Pa. must address climate change
This year, Americans have watched in awe as a recordbreaking number of hurricanes devastated coastal communities and wildfires have continued to rage across California, Colorado and other states. It has never been more clear that the climate crisis is no longer some distant threat, as it impacts communities across the country and even right here in Pennsylvania.
With all of the destruction playing out before our eyes, another destructive force has been wreaking havoc within the Pennsylvania General Assembly: the continued denial of the climate crisis by elected officials in the state legislature.
They often repeat the baseless arguments about how we must choose between “jobs and the environment,” and sow fear and confusion to stall even the most commonsense policies that would help reduce our pollution and impact on the climate crisis.
For example, many state legislators have been repeatedly quoted in state news outlets criticizing Gov. Wolf’s effort to participate in what is arguably one of the most successful programs in the nation for tackling climate pollution, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative or RGGI.
RGGI is a bipartisan, multistate, climate program with a proven track record of success. For more than 12 years, a bipartisan coalition of Republican and Democratic governors from nearly all of the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states have participated in RGGI. Over that time, climate pollution in those states dropped by 47%, outpacing the rest of the country by a whopping 90%. Joining this program would be a clear step forward for Pennsylvania to finally take bold action on combating climate change.
Legislators opposing this program claim it will have drastic consequences for ratepayers here in Pennsylvania. But the data says otherwise. Studies show that electricity prices have actually fallen by 5.7% in RGGI states — outperforming price levels in non-RGGI states. And electric bills in RGGI states are projected to be 35 percent less in 2031 than they are today.
Not only is RGGI good for ratepayers, but it is good for the economy as well. When Pennsylvania joins RGGI, it is projected to create 27,000 jobs and boost the economy by nearly $2 billion between now and 2030.
What’s more, if Pennsylvania participates in RGGI, it’s projected that the state will reduce its carbon emissions by a massive 188 million tons by 2030, in addition to reductions in other harmful pollutants that put our public health at risk. Efforts to block Pennsylvania from joining RGGI only put our environment, health, and economic security at risk.
The good news is, concerned Pennsylvanians have an opportunity right now to push back against the inaction of politicians in Harrisburg. Until Jan. 14, 2021, the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection is asking for the public’s input about whether the state should join RGGI or not. An easy way to participate in this process is by submitting a public comment online in support of RGGI.
Given RGGI’s bipartisan leadership and successful track record, it’s disappointing that some legislators are using their position to push to maintain the status quo. Their ongoing agenda to halt policies that reduce climate pollution was evident in their efforts to pass HB2025, legislation that would strip DEP from addressing carbon pollution and block the state from joining RGGI.
Instead of attacking climate solutions, legislators in Harrisburg should be working diligently to promote policies that will reduce Pennsylvania’s carbon footprint, like Senate Bill 15, “The Energy Transition and Recovery Act,” which would set up a program for making climate polluters pay for their emissions.
Continuing to push attacks like HB2025 is a symptom of a wider problem: politicians continuing to prop up polluting industries, and refusing to take action to protect our communities from the impacts of climate change.
All while elected officials are sworn to the Pennsylvania Constitution, which guarantees the “right to clean air, pure water, and to the preservation of the natural, scenic, historic and esthetic values of the environment.”
The bottom line is that to stop the worst impacts of climate change and protect our communities, we need to reduce climate pollution and transition to a clean energy future. With RGGI’s proven history of success, it is a commonsense step for moving Pennsylvania in the right direction.
It’s time our legislators support programs like RGGI, and do everything possible to combat the climate crisis, before it’s too late.