What we know, as a solutions-oriented environmental NGO, is that the incoming US Administration will prioritize neither environmental nor climate protection. Yet, of all the things humans will leave to future generations, a flourishing environment and a life-supporting climate are amongst the most vital. So, cities, states and the private sector must forge ahead.
While climate change-fueled wildfires, storms, floods and droughts have already caused untold devastation and tens of billions in damage worldwide this year alone, international climate scientists have made the path forward clear.
First and foremost, global emissions of the “climate super pollutant” methane must be slashed at least 30% by 2030. Energy Vision research has found that, even without federal leadership, our country can still do its part!
The anaerobic digestion (AD) industry, increasingly offering a proven solution over the last decade, can get us halfway to the 2030 goal. Digesters can capture the huge stream of methane biogases emitted by food, manure and other types of organic wastes as they decompose, and refine these gases into clean, renewable energy. In urban and rural settings across the country, turning organic waste burdens into a clean fuel solution is an economic and environmental winner. Even without federal support, state incentives can sustain progress. Building the 4,700 new food and manure digesters needed in six years can be done.
Our research has also shown that we can get the rest of the way to the “30 by 30” goal by fully implementing the 2024 EPA rules for oil and gas producers. We have shown what their various strategies would accomplish. Some, like plugging the leakiest 5% of “stripper wells” and switching to more efficient pneumatic pumps, are actually industry money-savers. But despite the incoming Administration’s commitment to deregulation and to “drill baby drill,” state and environmental pressure as well as rewards for industry innovation can ensure progress.
Fortunately, recent state-level decisions show what is still possible: In Washington State, voters last week overwhelmingly rejected an effort to overturn landmark climate legislation, securing billions per year in critical funding for climate. Similarly, California’s Air Resources Board voted last week to expand its nation-leading Low Carbon Fuel Standard, a program that has been instrumental in spurring private sector innovation and investment in clean, non-petroleum fuels and advance vehicle technologies.
This new Administration can be counted on to withdraw the US from its international climate commitments. But our country can demonstrate its commitment to a world that needs climate leadership with state, local, individual and private sector action.
Energy Vision is uniquely equipped to provide guidance on planning and to propose partners who can help. We are eager, willing and able to answer the call.
Matthew P. Tomich Joanna D. Underwood
President Founder and Trustee