Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative: An opportunity to clean up northeastern power plants:
In 2002, Governor Pataki of NY challenged eight other northeastern states to join him in cutting greenhouse gas pollution from power plants. At the direction of their Governors, representatives of nine Northeast states (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont) are working to develop a regional cap-and-trade system designed to reduce carbon dioxide pollution from power plants in the region. The process, known as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), holds the promise of significantly reducing the Northeast’s contribution to global warming and become a model for similar programs in other states. The program will also lay the groundwork for a national cap on power plant pollution. RGGI is quite possibly the single most important initiative underway to address global warming in the United States, and because of this, it is quite vulnerable to industry's attempts to weaken and delay it. We need your help!
Why this is so important:
Power plants are responsible for about 25% of our greenhouse gas emissions, making them a huge part of the problem. Cleaning up carbon dioxide from power plants by switching to less polluting fuels or increasing efficiency will also dramatically reduce soot and smog from plants in the region and improve our air quality.
Of course this will only occur if the RGGI process calls for strong pollution cuts from power plants, so we need your help to make sure this rule is strong.
For further information:
Clean Water Action is the lead advocacy group on this issue in Connecticut and is in close coordination with advocates in the other northeastern states.
Contact Roger Smith, Clean Water Action at 860-232-6232 and rsmith@cleanwater.org and we can provide you with more background information or answer questions
Read this useful background document by Environment Northeast
Also, visit the official site http://www.rggi.org/
Background on the issue
Where did this regional power plant initiative come from?
In 2002, Governor Pataki of NY challenged eight other northeastern states to join him in cutting greenhouse gas pollution from power plants. At the direction of their Governors, representatives of nine Northeast states (Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island and Vermont) are working to develop a regional cap-and-trade system designed to reduce carbon dioxide pollution from power plants in the region.
How can power plants reduce their carbon dioxide pollution?
If designed correctly, there will be a financial incentive for plants to improve their efficiency, switch from the most polluting fuels to cleaner fuels, and when companies invest in new plants they will have a reason to build less carbon-intensive facilities or even support clean, renewable technologies like wind power.
How does "cap and trade" reduce power plant pollution?
Under a cap-and-trade program, the government sets a cap (limit) on the amount of pollution that can be emitted. That cap should decrease over time- environmental advocates are calling for a regional cut of 25% from current levels by 2020. This regional pollution limit will then be divided up among the 9 states.
Each state will sell or allocate permits to emit carbon dioxide to power generators within the state. Under a system where plants have to buy permits to cover their emissions, there is a financial incentive to operate a cleaner plant. For example, the oldest, dirtiest, and least efficient coal and oil plants will need to buy far more permits than a newer natural gas plant. A wind facility would not need to purchase any credits at all. Cap and trade is a flexible and affordable way to reduce emissions because plants can either clean up their own facility, or buy and sell allowances with other facilities that can clean up their plants at the lowest cost. As carbon dioxide is a global pollutant and does not have local health effects, it is fine if some plants reduce their pollution and other plants simply buy credits, so long as overall the emissions decrease over time.
How will this program affect consumers?
We want RGGI to be designed in a way which will protect consumers and not provide a windfall for generators.
From experience, we know that when generators buy allowances (permits to pollute CO2) they then simply pass on the costs of the allowances to consumers. A fair system would take the money that results from generators buying emissions allowances and putting it to the benefit of electricity consumers. This includes both direct rebates (imagine a RGGI rebate on your bill!), particularly for low-income households; and spending on energy efficiency programs, which through lower electric bills save consumers more money than they cost.
Why this is so important:
Power plants are responsible for about 25% of our greenhouse gas emissions, making them a huge part of the problem. Cleaning up carbon dioxide from power plants by switching to less polluting fuels or increasing efficiency will also dramatically reduce soot and smog from plants in the region and improve our air quality.
Of course this will only occur if the RGGI process calls for strong pollution cuts from power plants, so we need your help to make sure this rule is strong.
