regional greenhouse gas initiative
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Pa. Gov. Josh Shapiro to appeal court ruling on climate program
Gov. Shapiro isn’t committing to Pennsylvania joining the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, but wants to maintain executive authority in light of a recent court ruling.
Virginia Office of the Governor/FlickrOfficial Photo by Christian Martinez, Office of Governor Glenn Youngkinhttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Judge deals blow to legal effort to halt Virginia’s RGGI withdrawal
A legal effort to thwart Virginia Gov. Glenn Younkin’s bid to unilaterally withdraw the state from a regional carbon-reduction pact has hit a technical snag.
Newsletter
Pa. cannot join RGGI, court rules it is an illegal tax
Commonwealth Court said the Department of Environmental Protection did not have the constitutional authority to collect revenue from the program.
Court blocks Pa.’s entrance into multi-state carbon cap-and-trade program
The Commonwealth Court ruled on Wednesday that Pennsylvania cannot enter into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a multi-state initiative to limit carbon emissions, saying it violates the state Constitution.
Opinion
Penn State Outreach and Online Education/Flickr/Marcellus Shale (via Tom Murphy)https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.0/
Joseph Otis Minott: Pennsylvania's participation in RGGI matters more than other states'. Here's why.
Pa.'s participation in RGGI has been halted by lawsuits from coal and gas interests, writes Joseph Otis Minott of the Clean Air Action Fund.
Newsletter
Image by Ralf Vetterle from Pixabay
As Youngkin tries to pull Virginia out of RGGI, experts warn of looming consequences for low-income residents and threatened communities
Jake Bolster writes for Inside Climate News about how Virginia's Air Pollution Control Board has moved the state one step closer to exiting the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and fulfilling an executive order issued by Gov. Glenn Youngkin the day he took office.
In a nutshell:
The Air Pollution Control Board's decision, which repeals Virginia's participation in the initiative, has sparked legal challenges as critics argue that the board cannot reverse a binding 2020 decision by the state General Assembly. RGGI has generated over $650 million for the state, funding energy efficiency programs and climate resilience projects, but without its funds, progress in these areas could be reversed, affecting low-income communities in particular. Power plant emissions in Virginia have dropped by 16.8 percent since joining the RGGI, illustrating the program's effectiveness.
Key quote:
“It’s just a disaster of a decision,” said Nate Benforado, a senior attorney with the Southern Environmental Law Center.
The big picture:
Virginia's potential withdrawal from the RGGI could have significant implications for the state's overall health outcomes. Reducing greenhouse gas emissions brings about a range of health benefits that extend beyond mitigating climate change. Transitioning to cleaner energy sources and reducing reliance on fossil fuels improves air quality and reduces the prevalence of respiratory illnesses such as asthma and lung diseases.
Read more at Inside Climate News.
For additional context, read Brian Bienkowski's piece on how toxic air pollution and climate change as a result of fossil fuel emissions pose grave dangers to children.
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Photo by Jordan Faux on Unsplash
New study bolsters case for Pennsylvania to join Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative
Pennsylvania could speed its pace cutting carbon emissions, raise new revenue and boost the state’s use of renewable fuels by completing its planned enrollment in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, an agreement by 12 states to curb emissions from power plants, according to a new analysis.
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