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

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

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

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

“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

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

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:

Listen to the episode from The Full Story here.

Climate change is no longer a future threat: it’s a crisis today | Opinion

RGGI has been in effect since 2008, and a recent review by the Acadia Center of the program’s first 10 years found that:

  • CO2 emissions from RGGI-covered power plants have fallen by 47 percent outpacing the rest of the country by 90 percent, while reductions in other air pollutants from these plants have resulted in over $5.7 billion in health and productivity benefits
  • Electricity prices in RGGI states have fallen by 5.7 percent, while prices have increased in the rest of the country by 8.6 percent
  • The combined economies of the RGGI states have grown by 47 percent, outpacing growth in the rest of the country by 31 percent
  • RGGI states have generated $3.2 billion in allowance auction proceeds, the majority of which have been invested in energy efficiency and renewable energy programs

Read the full article from Penn Live here.

2/3 Voters: Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Firms Should Pay For Pollution

“The poll shows that people across the region want proactive leadership to address our transportation and climate challenges. We need bold solutions to make the shift to a clean transportation future, and an ambitious TCI program can jumpstart that transition.” — Jordan Stutt, carbon programs director, Acadia Center.

Read the full article from ValueWalk here.

New Polling Confirms Strong Support Across Eastern Region for Transportation Modernization

“The poll shows that people across the region want proactive leadership to address our transportation and climate challenges. We need bold solutions to make the shift to a clean transportation future, and an ambitious TCI program can jumpstart that transition.” — Jordan Stutt, carbon programs director, Acadia Center.

Read the full release from Our Transportation Future here.

Hydropower and Transmission: Updated Position Statement

As Acadia Center has examined the path to a rapid transition away from fossil fuels, it has considered the potential for hydroelectric energy from existing impoundments to replace some of the fossil fuels used in the Northeast’s energy mix. The Northeast is currently heavily reliant on fossil fuels, especially natural gas, for electricity generation. According to multiple studies, when electricity comes from excess generation at existing hydro impoundments, it results in dramatically lower carbon emissions than electricity generated by fossil fuels.[1],[2]

Beyond the question of whether carbon emissions from hydro are lower, Acadia Center has been open to hydropower imports from existing hydro projects, but only if specific critical conditions are met and expectations fulfilled. Because these conditions and expectations have not been met, Acadia Center has not endorsed either the energy contract between Hydro-Quebec and Massachusetts utilities or the NECEC line.

In January 2019, Acadia Center joined a multiparty settlement to impose economic and consumer protection conditions on Central Maine Power (CMP) in the Maine Public Utilities Commission’s (MPUC) proceeding on the New England Clean Energy Connect (NECEC) transmission line.  In that proceeding, Acadia Center joined the settlement for a certificate of public need and necessity (CPCN) for the NECEC line because the settlement would strengthen Maine’s economy, protect consumers, and deliver a clean energy future for the state. However, Acadia Center stated that it would only support the line and the contract between Hydro-Quebec (HQ) and Massachusetts utilities if, and only if, CMP and HQ also:

  • Ensure the project advances state and regional climate goals by verifying the emission reductions expected from the contract over its lifetime; and
  • Thoughtfully and sensitively protect the Western Maine landscape from unacceptable siting impacts. (Acadia Center, New England Clean Energy Connect Transmission Line, Feb. 2019)

Contrary to Acadia Center’s sustained advocacy for transparency and accountability,[3] Massachusetts regulators approved a contract that fails to hold Hydro-Quebec responsible for verifying that electricity deliveries over the NECEC line, if permitted, will continue to produce real, incremental climate benefits over the life of the contract.  Additionally, the Maine DEP siting process is ongoing, and has yet to produce final assurances that the negative siting impacts will be avoided and reduced as much as possible.

Acadia Center will continue to hold CMP, Hydro-Quebec, and the Massachusetts utilities to their carbon-reduction and clean energy commitments should its contracts with Massachusetts proceed, and Acadia Center will heavily weigh the remaining unmet conditions prior to considering its full and unqualified support for NECEC.

Acadia Center aims to ensure that the Northeast region rapidly decarbonizes its energy system in line with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recommendations. To that end, Acadia Center works to build a comprehensive zero-carbon energy system by focusing on and prioritizing clean energy solutions, local clean energy resources, deep energy efficiency, utility reform, transportation improvements and innovations, and the phase-out of fossil fuels.[4]  Acadia Center remains committed to ensuring that Maine, Massachusetts, and this region work aggressively to reduce climate pollution to provide a climate safe future for all.

[1] I.B. Ocko and S. P. Hamburg, Climate Impacts of Hydropower: Enormous Difference among Facilities and over Time, Env. Sci & Tech., 2019, available here: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/acs.est.9b05083

[2] London Economics International LLC, Independent Analysis of Electricity Market and Macroeconomic Benefits of the New England Clean Energy Connect Project, prepared for the Maine Public Utilities Commission, May 21, 2018.

[3] Reply Brief of Acadia Center, DPU 18-64- DPU 18-66, April 3, 2019, available here: https://fileservice.eea.comacloud.net/FileService.Api/file/FileRoom/10562132

[4] EnergyVision 2030.