U.S. Congress introduces bipartisan bill on HFCs and other short-lived pollutants Hydocardons 21, Jun 09, 2017 Yesterday, U.S. Representatives Scott Peters (a Democrat from California) and Carlos Curbelo (a Republican from Florida) introduced the bipartisan Super Pollutant Emissions Reduction, or SUPER Act, into the U.S. Congress to combat short-lived climate pollutants like hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The…
Programs & Policy
Carbon Tax Decision in Massachusetts is Underway
David Harary, ERS, for Zondits As the clean energy revolution continues, state and local governments are busy leading the fight against climate change. The number one policy initiative advocated by environmentalists and economists alike is to put a price on carbon. In economic terms, achieving total market efficiency means we should account for the negative…
Program Implementation
New York Considers Incentives for Natural Refrigerant System Installations
NYC-area utilities eye NatRef incentives R744, May 24, 2017 Two New York City-area utilities that have robust prescriptive energy-efficiency rebate programs for food retailers are starting to consider natural refrigerant systems for energy incentives through their custom programs. “We’re starting to see applications come in for natural refrigerant-based systems with energy savings and demand peak…
Program Implementation
SMUD Launches Natural Refrigerant Incentive Pilot
Game Changer: SMUD’S natref incentives for reducing GHG emissions Ammonia 21, June 1, 2017 One of the key impediments to the uptake of almost any new technology is its higher initial cost compared to the technology it is replacing. And that has certainly been true of natural refrigerant systems. Apart from the rising sales of natural…
Law & Policy
The New Climate Deal Between the Mayors of Pittsburgh and Paris
The Mayors of Pittsburgh and Paris: We Have Our Own Climate Deal Last week, President Donald Trump tried to pit our two cities against each other when he announced, in pulling out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change, “I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris.” As the mayors of Pittsburgh…
Law & Policy
Transparency of Energy Efficiency Scores in NYC Buildings
Jordan Cohen, ERS, for Zondits New York City residents are largely unaware that energy benchmarking data on the city’s largest buildings is readily available online for public viewing. An update to an existing law may soon require these buildings to publish their energy efficiency scores in a more transparent manner, however. If the bill passes,…
Law & Policy
Moving Forward with Climate Change Action
Brian McCowan, ERS, for Zondits President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate change is a major disappointment. Reaching agreement in Paris required a massive international effort that resulted in nearly two hundred countries agreeing to work toward common goals. The United States was one of several countries that…
Law & Policy
Trump Announces the U.S. Withdrawal from the Paris Agreement
US cities, states and companies vow to honour Paris climate accord, even if Trump doesn’t New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Wednesday that his municipality would “take matters into our own hands, calling the threat to pull out of the historic climate accord “a dagger aimed at the heart of New York City.”…