Climate 411

4 reasons why Colorado legislators should strengthen the state’s climate targets

By Katie Schneer / Published: February 13, 2023

Photo Credit: Getty Images

This blog was co-authored by Alex DeGolia, Director, U.S. Climate.

Last month, Colorado’s Senate Transportation and Energy Committee approved SB 23-16 — a wide-ranging bill that strengthens Colorado’s commitment to cut statewide climate pollution beyond 2030. It would put new targets in law requiring cuts of at least 65% by 2035, 80% by 2040, 90% by 2045, and strengthen the state’s 2050 target to ensure a 100% cut in pollution by 2050.

This climate bill arrives at a moment of great urgency and opportunity for the state.

As Colorado faces down the consequences of more climate change-fueled impacts, like droughts and wildfires, Coloradans are looking to their leaders to raise the state’s climate ambition and secure a safer, healthier future for their communities. At the same time, Colorado now has more opportunity than ever before to make that ambition a reality, thanks to billions in federal climate and clean energy investments from the Inflation Reduction Act.

Here are 4 reasons why the legislature should pass these ambitious climate targets:

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Also posted in Cities and states, Greenhouse Gas Emissions, News, Science / Read 2 Responses

Making the most of our climate investments: 4 lessons learned from new research

By Chelcie Henry-Robertson / Published: January 31, 2023

Photo Credit: Canva

This blog was co-authored by Morgan Rote, Director, U.S. Climate.

In the last year, the U.S. secured historic investments from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), and CHIPs and Science Act that position our country to drive transformational progress on emissions, energy security and jobs in clean energy and manufacturing. Getting those laws through Congress to President Biden’s desk was no easy feat — they’ve been decades in the making — and the next chapter may be just as challenging: implementing those clean energy and innovation investments swiftly and fairly across the nation.

To ensure these laws make the impact we need this decade, federal agencies like the Department of Energy need to design, build and evaluate programs that maximize this funding. Two reports commissioned by EDF offer valuable insights and recommendations on how to best design and evaluate clean energy and innovation programs.

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Also posted in Cities and states, Energy, Innovation / Read 1 Response

Minnesota’s 100% clean electricity bill could start a new era for climate action in the state

By Alex DeGolia / Published: January 24, 2023

Photo Credit: Getty Images

This legislative session, Minnesota state leaders wasted no time getting to work on a strong clean electricity bill that achieves 100% carbon-free electricity by 2040, reduces health-harming air pollution, builds more good-paying jobs and sets the stage for economy-wide, climate action.

Pro-climate leaders have pushed for years to reclaim Minnesota’s early lead on climate action, when it passed the strongest renewable energy standard in the country back in 2007. Now, with pro-climate trifectas across the state’s Senate, House and governor’s office, as well as strong voter support for climate action, they have a major opportunity — and a mandate — to get it done.

Here’s why legislators and Governor Waltz should seize this moment to get Minnesota on the path to 100% clean electricity and leverage this policy to put in place strong limits on climate pollution capable of meeting the state’s climate goals.

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Also posted in Carbon Markets, Cities and states, Energy, Health, Jobs / Comments are closed

Don’t miss the forest for the trees

By Breanna Lujan / Published: January 24, 2023

Ecuadorian Amazon. Photo by Leslie Von Pless/EDF

High-quality tropical forest carbon credits are essential to combatting climate change, advancing community-led development and safeguarding biodiversity.

This post was written by Mark Moroge, Vice President, Natural Climate Solutions and Breanna Lujan, Senior Manager, Natural Climate Solutions. This is an exerpt of a post published in EDF+Business. Read the full post here.

If you’re a company, navigating the tropical forest carbon credit marketplace can be daunting, particularly in a complex media landscape.

How should you do it?

First, don’t miss the forest for the trees. We must halt and reverse tropical deforestation by 2030 to prevent the worst impacts of climate change. We need to use all the tools in our toolbox.

Private sector finance is key to tackling deforestation at the pace and scale the world needs. As a company, you should decarbonize your own operations as quickly as possible. Alongside this, purchase high-quality tropical forest carbon credits. Such credits are an essential means to stabilize our climate and safeguard biodiversity. Revenues can also improve the lives and livelihoods of some of the world’s most vulnerable forest peoples, including Indigenous Peoples and local communities, who’ve long struggled for just recognition of their conservation efforts.

Second, do your due diligence – both of your tropical forest carbon credit purchases, and of the information you consume about the tropical forest carbon marketplace. Both matter, and both support the evolution of forest carbon markets towards ever increasing integrity and quality. Read the full post here.

Also posted in Carbon Markets, Forest protection, Indigenous People, International, REDD+ / Comments are closed

Michigan voters want to see more climate action this legislative session

By Alex DeGolia / Published: January 18, 2023

Photo Credit: Steven Kriemadis

This November, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer won her bid for reelection and for the first time in 40 years, Democrats gained a majority in the state house and senate.

With this historic win comes historic opportunity. In the legislative session that started last week, Michigan has the chance to follow through on the climate goals set during Gov Whitmer’s first term with strong policies capable of ensuring a safer climate and healthier communities for decades to come. Recent polling commissioned by EDF Action underscores that voters are ready for state leaders to meet this moment by stepping up action on climate and clean energy.

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Also posted in Carbon Markets, Cities and states, Economics, Energy, Health / Comments are closed

DOE has a big opportunity to decarbonize industry. Here’s how it can leverage a new program.

By Sonali Deshpande / Published: December 20, 2022
Factory with pollution

Photo Credit: Canva

This blog is the second of a series of analyses being developed by a coalition of NGOs engaged in decarbonization of the U.S. industrial sector. It focuses on investment priorities for $5.8 billion in funding for industrial decarbonization in the Advanced Industrial Facilities Deployment Program (AIFDP), passed by Congress as part of the Inflation Reduction Act. We and our partners will continue to update our blogs to references one another’s work. See the recent posts by ITIF, and NRDC+RMI.

The Inflation Reduction Act made a historic down payment on climate and clean energy progress across the economy, including new investments that take aim at a notoriously tough-to-decarbonize sector: industry. A key provision in this law is the $5.8 billion Advanced Industrial Facilities Deployment Program (AIFDP), which is intended to support early-stage demonstrations of technologies and processes that could cut emissions in the industrial sector. The Department of Energy now has the opportunity to design this program to maximize breakthroughs in technologies and benefit communities.

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Also posted in Energy, Innovation / Comments are closed