THE MAINE SUPREME Judicial Court on Tuesday breathed new life into a Massachusetts-financed power line designed to carry hydroelectricity from Canada to Lewiston and from there into the New England power grid. Fifty-nine percent of Maine voters passed a law in November that retroactively blocked the transmission line from being built through the heavily wooded […]
Energy
Posted inEnergy
Grid operator, utilities call for energy reserve
THE OPERATOR of the New England power grid and six of the region’s major utilities are calling on state and federal policymakers to develop an “energy reserve” that can be tapped when energy supply chains are disrupted. In a call to action memo in advance of a September 8 conference sponsored by the Federal Energy […]
Posted inEnergy, Opinion
Federal aid shows hydrogen is here to stay
IN A RESIDENTIAL neighborhood on suburban Long Island, a clean energy technology that is both old and new could be the answer to eliminating carbon emissions from the entire economy across the country. In Hempstead, a project called HyGrid will blend green hydrogen with renewable natural gas to safely and reliably heat homes, while slashing […]
Posted inEducation, Energy, Environment, Opinion
Schools are missing from the state’s climate plan
ON THURSDAY, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law a landmark climate bill which affirms, for the first time, that schools are part of the state’s leadership on climate. What’s missing is a plan that will turn that affirmation into action. The Green and Healthy Schools provision in the climate bill, originally filed by Sen. […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Baker signs climate bill, despite ‘deep misgivings’
DESPITE “DEEP MISGIVINGS’ about some of its elements, Gov. Charlie Baker signed into law on Thursday a climate change/energy bill that he said would help Massachusetts retain its standing as a national leader in securing renewable energy. It’s the fourth climate bill Baker has signed since taking office in 2015, and his signing letter suggested it […]
Posted inOpinion
Now is the time to triple down on renewables
RECENTLY, BOTH branches of the Massachusetts Legislature approved a new compromise climate bill. This legislation, which now sits on Gov. Charlie Baker’s desk for review, represents significant progress as the Commonwealth seeks to meet its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. Equally encouraging was the Biden administration’s announcement at the shuttered Brayton Point […]
Posted inOpinion
Climate bill needed for environmental, equity reasons
THE CLEAN ENERGY legislation on Gov. Charlie Baker’s desk opens the door for marginalized communities across the Commonwealth to share in the many benefits of the fight against climate change. The governor should sign this bill, which builds on the foundation of environmental justice already underway in the Commonwealth, to further codify equity and inclusion in […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment, State Government
Baker says climate change bill is giving him agita
GOV. CHARLIE BAKER indicated on Tuesday he is having difficulty reaching a decision on whether to sign the climate change/energy bill the Legislature sent him. At a press availability, Baker said he has major concerns about a provision in the bill that would allow 10 communities to experiment with banning fossil fuel infrastructure in new […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Uncertain times for Daloisio, Clean Energy Center
JENNIFER DALOISIO and the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center are both facing a bit of uncertainty. The agency, a key cog in the state’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, is about to emerge from the bureaucratic shadows as the state prepares to dive into clean energy in a big way. But how the agency will emerge […]
Posted inEnergy, Environment
Baker in take-it-or-leave-it position on climate bill
THE LEGISLATURE returned compromise climate legislation to Gov. Charlie Baker on Sunday and urged him to sign it into law even though he didn’t get all the changes he wanted. Rep. Jeffrey Roy of Franklin, the House chair of the Legislature’s energy committee, gave a speech in which he appealed to Baker to follow his […]