Acadia Center

Menu ☰

News & Blog

Power plant emissions down 47% under the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative

Category: News

Power plant emission reductions exceed those in rest of U.S. by 90% According to a 10-year report by the northeast regional advocacy group Acadia Center, proceeds since the time of the first two auctions (a year before RGGI officially got under way) had totaled nearly $3.3 billion by the end of June 2019. The Acadia report also says emissions from the plants covered by RGGI are down 47% – outpacing the rest of the nation by 90%. The gross domestic product of the RGGI states, all in the Northeast and mid-Atlantic regions, also grew by 47% – again outpacing the
Read More

Advocates say Massachusetts needs to do more to promote electric vehicles

Category: News

“This is absolutely necessary,” said Jordan Stutt, carbon programs director at the Acadia Center, a climate change advocacy organization. “The MOR-EV program provides critical momentum toward achieving our emissions reduction targets.” Read the full article from Energy News Network here.

Capitalizing on Climate Change

Category: News

One might think that with so much money going to carbon allowances, energy prices in RGGI states would have increased, but a research study by the Acadia Center shows the opposite is true: Electricity prices in RGGI states have fallen by 5.7 percent, as increased energy efficiency has resulted in decreased demand. In the rest of the US, electricity prices haven’t fallen at all; rather, they’ve increased by 8.6 percent in the last decade. CO2 emissions from RGGI electric power plants have also fallen by 47 percent since 2008, dramatically outpacing the rest of the country. Read the full article from the River Hudson Valley
Read More

The Northeast’s New Year’s Resolution – Get Serious about Climate Change

Category: Blog

January is a great time to start fresh. Whether it’s signing up for a new gym membership or cutting back on social media, the New Year is an opportunity to envision a better future and eliminate bad habits. And the Northeast has one that can’t be ignored for another year: an ongoing, dangerous reliance on fossil fuels. In 2020, Acadia Center’s resolution is to help the region break up with dirty energy. The latest report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) served up a harsh reality check: the world has until just 2030 to act to avoid the
Read More

Connecticut could be known for a modern transportation system, instead of asthma

Category: News

A recent Acadia Center report shows that by capping transportation carbon dioxide emissions, auctioning allowances, and investing proceeds — much like Connecticut already does for power plants emissions — the state could generate $2.7 billion in auction proceeds through 2030. Reinvesting these funds across the state’s transportation system would generate 23,000 long-term jobs; $2.2 billion in new wages; $7 billion in new business sales; and $4.3 billion in other benefits, including reduced air pollution. Read the full article from the Hartford Courant here.

Maine should take part in regional effort to cut transportation pollution

Category: News

The Transportation and Climate Initiative will deliver economic, health and environmental benefits. As Mainers take to the roads, skies and tracks for the holidays, ‘tis the season to contemplate resolutions for the New Year and beyond. While most envision exercising more, quitting smoking or spending more time with loved ones, Gov. Mills, the Maine Legislature and the Maine Climate Council are grappling with how to reduce the state’s climate pollution and transportation costs in an economical, efficient and equitable manner. Read the full article from the Portland Press Herald here.

Electric car rebates returned for Bay State motorists on Jan. 1

Category: News

The Legislature had rejected amendments to the annual budget that would have provided more funding for the five-year-old program, and officials from the Acadia Center and Conservation Law Foundation were calling on public officials to find new sources of funding. Read the full article from the Worcester Business Journal here.

Eastern States Introduce a Plan to Cap Tailpipe Pollution

Category: News

“When we’re going backward at the federal level, for states to step up and take action on climate, take steps to modernize our transportation system, it’s just an unprecedented opportunity,” said Jordan Stutt, carbon programs director at the Acadia Center, a research and public interest group in New England that is pushing for cleaner energy. “If designed well, this can be the most significant sub-national climate policy ever.” Read the full article from The New York Times here.

Maine undecided on joining regional plan to reduce vehicle pollution

Category: News

The transportation program is based on the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, a 2009 agreement to cap and trade power plant carbon emissions in nine Northeast states including Maine. Since its inception, CO2 emissions from power plants fell 47 percent, according to an analysis by the Acadia Center, a clean energy research group. Read the full article from Central Maine here.

Park City Wind

Category: News

Bridgeport looks to become a hub for offshore wind in Connecticut, with its Park City Wind project expected to deliver 14% of the state’s electricity supply. That is, if the offshore wind farm can get federal approval. Our guests: Jan Ellen Spiegel, energy and environmental reporter, Connecticut Mirror David Arconti, representative, D-Danbury, and chair, Energy and Technology Committee, Connecticut House of Representatives Deborah Donovan, senior policy advocate and Massachusetts director, Acadia Center Michael Passero, mayor, City of New London Listen to the episode from The Full Story here.