After a big win against coal, NY climate activists are closer to ending all fossil fuel investments A recent surge in youth-led climate activism has revived a near decade-long effort to divest New York from the companies most responsible for causing the climate crisis. Article from WAGINGNONVIOLENCE By Nick Engelfried August 13, 2020 When New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli […]
By Ramona du Houx August 12, 2020 According to New Jersey’s Board of Public Utilities (BPU) the state received 1,800 applications for its new electric vehicle rebate program in just the last two months. The BPU has approved more than 1,000 applications for a total of about $5.8 million. The agency runs the program and is reviewing the remaining applications. […]
BP was responsible for the Deep Horizon disaster in the Gulf of Mexico in 2010, which has devastated the local communities for the past decade. August 8. 2020 by Ramona du Houx British Petroleum (BP), the energy company that grew from oil and gas production, is taking its business in a new direction, announcing on August 4, 2020 that it […]
The carbon economy amplifies racial, social and economic inequities, creating a system that is fundamentally incompatible with a stable future Jeffrey Sachs, Joseph Stiglitz, Mariana Mazzucato, Clair Brown, Indivar Dutta-Gupta, Robert Reich, Gabriel Zucman and others Aug 4, 2020 Published in the Guardian From deep-rooted racism to the Covid-19 pandemic, from extreme inequality to ecological collapse, our world is facing dire and deeply interconnected emergencies. […]
SDG&E microgrid serves about 2,800 customers in desert community By ROB NIKOLEWSKI AUG. 3, 2020. Published in the San Diego Union Tribune With an eye on integrating more renewable energy sources as well as making the electric grid more resistant to wildfires, California has made it a priority to develop microgrids that can allow communities or critical facilities such as fire stations to power themselves independently or in parallel to the grid. San Diego Gas & Electric operates two microgrids and its largest, located in the desert town of Borrego Springs, recently received a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office. The money will go into upgrades aimed at reducing the use of the site’s diesel-powered generators […]
Aug 1, 2020 By Ramona du Houx New York state has postponed plans to place a $3 billion environmental bond on the ballot in November, citing a dire financial situation stemming from the coronavirus pandemic. “It was my proposal. I believe deeply in it, but we need to have financial stability before we do that,” said Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) on July 30, during a press conference call. Gov. Cuomo proposed the bond act in January as part of the state’s budget process. The state’s $177 billion budget, passed in April allowed the bond act question to be placed on the Nov. 3 ballot. The bond, if approved by voters, would have allocated funding for habitat restoration, flood reduction, […]
By TOM JOHNSON | JULY 31, 2020 In New Jersey Spotlight There was a last-minute lobbying blitz against the bill by business interests and labor groups. In an unexpected setback, lawmakers yesterday failed to act on a bill touted by Gov. Phil Murphy as key to helping to curb pollution problems in environmental-justice communities. The legislation (S-232) is viewed by advocates as establishing a national model for giving minority and low-income communities more tools to block new projects that could worsen air and other pollution in their neighborhoods. But a last-minute lobbying blitz against the bill by business interests and labor groups led the Assembly to hold off voting planned for Thursday. The bill had been expected to pass and then […]
By Alexis Shanes. Published, with great slide show, in: NorthJersey.com. July 31,2020 PSEG Power on Friday announced it would explore selling its fleet of fossil fuel-burning power plants, turning toward zero-carbon generation and clean energy investments as investor preferences shift. The company previously set a goal to attain net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, the deadline in New Jersey’s 2019 […]
GE and Principle Power among 12 winners sharing $10.3m to advance various research projects By Ramona du Houx In June, a research project by the University of Maine composite laboratory is among 12 to share over $10. 3 million in funding from the US National Offshore Wind Research and Development Consortium. Research into floating offshore wind moorings is on […]
Downtown Los Angeles, California In GreenBIZ – By Jesse Klein July 20, 2020 As COVID-19 rampages through vulnerable minority populations with tragic consequences, and protests for racial justice surge among a similar demographic, city climate planners see a renewed focus on climate justice. The pandemic, in some ways, has been a trial run for the anticipated coming impacts of […]
Fonda and Martin ask about why CA Legislature tolerates the oil industry’s environmental racism BY JANE FONDA AND DON MARTIN in the THE SACRAMENTO BEE JULY 17, 2020 Of the 1.8 million Californians living near drilling in heavily polluted areas, 92 percent are from communities of color. It is past time to stop sacrificing Black and brown communities to the oil and […]
In the Daily Kos. By Dan Bacher Wednesday July 15, 2020 · Elected Officials to Protect California (EOPCA ), a coalition of current and former elected officials opposed to fracking and increased oil and gas drilling in the state, is asking why California Governor Gavin Newsom is helping the failing fracking industry by overseeing an expansion of fracking operations during a […]
From Kings County Politics July 10, 2020 Assistant Assembly Speaker Félix W. Ortiz (D-Sunset Park, Red Hook) is urgently calling on New York to divest from fossil fuels now, due to this week’s setbacks hitting the fossil fuel industry. The lawmaker’s call comes as the Atlantic Coast Pipeline has been canceled by Dominion and Duke Energy, the Dakota Access Pipeline was […]
Upstate New York in the fall Amid the COVID-19 crisis, efforts to reform renewable energy siting and transmission planning will support a clean energy economic stimulus and job creation for New Yorkers By Ramona du Houx April 1, 2020 – A broad coalition of environmental, clean energy industry, real estate and labor groups applaud Governor Cuomo, Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins and Speaker Heastie on the inclusion of the renewable energy siting and transmission reform in the State Budget. The improved siting process for renewable energy projects will help New York to achieve 70 percent renewable electricity by 2030, as required by NY’s 2019 climate law, and maintain New York’s strong environmental and public participation standards. Amid the COVID-19 health crisis, this renewable […]
Catie Keck12/16/18 1:45PM• In GIZMODO As the Green New Deal pioneered by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez continues to gain momentum, the plan to wean the U.S. off of fossil fuels has now found support in more than 300 local and state government officials who called for the initiative in an open letter on Friday. The letter from environmental nonprofit Elected Officials to Protect America and signed by 311 officials from 40 states pointed to extreme weather phenomena exacerbated by climate change that are already affecting communities across the nation and costing billions to manage in their aftermath—dire issues that are only going to worsen as our planet continues to warm. “Our nation’s mightiest cities have been flooded by unprecedented superstorms including Sandy, Katrina, Harvey, and Maria. Scientists warn […]