{"id":3129,"date":"2024-12-23T12:49:57","date_gmt":"2024-12-23T17:49:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/?p=3129"},"modified":"2024-12-23T12:49:57","modified_gmt":"2024-12-23T17:49:57","slug":"new-york-is-developing-an-energy-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/new-york-is-developing-an-energy-plan\/","title":{"rendered":"New York Is Developing an Energy Plan"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act<\/a> (\u201cClimate Law\u201d) was approved five years ago and sets the state on a path toward \u201cnet zero\u201d greenhouse gas emissions by the middle of this Century. The \u201cnet zero\u201d goal is consistent with the <\/a>standard<\/a> set by the world\u2019s climate scientists who have warned that in order to avoid the worst consequences of global heating, all nations need to adhere to the net zero goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New York\u2019s law set interim goals<\/a> designed to guide policymakers as benchmark steps to meet the goals advised by the world\u2019s climate experts. Those interim <\/a>goals commit the state to generate 70 percent of its electricity from renewable power sources and achieve a 40 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After the Climate Law was passed the state convened a panel of \u201cstakeholders\u201d to develop a detailed blueprint<\/a> to meet the law\u2019s milestone goals. That blueprint was <\/a>released at the end of 2022. Among its findings was that unless measures were taken, New Yorkers faced a considerable <\/a>financial risk from climate-change impacts. The blueprint estimated<\/a> \u201cthe cost of inaction in New York State exceeding the cost of action by more than $115 billion.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, New Yorkers are already paying dearly for climate damages. And this year New York saw a continuation of the yearslong catastrophic impacts from our worsening climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/a> The first half of November was among the 20 driest such periods on record<\/a>. That dryness increased the likelihood of wildfires occurring \u2013 and they did. New York City had brush fires in Manhattan<\/a> and Brooklyn<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wildfires have not been the only bizarre environmental events experienced by New Yorkers. The National Weather Service documented that 32 tornadoes<\/em> touched down in New York this year. That’s the most<\/em><\/a> since tornadoes were first recorded in the state in 1950.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Preparing for and dealing with those climate disasters has been a cornerstone for energy policy in New York. Actions by the state can not only protect New Yorkers but can also benefit the world. While New York\u2019s contribution to greenhouse gas emissions is small relative to the total, New York is one of the world\u2019s leading economies<\/a>. As a result, having aggressive science-based energy policies here can have impacts at the state, national, and international levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not surprisingly, a well-funded backlash has been organized to block \u2013 or at least slow down \u2013 action in New York. The fossil fuel industry and its allies have embarked on a statewide campaign<\/a> to undermine those science-based goals, assailing them as \u201cignorant<\/a>,\u201d \u201cradical<\/a>,\u201d and \u201cunaffordable<\/a>.\u201d This campaign is just the latest in the decades-long efforts to block climate protection policies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some opponents have argued that New York\u2019s science-based goals are simply too ambitious. If so, then other states would be in the same situation. But that is not<\/em> the case.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New York ranks<\/a> 16th<\/sup> in the nation in its reliance on renewable energy. New York ranks<\/a> 13th<\/sup> in the nation in its production of solar power, behind northeast neighbor Massachusetts (ranked 5th<\/sup>). Of course, differences in geography and climate can drive these rankings, but New York only generates<\/a> around 5 percent of its electricity from solar, while our neighbor to the east, Massachusetts generates<\/a> some 24 percent of its energy from solar, and often overcast Germany generates<\/a> 10 percent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to affordability, policymakers should remember that climate change \u2013 with its more intense storms and rising sea levels \u2013 damages infrastructure, and thus requires more state spending and higher taxes. Diverting revenues from other programs to pay for climate-caused damage can make New York less affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For example, this year (as of November 1, 2024), there had been 10 confirmed weather\/climate disaster events with losses exceeding $1 billion each<\/em> to affect New York, according to data<\/a> from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In the absence of aggressive action, it won\u2019t go away: Global energy-related CO2<\/sub> emissions hit a record high last year, according<\/a> to the International Energy Agency. As we close out 2024, according<\/a> to NOAA, 2024 is on track to top last year\u2019s heat record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s not just damaged infrastructure that drives costs: The pollution and heat generated by climate change also damages people\u2019s health, drives up health care costs, and hurts businesses. These increases in costs also contribute to making New York less affordable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week, the state accepted comments on its draft energy plan<\/a>. Public input, however, can still be incorporated. The final energy plan will direct the state toward the steps it needs to take to ensure reliable energy, at affordable prices, and one that minimizes \u2013 and eventually eliminates \u2013 New York\u2019s carbon footprint. Whatever the final energy plan includes, it must be based on the best climate science in order to help the world avoid the worst of possible climate outcomes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Energy Plan maps New York\u2019s energy future. Here\u2019s hoping the fossil fuel industry and allied naysayers are ignored and that policymakers follow the science.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (\u201cClimate Law\u201d) was approved five years ago and sets the state on a path toward \u201cnet zero\u201d greenhouse gas emissions by the middle of this Century. The \u201cnet zero\u201d goal is consistent with the standard set by the world\u2019s climate scientists who have warned that in order to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3129","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3129","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3129"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3129\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3130,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3129\/revisions\/3130"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3129"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3129"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nypirg.org\/capitolperspective\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3129"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}