Op-Ed: Don’t give gas utilities a blank check to pursue dubious ‘alternative fuels’

The gas industry is trying to take New Jersey in the wrong direction on climate action. While other states are preparing consumers and workers to reduce reliance on natural gas, politicians in Trenton are considering legislation that would give gas utilities a blank check to pursue dubious, harmful “alternative fuels” that would only entrench our aging fossil fuel system further. 

The fact is, residents across the Northeast are increasingly turning to the health, economic and climate benefits of highly efficient electric equipment such as heat pumps and ditching their gas service. Research from Acadia Center shows that amid rising gas rates, New Jerseyans can save money when they swap out their gas HVACs for electric heat pumps. On the high end, New Jersey Natural Gas customers can save 41% of their annual energy bill by making the switch, while South Jersey Gas customers would save 32%. And soon, New Jersey residents will be able to access thousands of dollars in rebates and incentives to adopt the latest clean-energy technologies, thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act and new state incentive programs. 

To read the full article from NJ Spotlight News, click here.

Environmentalists demand Northeast governors oppose gas pipeline expansion project

A multistate coalition of over 90 environmental organizations is demanding that the governors of Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and New York publicly oppose a proposal to expand a major natural gas pipeline in the Northeast.

The company behind the project, Enbridge, says piping more natural gas into the region will help stabilize energy prices, make the electric grid more reliable and help states meet their climate goals by burning less oil on cold days. But the coalition opposing the project — which includes groups like the Sierra Club, the Acadia Center, the Conservation Law Foundation and 350 Mass — disagrees.

“More pipelines will only exacerbate our existing fracked-gas dependence, raise our energy bills, and harm our communities,” the coalition members wrote in letters they recently delivered to the four governors. “In order to mitigate the climate crisis, and to protect our communities, the amount of fossil fuels burned must be decreased immediately and [states must implement] policies that ensure the just and rapid transition to a cleaner, renewable energy-powered regenerative economy.”

To read the full article from wbur, click here.

Advocates urge Governor Healey to oppose major gas expansion proposal

A coalition of climate advocates is calling on Governor Maura Healey to oppose the proposed expansion of a gas pipeline, called “Project Maple,” which they say would hurt frontline communities and worsen the climate crisis.

In a letter sent to Healey on Wednesday, the advocates asked Healey to clarify her stance on the proposed project from the Canadian-based pipeline and energy company Enbridge. Healey has previously said she won’t allow any new gas pipelines, but Project Maple isn’t technically new. The company has proposed building next to existing pipelines and making upgrades to increase capacity.

Given that, Kyle Murray, Massachusetts program director at the clean energy advocacy group Acadia Center, said it’s likely that if Project Maple got built, it will “end up being a stranded asset that costs ratepayers a lot more in the longterm.”

To read the full article from the Boston Globe, click here.

Residents Dealt Legal Setback That Will Have A Lasting Impact on Public Health: ‘These Numbers are All People’

Pennsylvania residents awaiting news on a crucial environmental legal battle might want to continue holding their breath — in more ways than one.

RGGI-participating states, which have successfully reduced carbon pollution by 47%, according to a report by the nonprofit Acadia Center, demonstrate the effectiveness of the initiative, and the delay only prolongs the state’s struggle against the health impacts of air pollution.

Pennsylvania’s participation in RGGI had been projected to result in fewer health cases involving asthma, bronchitis, and hospital admissions, and public health benefits totaling up to $6.3 billion by 2030, reports the state’s Department of Environmental Protection.

To read the full article from the Cool Down, click here.

How does Rhode Island’s new community choice aggregation program work?

Today, we’re taking a look at Rhode Island’s new energy program, community choice aggregation, and unpacking what it means for consumers.

Megan Hall: Welcome to Possibly, where we take on huge problems like the future of our planet and break them down into small questions with unexpected answers. I’m Megan Hall.

Last summer, I got a letter in the mail, welcoming me to the Providence Community Electricity Program.

If you live in Rhode Island, there’s a decent chance you got some version of this letter, too. That’s because last year, seven towns in Rhode Island launched brand new energy programs, called community choice aggregation.

Cameron Leo: To learn more, we talked to Emily Koo, who was Providence’s Director of Sustainability when the city started developing this program.  She says community aggregation has two main goals: lower prices, and more renewable energy.

Emily Koo: In contrast, an investor-owned utility, on the other hand, also has its own bottom line and fiduciary obligations to consider.

To listen to the full podcast from the Public’s Radio, click here.

Mass. Lawmakers Aiming for an Omnibus Climate Bill in 2024

Top legislators in Massachusetts this year hope to pass a major climate and energy bill, which could bring significant permitting and siting reform, and boost transportation and heating electrification.

“It’s going to be a really interesting time,” said Kyle Murray, director of state program implementation at the Acadia Center, a climate-focused nonprofit. Murray praised the steps taken in the previous two bills but added that “we’ve got so many areas we still need to cover.”

Murray of the Acadia Center stressed the importance of securing funding for public transport in the state. According to a recent assessment by the Massachusetts Taxpayers Foundation, the state would need to invest an additional $2 billion annually through 2036 just to make all the necessary repairs for the existing system. This excludes any potential expansion, resilience or modernization efforts to help the state meet its climate goals.

“We need a more stable funding source for the MBTA [Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority]. I really do think we need to address that at some point in the very near future,” said Murray, while acknowledging the added difficulty of the state’s current financial troubles. Gov. Healey recently proposed a $375 million budget cut to stave off an impending shortfall.

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

Connecticut program aims to alleviate cost barriers to utility oversight process, but challenges remain

Connecticut’s utilities commission is the latest to begin offering payments to help environmental justice and ratepayer groups participate in regulatory proceedings.

The Stakeholder Group Compensation Program was required to take effect this month as part of an energy consumer protection bill passed by the state legislature last year. It seeks to encourage more diverse engagement in proceedings on utility regulation, which can set direction for grid resiliency, rate relief, clean energy development, corporate accountability, storm response and more.

“The process of engaging with proceedings at public utility commissions across the nation is historically exclusive,” wrote Jayson Velazquez, the climate and energy justice policy associate with the nonprofit Acadia Center, in comments on the PURA docket creating the new program. “Compensation can play a significant role in ensuring diverse stakeholders are included in proceedings, specifically at PURA.”

In the Acadia Center’s comments on the new program’s docket, Velazquez said PURA should also begin a broader look at equity and inclusion across all of its work, similar to a docket now underway in Hawaii.

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

Technology to “Get more out of” electric grid attracts support

BOSTON, Mass. (SHNS)–Clean energy trade groups lined up Thursday in support of a new proposal from legislative Democrats that would embrace lower-cost, easy-to-install options for boosting the performance of the electric grid.

Bills filed by the House and Senate point people on energy and climate reforms, Rep. Jeffrey Roy and Sen. Michael Barrett, won praise as “commonsense” changes that could help the state move closer to its clean energy future without the same kind of major investment that other reforms will require.

“Put simply, grid enhancing technologies are often incredibly cost-effective technologies that help us maximize our existing infrastructure,” added Kyle Murray, Massachusetts program director with the Acadia Center.

To read the full article, click here.

Mass. efforts to limit natural gas could serve as national model

ENERGYWIRE | Massachusetts will require utilities to pursue alternatives to natural gas in a first-of-its-kind order that could serve as a model for other states trying to speed their transition to clean energy.

The sweeping order is “fairly unprecedented, even at a national level,” said Kyle Murray, director of state program implementation at the Boston-based environmental group Acadia Center. The state move comes as a major gas utility in the state — Eversource Energy — already works to reduce natural gas demand and switch to geothermal energy.

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

Massachusetts just took a major step to phase out natural gas

To read the full article from Fast Company, click here.