Sign Connecticut Banking Work Order Myself

Industry sign banking connecticut work order myself

connecticut's energy future policies practices and solutions climate change is real it is impacting us now and has been for some time and this is an emergency we must tax greenhouse gases that are pushing climate the intergovernmental panel on climate change released a report their report said that we need to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees celsius that 2 degrees celsius of warming would be catastrophic and that we have 12 years to accomplish these goals meaningful climate actions come about in fits and starts after some success in the state the state tends to slow down or de-prioritize some of these actions that is until the public speaks up again your voice counts your personal stories count critical analysis and goals also count to revitalize connecticut's one-time leadership role in acting on meaningful climate change impacts connecticut has generally had a bipartisan approach to climate action let's quickly review some of the highlights of connecticut's legislative actions on climate change and energy let's look at connecticut's timeline between 2000 and 2021. the federal government has variously addressed climate actions and emission reductions since the early 1990s connecticut passed the climate change act in 2004 set to reduce greenhouse gases 10 percent below 1990 levels by 2020 and 85 percent below 2001 levels by 2050. the global warming solutions act in 2008 reaffirmed emissions reductions of 10 below 1990 levels by 2020 and 80 percent reduction by 2050. this put a mandatory cap on greenhouse gases since then bills addressing electricity and energy efficiency adaptation setting out clean energy goals and energy strategies transportation and electric vehicles and residential renewable energy recycling and jobs and other related bills to climate impacts were passed into law the green bank act was passed in 2016 creating a pathway to equitable and affordable funding for clean energy there were various bills addressing solar installations ev vehicles fuel cells microgrids and waste energy during these years the climate change planning and resiliency act of 2008 reset the greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets to 45 below 2001 levels by 2030 and this includes new sea level rise projections for coastal management components since then we've got an offshore wind energy act in 2019 all of these on top of executive orders from the governors and with a desire to become greener have zero carbon electricity by 2040 and the state wants to lead by example there have been a lot of reports and establishments of commissions and departments that were put in place to collect information model connecticut's climate environmental and energy future and work with other states in new england and conduct research and make recommendations these efforts have resulted in over 25 reports and inventories ten designations and authorities eight declarations and initiatives over 20 climate and energy related bills six plans and strategies and two summits and many other reports and efforts related to climate change and other aspects of the environment be the spark that lights the fire of indignation down in the souls of your fellow man to fight climate change [Applause] how of these efforts help connecticut address climate change impacts and go to the source of the problem fossil fuels have these enacted laws moved us closer to a zero carbon society are we replacing fossil fuels and their infrastructure with renewable clean energy systems fast enough more and more we see rightward leaning organizations sign on to the concept of a fully refundable carbon tax uh more and more particularly my republican colleagues in places that are coastal are coming to see very personally what the effects of climate change are and therefore are becoming much more pragmatic about efforts to address it the problem with that is that it's just not happening fast enough and how does declaring a climate emergency and setting a tax or fee on carbon help get us there before climate change impacts become untenable in 2020 and extending into 2021 through reviews connecticut has produced a blizzard of reports let's look at these efforts briefly connecticut's integrated resource plan is an important one on page one it says with overwhelming scientific evidence of the threat of global climate change swift action is critical including leadership at the state level in decarbonizing the state's electric supply this sounds like a climate emergency to me the integrated resources plan recommends the following decarbonize the electricity sector they have set a set of targets to achieve this by 2040. the report also recommends that connecticut look after the well-being of ratepayers by one securing benefits of competition two minimizing the risk to rate payers and three ensure that energy is affordable and equitably distributed additionally it is recommended that new energy generation resources be optimally cited and that upgrades and integration of resources be done and finally balance the decarbonization planning with other state goals that impact the public and it is recommended this be done by 2023 hi i'm laura i'm from ridgefield connecticut i'm here because i'm on a future i've been working hard in high school and there's no point to any of that if we're going to be underwater in like 50 years so we need some change now and if the youth have to do that then i'm more than happy to be here [Music] in december 2020 governor lamont signed on to the multi-state tci the transportation and climate initiative to cap emissions from gasoline and diesel used by vehicles transportation accounts for 38 percent of connecticut's greenhouse gas emissions the tci aims to reduce these emissions with first compliance by 2023 the target 30 reduction in transportation emissions by 2032 with a base annual carbon dioxide budget of 13.5 million tons the tci utilizes allowance auctions to cap emissions and proposes banking of these allowances 35 percent of the money will be used for overburdened and under served communities the money collected from this tax is projected to collect 89 million dollars in 2023 up to 117 million by 2032 the tci is designed to cap and reduce greenhouse gases from transportation generate revenue to decarbonize and modernize transportation create new economic opportunity and invest in overburdened and underserved communities making them healthier places [Music] the money collected from this tax should total 89 million dollars in 2023 and up to 117 million by 2032. interestingly we've got about 12 000 ev electric vehicles on the road today but the state wants to have a hundred and fifty thousand by 2025. maya blake from manchester connecticut we're here because we have to be a part of this process to save ourselves nobody is going to come from anywhere else to save us so we have to step up and save the planet over the course of 2020 the governor's council on climate change the gc3 convened appointed and voluntary members to almost a dozen working and sub-working groups there are two key objectives one monitor and report on the state's greenhouse gas emissions reduction strategy and two develop an adaptation and resilience plan the working and sub-working groups made an effort to consider all components of our society and how to adapt and increase resiliency as climate impacts increase the report proposes 61 major recommendations in phase one these are recommendations said to take effect in 2021 or 2022 a phase 2 report is required to recommend long-term solutions and those may be put in place in 2022 or later is that fast enough let's look at the current emissions reductions targets for the state 45 greenhouse gas reduction by 2030 statewide 30 transportation emissions reduction by 2032 a zero carbon electricity sector by 2040 and 80 plus greenhouse gas reductions by 2050 statewide this is what it looks like follow the emissions roller coaster from 1990 to 2020 then we hope for a rapid drop in emissions to achieve 20 30 targets and even more of a decline by 2050 to reach that goal this is a heavy lift this requires connecticut cities to declare climate emergencies this requires the state to do the same i am sarah berger from stonington um and i'm here because i hate climate change and it really annoys me that no one's doing anything so you know universal reason oh there are challenges one is that in connecticut 41 of our electricity generation comes from the millstone nuclear power plant that was supposed to close in 2022. in 2019 it got a 10 year reprieve that means operations until 2032. that's two years after connecticut is targeted to have cut 45 percent of the state's emissions if you see a mismatch here you're not the only one to make matters worse for the climate connecticut gets 52 percent of its energy from natural gas and if the nuclear power plant closes what will be in place first natural gas or renewable energy systems again are we moving fast enough natural gas is not the answer it is no longer a bridge fuel it is polluting our world at every step of its development transport and use and by using it we are supporting fracking renewables is a booming business let it grow where i think the state can play a key role and this is going to be transformative over the next two years and over the next couple of generations it's not just means amazing good paying jobs for a lot of folks who are represented here but right now solar and wind right here wind is going to be that bridge to our renewable future built here in connecticut by connecticut what this means for um a carbon-free future for our country we're going to be a leader in this section of the state new london connecticut is going to be a renewable hub of america it is our choice it is our choice in this emergency [Music] ron walton i'm from new jersey but i attend connecticut college um so recently i feel like there needs to be more just in general like community action taking towards climate change and pushing our politicians kind of to the point of annoying them into passing um carbon pricing bills so what should our energy mix look like if we look at all of new england because we are part of iso new england and reggie the regional greenhouse gas initiative and the many other components that connect us all we realize we are in a climate emergency situation we are not moving fast enough there are a number of studies including my own that look at our energy mix now and where we need to go this graph illustrates how solar at utility and home scales and wind onshore and offshore some hydroelectric and combined with a judicial percentage of nuclear and biomass well we can get there in this mix we need battery storage we need electric vehicles and more efficient buildings and industries this is a transformation from a carbon economy toward a renewable energy and sustainable oriented economy my name is melissa kettabong and i am here because environmental justice is really important if we don't do the sustainable heavy lifting here and now if we don't transform our economy away from fossil fuels then the climate impacts we've been experiencing will seem like the good old days currently we are on the red line that models what our future might look like that is not good one of the challenges here is how do we make some progress um on other issues well we're stuck on the issue of um of of climate change and are we stuck in many ways senator murphy is correct we need bipartisan solutions because this impacts all of us this is where you come in the voter and the participating resident and citizen we must take this journey out of a carbon economy and we must do it now so here's how a carbon fee and dividend bill works a carbon fee is levied at the source of the fossil fuel not downstream at the gas pump but at the source at the source well for oil and natural gas at the source mine for coal and tar sands and at the port of first entry for anything imported the fee proposed is fifteen dollars per ton contained carbon dioxide equivalent and this increases ten dollars annually until emissions targets are met this methodology if put in place soon could lower u.s emissions and certainly the northeastern region's greenhouse gas emissions by 90 percent by 2050 this collected money is put into a would-be-formed us department of treasury carbon dividend trust fund each citizen receives a carbon dividend check each month to offset the increase in our power bills as the power companies unload the fee costs onto you and me the customers because the fossil fuel sector receives three to five times the subsidies renewable energy systems receive this carbon fee equalizes the market playing field so you have a real market economy working here renewables become less expensive than fossil fuels this drives innovation in all sectors of society it creates jobs it improves people's health it attends to disadvantaged communities and environmental justice situations and saves lives by creating a healthier world it moves us towards a sustainable society and so we need to find a way in the coming years to really accelerate our commitment to a sustainable energy future with all that that implies starting with a a mechanism to correctly price carbon but also developing the technology of course that allows us to do that and deploying the technology we have many goals and targets in connecticut and in the renewable portfolio standard we had hoped to have 25 percent renewables by 2018 and 29 by 2020 we're under seven or eight percent right now and 38 percent by 2025. we can't do this emissions reductions if we don't do the renewable energy we can't keep permitting more natural gas power plants and related fossil fuel infrastructure systems if we want to lower our emissions to our target goals [Applause] i'm helen gross i'm from stonington also i'm here because climate change i think is one of the most important issues that we're facing at this time and it affects everyone and everything and it's something that the government needs to take more seriously state and the country another point there are over 3500 economists who support a carbon fee or tax william nordhaus at yale said carbon prices must be raised to transmit the social costs of greenhouse gas emissions to the everyday decisions of billions of firms and people studies show that we can reduce emissions and still have a productive maybe even more productive economy emissions go down gdp goes up we like to imagine that uh the business community is all about demanding free markets and we don't want regulation and we want free markets we want free market capitalism baloney i've spent the last 11 years of my career listening to every single industry come into my office and say we need this protection we need this subsidy we need this uh you know uh for government assistance and to me the uh the way the dealers uh fought back the ability of tesla to sell into connecticut is just you know exhibit a of that sort of uh you know competition for everybody else except me i don't want competition market capitalism has its issues but it shouldn't be about preserving legacy industries that are stopping us from innovating in the ways we know we need to innovate so an important aspect here in connecticut is allowing businesses universities schools municipalities medical complexes and so on to install renewable energy microgrids existing power companies need to transform their business model to see energy consuming customers as energy generating partners [Music] a few years ago i proposed the outline for eight bills needed to create a sustainable energy economy in america putting a price on carbon is the first one i mean there's no question we have to put a price on on carbon emissions we've talked about this many many times and i voted for that back in 2009 which um you know definitely was a battle cry and we need solar panels on every rooftop all i can tell you on community solar is that i'm regularly told by groups in my district um uh that are interested in community solar that the state of connecticut is behind on promoting these things and incentivizing community solar and and often people point to massachusetts as a model um and uh the last vaguely intelligent thing i can say on this is that i believe them because when i d ive through massachusetts i'm always impressed by you know how alongside the mass pike in what used to be a service area you know there's now you know two acres of photovoltaics and some sort of community solar projects in the recent flurry of climate and energy related work done by the gc3 and deep and others there are a lot of good recommendations there are some not so helpful as well but none of these good recommendations will help us if they do not become laws that hold us to the task at hand to address the climate emergency to put a price on carbon and have schedules of inputting these systems for the transformation from a carbon economy to a renewable energy sustainable oriented economy this must be put into law this must be funded federally statewide regionally and locally and partnered with cities and the private sectors to work together the burden of this transformation cannot be put on the individual citizens the state must lead carbon fee and dividend works very well within the goals set by the state and does so equitably economically environmentally and based on science but as i said the fundamental principle of 763 which is that we have to put a price on carbon i think is is going to be part of any package it has to be as we move through this process we must continually remind ourselves to think about sustainability the environment community and economy we can think of sustainability as finding a balance between humans and nature so that we balance what we use with what nature can provide currently we are not doing that information on the laws i proposed is in my book navigating the energy maze out by springer [Music] [Music] you