GA leaders celebrate impact of IRA on clean energy, environmental justice
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August 13, 2024
Thursday marks the two-year anniversary of the Inflation Reduction Act and Georgia leaders with Elected Officials to Protect America are reflecting on its benefits.
On Monday, state leaders gathered in Washington, D.C., to celebrate the legislation’s effect on reducing carbon emissions, creating jobs and boosting Justice40 communities.
Donya Sartor, mayor of Jonesboro, said Georgia alone has received $219 million to start energy rebate programs and lower energy bills statewide. She pointed out it has been key in helping a local school district to transition to clean energy for its transportation.
“Clean energy buses mean less headaches, less dizziness, less nausea,” Sartor observed. “Also, it doesn’t trigger the asthma attacks because they’re not inhaling the nitrogen oxide that’s given off by so many of the diesel vehicles.”
Elected officials celebrate Inflation Reduction Act’s second anniversary
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August 14, 2024
New York and the nation have seen sweeping impacts since the Inflation Reduction Act’s passage two years ago. New York received $34 billion from the IRA for large-scale clean energy generation and storage. Along with funds to expand the state’s clean energy sources, it’s also provided resources for homeowners to make their homes climate efficient.
Actress Yetide Badaki says the law’s passage creates an equitable climate future.
“To achieve equality, we must solve and work for environmental justice for all. The Inflation Reduction Act’s focus on environmental justice and justice for the areas is historic and it puts us on that path,” Badaki said.
Two years on, Maine reaps benefits of Inflation Reduction Act
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By Kathryn Carley
August 13, 2024
Nearly two years since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law, Maine communities continue to benefit from federal funding aimed at increasing the state’s climate resilience.
The state benefited from more than $70 million to accelerate the installation of heat pumps in homes across the state.
Marshall Archer, deputy mayor of Saco, said it means energy savings for Maine families, especially those in northern towns reliant on home heating oil.
“That will put us onto the electric grid and get us off the oil grid,” Archer explained. “This is monumental. This will put thousands of heat pumps and take us off the oil dependence.”
Two years of Inflation Reduction Act progress in Pennsylvania
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August 13, 2024
The Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law two years ago this week.
In Pennsylvania, its effects so far include carbon reduction, job creation and support for disadvantaged communities. The law marks the largest clean energy investment in U.S. history, with more than $369 billion dedicated to fighting climate change and creating jobs.
Fred Quinn III, a borough council member in Swissvale, just east of Pittsburgh, said the legislation will generate more than 243,000 new jobs across Pennsylvania by 2030. He added the measure offers financial relief for households as well.
“The Inflation Reduction Act offers significant rebates for clean energy technologies such as solar panels, electric vehicles and energy-efficient appliances,” Quinn outlined. “For families in my community, this means substantial savings on energy bills. Imagine reducing your household’s energy expenses by more than $1,800 annually.”
On 2nd anniversary of Inflation Reduction Act, investments start to pay off
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August 13, 2024
Two years ago this week, the U.S. made the biggest investment ever in the fight against climate change as the Inflation Reduction Act became law.
On Monday, groups fighting climate change held a news conference to celebrate the progress made so far. Last year, tax credits in the new law spurred $44 billion in investments in domestic clean energy manufacturing.
Alexander Walker-Griffin, a city council member in Hercules, a veteran and California Leadership Council chair with the nonprofit Elected Officials to Protect America, talked about the long-term benefits of the law.
“Nine million jobs are expected to be created,” Walker-Griffin pointed out. “In addition, by 2030 we’re expected to reduce 40% of our carbon emissions. Literally, everyone can breathe a little bit easier with this act.”
Western PA leads the charge in ‘green economy’ say elected officials
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August 8, 2024
Pittsburgh is emerging as a leader in innovative solutions like electric vehicles and clean energy to combat the climate crisis. The group Elected Officials to Protect America says in 2022, electric vehicle registrations increased by about 82% from the previous year.
Rep. Emily Kinkead, D-Allegheny County, envisions Pittsburgh as a future leader in the green economy, bolstered by strong labor unions and academic institutions.
“So whether it’s solar for schools, or capping oil wells or any number of things that move us away from fossil fuels, transitioning over to electric vehicles. Transitioning away from fossil fuels is a huge way that we can make sure that we are protecting our citizens now,” she explained.
Georgia lawmakers highlight EV benefits for health, environment
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By Shanteya Hudson
June 26, 2024
Georgia lawmakers with the group Elected Officials to Protect America are spotlighting the health and environmental benefits of electric vehicles.
As part of an awareness tour at the State Capitol this week, officials touted the impact of the Inflation Reduction Act in the shift toward clean energy. They said it not only will improve public health but support the government’s Justice40 Initiative to help disadvantaged communities.
Rep. Sandra Scott, D-Rex, said now is the crucial time for cities to take decisive action against climate change. “We all are used to our city being hot but now with the climate crisis, heat and precipitation put us at risk of fires and floods,” Scott pointed out.
Scott believes accelerating the shift to electric vehicles is key to transitioning to clean energy, as vehicle emissions account for at least 25% of the greenhouse gases contributing to the climate crisis. Scott noted reduced tailpipe emissions mean people who are disproportionately exposed to pollution can have better health outcomes. “Estimates show that transitioning to zero-emission trucks could save nearly 67,000 lives and prevent premature death and chronic respiratory illnesses, particularly in Justice40 communities,” Scott emphasized.
Electric vehicle tour touts clean energy, job creation, cost savings in PA with elected officials
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June 24, 2024
Pittsburgh is one stop on a summer tour to raise awareness about electric vehicles and clean energy.
The group Elected Officials to Protect America said in 2022, electric vehicle registrations increased by about 82% from the previous year.
Jake Pawlak, deputy mayor and director of the Office of Management and Budget for the City of Pittsburgh, said the city will invest $15 million in EVs for its fleet this year with federal help. He added Pittsburgh is working with organizations on a new program to help low-income residents cut energy costs with more electric appliances, weatherization and solar installation. “Our goal is to have significantly reduced the energy burden for 100 City of Pittsburgh residents by the end of this year,” Pawlak explained. “And in the next six years, do so for 10,000 residents across the southwestern Pennsylvania region.”
Pittsburgh’s goal of reducing emissions by 50% by 2030 is the same target President Joe Biden set for the country. Pawlak notes Pittsburgh is leveraging its designation as a federal workforce hub, working with businesses, unions and government to create training programs for clean energy jobs.
Khari Mosley, a Pittsburgh city council member, said Pennsylvania’s transition to clean energy is an opportunity to revitalize the city and become a leader in a new, sustainable economy. He added it includes improving infrastructure to withstand extreme weather and affect the economy and environment. “Pittsburgh can truly be a leader for the country,” Mosley contended. “As we invest in these new technologies that not only are going to create economic prosperity, but again, make our cities more resilient as we fight climate change and ensure that this next generation of Americans will truly be the environmental stewards that set our country on the right path.”
New Jersey elected officials work to relieve concerns about EVs
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June 13, 2024
As New York and New Jersey transition to electric vehicles, consumers have mixed feelings about it.
Polls show fewer than half of New York drivers would buy an EV as their next vehicle. The number increases for New Jersey drivers, who feel phasing out gas-powered cars can improve air quality.
W. Reed Gusciora, mayor of Trenton, said more electric vehicles on the road mean cleaner air and fewer health issues. “Families are suffering from higher rates of asthma and heart disease, and other health issues directly linked to air pollution,” Gusciora pointed out. “The transition to electric vehicles offer a lifeline significantly reducing the pollutants that compromise the air we breathe.”
New York elected officials kick off EOPA tour touting EV IRA and state benefits
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June 5, 2024
New York elected officials are kicking off a tour to tout the benefits of electric vehicles.
The Elected Officials to Protect America tour is planning stops in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Georgia, to encourage state leaders to transition their states to EVs. New York climate goals stipulate all new cars sold in New York will be all-electric by 2035.
Asm. Angelo Santabarbara, D-Amsterdam, said climate change’s growing impacts make the transition necessary. “The fact is, our world is facing serious climate change issues and we’ve been seeing this for quite some time,” Santabarbara pointed out. “We are also seeing the effects of that. We’ve seen it year after year. From the first year I’ve been in office, I’ve seen the effects of climate change devastate our communities, from flooding to fires.”
This year, one of the worst hurricane seasons is predicted. As storms intensify, so does the damage. But Santabarbara is one of many who see electric vehicles as another tool to stave off climate change.
Legislation is easing the process of building up EV charging infrastructure but he noted more needs to be done. The electric vehicle transition is also being seen as a way to improve public health. Breathing particulate matter leads to health effects like heart disease and respiratory issues.
Jason West, director of energy and sustainability for the City of Albany, said tailpipe exhaust makes up much of the city’s greenhouse gas emissions. “As the global burning of fossil fuels relentlessly raises the planet’s temperature, air quality and its damaging health effects will only get worse,” West asserted. “Extreme heat, heart and lung disease amplifies mental health issues, and compounds the traumas faced by those in environmental justice communities.”
NM tribal communities benefit from EPA’s “Solar For All” program from Inflation Reduction Act funds
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April 29, 2024
New federal funding aims to revolutionize solar energy access within New Mexico’s Native American communities and benefit the state overall.
The Environmental Protection Agency’s $7 billion “Solar for All” Inflation Reduction Act program is designed to create new or expanded low-income solar programs.
Talia Martin, co-executive director of the National Tribal Program for GRID Alternatives, said the funding will help bridge the clean energy gap in Native American communities. “In New Mexico, tangible impacts would be for household savings,” Martin explained. “Which means working directly with the tribes to ensure that the savings are going to individual households as well as to the community as a whole.”
CA climate leaders fight to keep setbacks around oil/gas wells and idle wells
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By Suzanne Potter
April 25, 2024
Leaders concerned about pollution and climate change are raising awareness about a ballot measure this fall on whether the state should mandate buffer zones around new oil and gas wells.
Voters will be asked to uphold or revoke Senate Bill 1173, which would require a 3,200-foot setback around any new well near schools, neighborhoods and hospitals.
Meghan Sahli-Wells, former mayor of Culver City and a leader with the group Elected Officials to Protect America, fought to phase out the Inglewood oil field and said no community should be a sacrifice zone.
“A study from Harvard found that in California, 34,000 people died in 2018, prematurely, from fossil fuel air pollution,” Sahli-Wells pointed out. “These figures are three times higher than other studies.”
NM officials press for setbacks amid pushback from oil and gas industry
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April 25, 2024
New Mexico members of the group Elected Officials to Protect America are renewing their call for rules regulating how close fossil fuel companies can operate near schools and other public places after legislation failed to pass earlier this year.
Rep. Tara Lujan, D-Santa Fe, said industrial oil and gas wells are operating just feet from homes, schools and hospitals, increasing community health risks from well-known toxins.
“Some here in New Mexico have been devastated because of types of energy incentives that have affected their land, their culture, their way of life and have taken away their lives,” Lujan asserted.
VA officials support new EPA clean truck standards
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April 23, 2024
Virginia officials support the Environmental Protection Agency’s new emissions rule. The federal clean truck standards will reduce emissions by up to 60% in 2032 and prevent 1-billion metric tons of carbon pollution. Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in Virginia and nationwide.
Phillip Jones, Newport News Mayor, said the new rule helps end the city’s environmental disparities.
“We have a very large multiple coal company in downtown Newport News in the southeast part of our community,” he said. “That’s going to lead to higher rates of asthma for that community. There’s a lot of air-quality issues in downtown Newport News.”
PA , NY towns benefit from Inflation Reduction Act grants
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April 22, 2024
New York towns are reaping many benefits since the Inflation Reduction Act was passed.
Along with funds for larger clean energy projects, the state was awarded $158 million for the IRA’s Home Energy Rebates program.
Smaller towns and villages use these grants to implement their climate action plans.
Brighton Town Councilmember Robin Wilt said an IRA grant they applied for will help upgrade the town’s HVAC system. “We will be implementing geothermal and then use a solar array to make the system close to net zero, not quite,” said Wilt. “I think we’ll get 55% of our energy back with the solar panels.”
Study: PA ranks high for health impacts of oil and gas flaring emissions
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April 22, 2024
A new study raised red flags about respiratory health in Pennsylvania, particularly for those living near oil and gas activity. The study by GeoHealth said nationwide, oil and gas venting and flaring exacerbate asthma in 73,000 children, including nearly 12,000 in Pennsylvania.
Jackson Zeiler, public health analyst for the Environmental Health Project, said energy developers do flaring and venting on a regular basis to remove excess gas. He explained the study looked at the potential health risks associated with the practice.
“There’s adverse birth outcomes, there’s cancer outcomes,” Zeiler pointed out. “Volatile Organic Compounds are a big part of these emissions, which have a whole host of health effects, including respiratory health issues, different neurological effects like headaches and dizziness for people who are working in those facilities, and people who live really close by.”
BLM’s ‘Public Lands Rule’ could reform conservation, access in NM
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April 19, 2024
Balancing the needs of the many with those who have traditionally reaped benefits from public lands is behind a new rule issued Thursday by the Bureau of Land Management.
A quarter-million acres of public lands, including 13 million in New Mexico, now fall under the Public Lands Rule. The BLM is charged with managing multiple uses but has historically prioritized extraction, such as oil and gas drilling, along with cattle grazing, over conservation and outdoor recreation.
Jesse Duebel, executive director of the New Mexico Wildlife Federation, believes the new rule is more fair-minded. “I really feel like this new rule doesn’t minimize those other things,” Duebel asserted. “The other uses are still going to be allowed to continue but now, decisions are going to be made with conservation in the forefront. And of course, conservation by definition, is the ‘wise use’ of our natural resources.”
Food forests in southern Arizona help combat heat and hunger
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April 18, 2024
A movement is underway to populate the city’s street corners and vacant lots with groves of trees. Tucson’s city government, which has pledged to plant 1 million trees by 2030, recently got $5 million from the Biden administration to spur the effort — a portion of the $1 billion that the U.S. Forest Service committed last fall to urban and small-scale forestry projects across the United States, aiming to make communities more resilient to climate change and extreme heat.
But in Tucson and many other cities, tree-planting initiatives can tackle a lot more than scorching temperatures. What if Tucson’s million new trees — and the rest of the country’s — didn’t just keep sidewalks cool? What if they helped feed people, too?
Brandon Merchant, who works at the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, sees cultivating mesquite around the city and surrounding areas as an opportunity to ease both heat and hunger. The outcome could be a network of “food forests,” community spaces where volunteers tend fruit trees and other edible plants for neighbors to forage.
“Thinking about the root causes of hunger and the root causes of health issues, there are all these things that tie together: lack of green spaces, lack of biodiversity,” Merchant said. (The food bank received half a million dollars from the Biden administration through the Inflation Reduction Act.)
CA climate groups seek to remove tax breaks for oil and gas companies
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April 18, 2024
As state budget negotiations continue, groups fighting climate change are asking California lawmakers to cut subsidies for oil and gas companies rather than slash programs designed to slow global warming.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s current proposal would cut oil and gas tax breaks by $22 million this year and $17 million the following year.
Barry Vesser, COO for The Climate Center, a nonprofit advocacy group, would like to see all subsidies eliminated. “Oil and gas companies are one of the drivers of climate change, so we should not be making their profit margins bigger by providing public subsidies, and making it harder for renewables to compete against them,” Vesser argued.
Advocates want NY HEAT Act in the final budget
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April 18, 2024
The New York HEAT Act might not make the final budget.
The bill reduces the state’s reliance on natural gas and cuts ratepayer costs by eliminating certain rules. It was in both legislative chambers’ one-house budgets, but last-minute scrambling could remove it.
New York League of Conservation Voters Policy Director Patrick McClellan said, aside from people’s preference for natural gas, other challenges have made the bill hard to pass. “I think that there has also been some irresponsible fear-mongering against this bill from some people who oppose it,” said McClellan, “basically telling people this means that their natural gas service is going to be taken away from them tomorrow, or it’s going to happen without warning, and that’s just not the case.”
Study: Methane pollution from oil and gas production greatly underestimated
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April 8, 2024
Data from new satellite-based technology show that the amount of methane pollution impacting communities living near oil and gas facilities is far greater than previously estimated.
As Laurie Anderson, Colorado field organizer with the group Moms Clean Air Force explained – when methane is released into the air through venting, flaring, or leaks – toxic co-pollutants that have been linked to serious respiratory and other health impacts are also released.
“And these co-pollutants include particulate matter, they can include Volatile Organic Compounds which are carcinogenic,” said Anderson. “So, there are these health impacts that are absolutely impacting our children, our elderly and our most sensitive populations the most.”
Offshore wind does more than aid NY, NJ clean energy futures
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April 9, 2024
Despite different outcomes – New York’s first offshore wind farm came online and New Jersey had one canceled – both states are benefiting from offshore wind. Job creation and economic growth are predicted, as New Jersey’s decarbonization efforts could create 20,000 jobs.
The New Jersey Wind Port being developed in Salem County is expected to create up to 1,500 jobs.
Caren Fitzpatrick, former Atlantic County Commissioner, said it’s time the area had a viable industry again. “They used to be known for growing asparagus and harvesting oysters. And due to blight and overfishing, those industries went away. They’re starting to come back now, but they’re not big enough to support the families that live in this area,” Fitzpatrick argued.
Indigenous leaders come to NY to speak about pipeline impacts
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April 8, 2024
Indigenous community leaders will be in New York addressing the United Nations.
They’ll be speaking at the UN’s Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues – about the Line 5 oil pipeline running through the Great Lakes region and Ontario, Canada.
Since 1968, it’s had 33 spills leak more than one million gallons of oil. Ships’ anchors also struck it in 2018 and 2020.
Whitney Gravelle, president of the Bay Mills Indian Community, said the permanent forum has called for the U.S. and Canada to decommission the pipeline.
“The permanent forum also stated it jeopardizes the Great Lakes in the United States,” said Gravelle, “that the pipeline was a real and credible threat to the treaty-protected resources of indigenous peoples in both the United States and Canada.”
NY bill can help climate-burdened communities by making Big Oil pay for damages, report says
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April 1, 2024
A new report shows the costs different regions of New York face from climate change.
It says taxpayers were on the hook for more than $2 billion – or $300 per household – in climate costs last year.
In 2023, New York City faced $309 million in climate change-related costs, the highest in the state. Long Island was second at $276 million and continues seeing impacts from intense storms.
Cate Rogers, deputy supervisor with the Town of East Hampton, said climate change is taking a toll on local industry.
“We have a rising water temperature that is increasing algal blooms,” said Rogers. “It has impacted greatly and decimated our Peconic Bay Scallop fishery, which was very important to year-round local families, generations of fishermen.”
NY bill holds fashion industry accountable for climate change effects
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March 26, 2024
A New York bill aims to regulate the fashion industry’s effects on climate change.
The Fashion Act would hold clothing and footwear companies accountable for their effects on the environment.
Fashion accounts for up to around 9% of global greenhouse-gas emissions, more than the aviation industry. The bill also creates a remediation fund for environmental, community or labor-related projects.
Rich Schrader, northeast government affairs director for the Natural Resources Defense Council, described how enforcement of the bill would work. “The bill will create an enforcement mechanism that the attorney general in New York State will be responsible for,” Schrader explained. “It’s given a monitoring investigative and enforcement set of authorities. That’s to ensure the companies are in compliance.”
He pointed out the attorney general could fine companies not in compliance with the guidelines.
NV leaders call for clean energy investments options for all
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March 25, 2024
Nevada state leaders held a workshop on clean energy home upgrades and discussed how people can leverage available tax credits on solar power, heat pump appliances, and weatherization projects.
State Sen. Dina Neal – D-Las Vegas – said while there are many beneficial federal investments coming to the Silver State that can help Nevadans save on utility bills, she wants to see more work being done to ensure communities of color and low-income households can tap into them. “Typically in our community we are under-banked, under-loaned,” said Neal, “so what are the chances of us getting it anyway? You have to be able to make it reachable for those communities that are already in that situation, meaning they don’t have access to capital, they don’t have a good credit score.”
A study found that majority Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in the U.S. installed 69% and 30% fewer rooftop solar systems respectively, than majority white neighborhoods.
CA referendum would lift ban on new oil wells near homes
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March 21, 2024
A referendum on the ballot this fall gives California voters the chance to either uphold or reject a law which would require oil and gas wells to be set back 3,200 feet from sensitive areas such as schools and homes. An estimated 3 million Californians live within 3,200 feet of an oil or gas well.
Senate Bill 1137 never went into effect. It is on hold until the vote in November.
Meghan Sahli-Wells, former mayor of Culver City and the CA Director of Elected Officials to Protect America, noted the referendum is funded by the fossil-fuel industry. “Basically, they’re asking to continue to poison California communities, when California communities have fought so hard for these protections,” Sahli-Wells contended.
NY/NJ offshore wind manufacturing grows
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February 5, 2024
Despite challenges, offshore wind in New York is thriving.
In late 2023, the South Fork Wind Farm off Montauk’s coast began producing 130 megawatts of power for Long Islanders.
New York’s involvement in offshore wind goes beyond putting it in its waters. The Port of Albany has been working to help manufacture wind towers. It will produce, store, and deliver tower sections for the South Brooklyn Marine Terminal for staging.
Megan Daly, chief commerce officer for the Port of Albany, said it will benefit the state’s move to a climate-friendly future.
“Not only will this be contributing to solutions for climate change, frankly it is going to be reaching into the adjacent environmental justice communities that will also be able to participate in the labor force and generational careers here,” Daly explained.
Rallies across CA, U.S. planned for anniversary of Ukraine invasion
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February 23, 2024
Pro-Ukraine rallies are planned in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco as well as cities across the United States this weekend, marking the second anniversary of the Russian invasion. Advocates are pressing Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson to relent and allow a vote on aid to Ukraine.
“It’s extremely unfortunate and self-serving of the Speaker and members to hold Ukraine’s international aid hostage as a political tool,” said Alex Cornell du Houx, a former Maine state representative and Marine combat veteran who co-founded and now is president of Elected Officials to Protect America, a nonprofit that fights climate change. “If they truly cared about democracy and protecting our climate, they would be passing aid for Ukraine.”
New York Superfund Act would make polluters pay for climate damage
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February 16, 2024
A New York bill would make polluters pay for climate change damage the state endured.
The Climate Change Superfund Act requires companies who’ve contributed to climate change to bear some costs of necessary infrastructure investments for New York to adapt to climate change. Data show over the last 40 years, the state has endured at least 85 “billion-dollar disasters.” The most substantial was Hurricane Sandy, costing the state around $43 billion.
Asm. Anna Kelles, D-Ithaca, a co-sponsor of the bill described how enforcement of the bill would work.
“From technology, we now know that we can directly assess the greenhouse gas emissions that were attributable to each of the major polluters,” Kelles pointed out. “We can measure that and we can assess a fee based on their relative contribution to the greenhouse gas emissions that we’re seeing. “
Right whale advocates call for vessel speed limits
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February 9, 2024
Wildlife advocates are calling on the Biden administration to tighten regulations protecting right whales in the North Atlantic following a series of injuries and deaths of the rare ocean mammals.
Defenders of Wildlife said since 2017, there have been 37 documented right whale deaths in U.S. and Canadian waters. The population has declined 20% since 2010.
Jane Davenport, senior attorney for Defenders of Wildlife, said her group supports the Biden administration’s proposal to impose seasonal speed limits on vessels 35 feet and longer to slow the boats down during the whales’ busiest times.
“In other words, if right whales are detected either visually or acoustically, then there would be drawn a dynamic speed zone around them in which vessels would have to slow to 10 nautical miles an hour or less while they’re going through that zone,” Davenport explained.
New Mexico could follow Colorado’s lead on electric school buses
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February 8, 2024
Studies show the health of New Mexico children who ride school buses could improve if the buses were electric instead of diesel, and efforts are underway to initiate a change.
Research has shown breathing diesel exhaust from school buses can lead to asthma and other respiratory illnesses. This year, the “School Bus Modernization Act” was introduced at the Roundhouse to provide school districts with the option to swap aging diesel buses with electric.
Charles Goodmacher, founder of the consulting firm Do Good and an advocate for electric buses, said while some have argued it is not a good fit for such a rural state, he believes otherwise. “Ninety-one percent of New Mexico’s school bus routes are 70 miles or shorter in total length, out and back, and the bus ranges are up to 120 miles,” Goodmacher pointed out.
CA offshore wind projects picking up steam
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February 1, 2024
The California Energy Commission has just released its strategic plan for offshore wind, and more than 200 elected officials across the state have signed a letter calling for an inclusive, equitable transition to clean energy.
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management is taking public comment now through Feb. 20 on how it should proceed with an environmental impact statement on five offshore projects planned near Morro Bay and Humboldt.
Heidi Harmon, former mayor of San Luis Obispo, applauded the effort to fast-track offshore wind. “California is laying the groundwork to power 25 million homes with 25 gigawatts of clean, floating turbine offshore wind electricity by 2045,” Harmon pointed out. “It’s critical that we process offshore wind in a way that ensures that our workers and communities receive the benefits from this new industry.”