The lockdown imposed across Northern Italy in late February to block the spread of COVID-19 has resulted in a dramatic decrease of emissions in the Po Valley, historically one of the most polluted regions in Europe. The satellite images produced by the European Space Agency (ESA) show the tropospheric column levels of nitrogen dioxide (NO2) – a chemical tracer of fossil fuel burning - decreasing five-fold in the span of just 9 days.
All of our minds are on the virus itself and its impacts on the health of ourselves, our loves ones, and the economy. We are grieving for those who have passed on and worrying for those who are losing work. So it’s understandable if you’re not interested in thinking about energy at this time. But, if you are, please join this discussion of how the pandemic could change the ways we produce and consume energy.
Green Energy Consumers Alliance supports the idea that we need to electrify everything. By shifting sectors that have been historically powered by the combustion of fossil fuels, such as heating and transportation, to electricity, we can dramatically reduce emissions in the short-term while setting up a path to a net zero-carbon society in the long-term.
Have you taken a look at our map of resources lately? There are so many projects in it that it’s been challenging for our graphic designer to fit some of them in. Over the last year, we’ve been busy adding more impactful Class I projects to our list thanks to the support of Massachusetts and Rhode Island residents, along with small businesses that have taken the initiative to green their electricity through our Green Powered program and Green Municipal Aggregation.
Larry Chretien is the Executive Director at Green Energy Consumers Alliance.
It’s tax season, and though you probably didn’t want to fill out another IRS form, Form 8936 (Qualified Plug-in Electric Drive Motor Vehicle Credit) is worth the effort. The federal tax credit for electric vehicles (EVs) allows you to claim up to $7,500 on your returns for buying a new electric car. Here’s what you need to know about the federal tax credit and how to take advantage of it.
You’ve heard that switching from a car with an internal combustion engine (ICE) to an electric vehicle (EV) reduces climate-warming emissions. But the extent of their positive impact is still understated, especially in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
Emissions from the New England power grid have fallen significantly in the last several years and that’s obviously a good thing. But it’s even better when we can see that the wholesale price of electric energy has been holding fairly steady during this period of environmental progress. The transition to clean energy is producing benefits at a lower cost than might have been projected several years ago.
We are pleased to release the second edition of our “Green Municipal Aggregation in Massachusetts” status report. A lot has happened in the field since our first edition in the spring of 2018 necessitating this update. If there is one key takeaway, it’s that GMA has proven to be a way to bring more renewable energy to communities affordably and equitably.
Recent developments cause us to say again that Massachusetts is not doing enough to protect consumers from electricity suppliers making deceptive claims about pricing and the greenness of their electricity.
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