WITH THE CORONAVIRUS pandemic raging, it’s hard to think about anything else. Yet precisely because this is a time of major upheaval, we need to recognize, and prepare for, the changes it brings. We will get through this and, when we do, we want to make sure our Commonwealth emerges stronger and better. So, please, […]
Environment
Posted inEnvironment
Coronavirus risks: Know them, avoid them
IT SEEMS MANY people are breathing some relief, and I’m not sure why. An epidemic curve has a relatively predictable upslope and once the peak is reached, the back slope can also be predicted. We have robust data from the outbreaks in China and Italy, that shows the backside of the mortality curve declines slowly, […]
Posted inEnvironment
Mass. emission strategies all up in air
THE COMPANY SELECTED by Massachusetts to build a power line delivering large amounts of hydro-electricity from Quebec into the regional power grid at Lewiston, Maine, is asking a judge to block a voter referendum on the project. Avangrid, the corporate parent of Central Maine Power, which has won a series of approvals for the project […]
Posted inOpinion
No, no, no to buy, buy, buy
FOR MOST OF OUR almost 50-year history, MASSPIRG has pushed for increased recycling, for stopping polluting landfills and incinerators, and for getting producers to be responsible for their products. Over the past several years, our policy goal has evolved, until in 2019 we asked the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to set a goal […]
Posted inEnvironment
Net-zero target gets mixed reviews
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE ENERGY AND ENVIRONMENTAL Affairs Secretary Kathleen Theoharides used the occasion of Earth Day on Wednesday to finalize the state’s new net-zero greenhouse gas emissions limit, but some environmental groups and legislators were disappointed. The new policy, which was announced by Gov. Charlie Baker in his State of the Commonwealth address back […]
Posted inEnvironment
Healey calls for exploring expanded carbon pricing
ATTORNEY GENERAL MAURA HEALEY released a white paper on Monday that calls for the creation of a New England task force to explore expanded use of carbon pricing in electricity generation to achieve region-wide greenhouse gas emission reductions. The white paper’s recommendation is drawing attention because it mirrors what the region’s power grid operator has […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment, Opinion
The net zero imperative for Suffolk Downs
THE CITY OF BOSTON is considering whether to approve 10.5 million square feet of new housing and commercial building at the former Suffolk Downs racetrack in East Boston. The project would be among the largest single developments in the city’s history. The financial backer is Texas oil-money billionaire William Bruce Harrison. Led by East Boston […]
Posted inOpinion
Physicians critique National Grid official’s stance
A clarifiation has been made to this op-ed making clear that National Grid does not have an ownership stake in the Weymouth compressor station. More detail is at the end of the op-ed. MARCY REED’S February 15 commentary, “Hunger and the Clean Energy Transition,” is misleading, disingenuous, and self-serving. Reed, who is the Massachusetts president […]
Posted inEnvironment
Report: Utilities raised concerns on Mayflower
THE UTILITIES THAT SELECTED Mayflower Wind for the state’s second offshore wind procurement raised serious concerns at several stages of the process about the company’s ability to complete the project by 2025, according to a report by an independent firm hired to monitor the contracting process. The report by Peregrine Energy Group is heavily redacted […]
Posted inEnvironment
Grid secures future power commitments at low price
THE OPERATOR of New England’s power grid reported on Tuesday that it secured enough electricity to meet the region’s needs three years from now at the lowest price in 14 years. ISO New England said its auction secured 33,956 megawatts of generating capacity at a clearing price of $2 per kilowatt hour, which was nearly […]