nothing changed in terms of the resources that provide electric power, heat pumps would help to reduce emissions. Because heat pumps move heat rather than generate heat, they are highly efficient and are more than three times as efficient as the best fossil gas units.

While the most cost-effective pathway to addressing climate change may drive increased electricity use, analysis from our grid operator, ISO-New England, highlights the critical role that energy efficiency and behind-the-meter solar will play in helping to mitigate this increase in electricity consumption. As such, both “conservation” and “conversion” will be necessary for supporting Connecticut’s energy transition.

Connecticut needs to rapidly electrify its buildings and transportation systems. By shifting away from the combustion of fossil fuels in our homes and businesses, we can unlock major financial and health benefits for families, businesses, and the grid overall. Delaying this transition is not an option.

Oliver Tully is Director, Utility Innovation and Accountability; and Jayson Velazquez is a Climate and Energy Justice Policy Associate at the Acadia Center.

To read the article from CT Mirror, click here.

Tackling Building Emissions at the Rhode Island Legislature in 2024

The Act on Climate requires statewide emissions reductions of 45% below 1990 levels by 2030, 80% by 2040, and net-zero emissions by 2050. While Rhode Island has seen recent policy wins in the electric and transportation sectors, the state is not on track to meet the mandated targets in the Act on Climate and lacks a plan to reduce emissions from buildings. Buildings in Rhode Island, specifically accounting for residential and commercial heating, are responsible for nearly 30% of our state’s greenhouse gas emissions. To meet the Act on Climate mandates, we must tackle the transition of our building sector away from fossil fuels. This requires meaningful investments in energy efficiency in tandem with the rapid electrification of our heating and other appliances.

That’s why, in Rhode Island, Acadia Center’s top legislative priority is the Building Decarbonization Act of 2024 (H7617/S2952), which will begin to tackle carbon emissions in both existing and new buildings. Acadia Center partnered with Green Energy Consumers Alliance, the Institute for Market Transformation and the U.S. Green Buildings Council, along with legislative sponsors Senator Meghan Kallman and Representative Rebecca Kislak, to develop and advance the content of the act. In 2024, the Building Decarbonization Act merges previous benchmarking and all-electric new construction bills, and incorporates modifications suggested by the Office of Energy Resources (OER) and other stakeholders.

Acadia Center’s advocacy has centered on strengthening relationships and identifying solutions to address housing and electricity affordability, both in the Building Decarbonization Act and more broadly throughout its work.

How does the bill tackle building emissions?

First, the bill proposes benchmarking for large existing buildings, requiring the tracking and reporting of energy usage in large public buildings and then private buildings in two phases. Equipped with a better understanding of their utility bills and energy consumption, building owners can then leverage data to make cost-effective investments that will save them money and reduce their energy usage and thus emissions. Following three years of collecting baseline data, the bill proposes that OER create a building performance standard to guide these large building owners through setting long-term energy reduction and emissions targets. The act targets the largest buildings to gain the greatest impact when it comes to potential for energy and emissions reductions.

Second, the bill proposes multiple tiers of all-electric new construction, from electric-ready requirements to requirements for public buildings, followed by enabling the local approval of all-electric requirements, and ultimately requiring that all new construction statewide be all-electric, with some exceptions for commercial and industrial uses. While only a small proportion of Rhode Island’s building stock is new construction, the act ensures that new buildings take advantage of the most energy efficient technologies, avoid stranded infrastructure ‘lock-ins,’ and lead the way to a fossil fuel free future. For public projects, the bill includes provisions for apprenticeship programs and project labor agreements above a certain threshold.

What is the status of the Building Decarbonization Act?

House Bill No. 7617 was introduced and referred to the House Environment and Natural Resources Committee on 02/15/2024. The House Environment and Natural Resources Committee heard the Building Decarbonization Act on the evening of Thursday, March 21^st, alongside the Clean Heat Standard and a wide range of other bills related to resilience, chemical reduction, and other topics. Acadia Center’s Emily Koo introduced the content of the bill alongside the sponsor, Representative Kislak, prior to offering verbal testimony. A wide range of local and national advocacy groups and residents expressed strong support for the Building Decarbonization Act with written and verbal testimony.

In partnership with Green Energy Consumers Alliance, Acadia Center has lobbied members of the House and Senate and garnered support for the Building Decarbonization Act among diverse stakeholders, from housing nonprofits to construction companies. Key goals have been demystifying myths about the bill and discerning the unique benefits and hurdles of benchmarking and building all-electric in Rhode Island.

Senate Bill No. 2952 was introduced and referred to the Senate Environment and Agriculture Committee on April 5^th, 2024. The Senate Environment and Agriculture Committee will hear the Building Decarbonization Act on Wednesday, May 1^st, beginning at 4:30 PM, alongside the Clean Heat Standard and many other environmental and energy-related bills. The Senate hearing is another important opportunity to demonstrate to legislators the importance of tackling building emissions this session.

How can you help?

If you’re a Rhode Island resident, we encourage you to contact your state representative and state senator to highlight your support for the Building Decarbonization Act of 2024 (H7617/S2952) and the importance of tackling carbon emissions in both existing and new buildings. The Building Decarbonization Act has also emerged as a top priority of the Environment Council of Rhode Island.

Supporters are also strongly encouraged to submit written testimony to the Senate Environment and Agriculture Committee and to attend the hearing in-person on Wednesday, May 1^st to show support. The Committee agenda is available here. Written testimony must be submitted prior to 3:00 PM on Wednesday, May 1^st to SLegislation@rilegislature.gov. Be sure to include your name, organization (if relevant), and your support for S2952. Green Energy Consumers Alliance offered these helpful resources for the Housing hearing, with templates for written testimony and tips for coming to the State House. Contact Acadia Center’s Rhode Island Program Director, Emily Koo, ekoo@acadiacenter.org, for any questions about showing your support for the Building Decarbonization Act at Wednesday’s Senate Environment hearing or beyond. 

Resources

Building Decarbonization Act Summary

Facts and Myths about the Building Decarbonization Act in RI

Acadia Center Testimony in Support of Senate Bill 2952, the Building Decarbonization Act of 2024

New Initiative Focuses on Interregional Tx Coordination in the Northeast

An early-stage collaboration between the Acadia Center and Nergica is intended to bring together communities, tribes, nonprofits, companies, RTOs and government officials from the northeastern U.S. and Canada to increase coordination around interregional transmission.

Dubbed the Northeast Grid Planning Forum (NGPF), the effort is aimed at changing the conversation around transmission planning throughout the broader region to help unlock infrastructure investments, improved planning processes and market changes to help facilitate the clean energy transition.

“If you look out at what states and provinces are trying to achieve with meeting climate goals,” Dan Sosland, president of the Acadia Center, told RTO Insider, “there is a tremendous amount of potential complementary benefits that could be obtained if we step back and look at how the grids might coordinate in a more intentional way.”

“We need to think about the grid in a different way,” Sosland said, adding that transmission infrastructure throughout the Northeast has been developed largely project by project, leading to projects scattered across the map like “a game of pick-up sticks.”

Meanwhile, several studies have found that increased interregional transmission capacity throughout the Northeast could bring cost, reliability and decarbonization benefits to ratepayers.

Notably, the nonprofits behind the effort represent both sides of the border; the Acadia Center is based in New England, while Nergica is based in Québec.

The forum’s organizers say they hope to hold in-person roundtables over the coming fall or winter and have met with different stakeholder groups to plan and gauge interest.

“We’re in Phase 1 of really testing ideas and getting input,” Sosland said. “We will then do an internal assessment in early May about whether there’s enough interest and support to expand this into a larger phase.”

While nothing is set in stone, Sosland and Côté said they’re encouraged by the feedback they’ve received.

“We’re getting really exciting responses to this,” Sosland said. “If things proceed, we want to be very optimistic about the interest in moving this into an actual forum, actual roundtables and actual discussions.”

To read the full article from RTO Insider, click here.