Pennsylvania/New Jersey, February 18, 2010 – The East Coast Greenway (ECG) is about to get safer and more accessible throughout the Philadelphia region thanks to significant support from the US Department of Transportation (DOT). On Wednesday, $23 million was awarded to complete numerous sections of the ECG through the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) grants program.

The federal stimulus grant will create jobs and improve the quality of life throughout the region. East Coast Greenway Alliance Executive Director, Dennis Markatos-Soriano, remarked, “The Department of Transportation made a great choice today. Not only will this grant create and save around 1,000 jobs, but it will also improve the region’s air quality and give people access to a safe route for bicycling and walking to lower transportation and health costs for generations to come. By connecting this effort to the East Coast Greenway, the project both unifies the Philadelphia region of six million people and connects them to a corridor that goes North all the way to Canada and South all the way to Key West, Florida.”

While some of the 51 TIGER projects funded were bigger (such as a $105 million rail project in Tennessee and Alabama), the East Coast Greenway package was the largest bike and pedestrian recipient in the country. For significant funds to go to efficient modes of transportation like bicycling, walking, and transit is a testament to the current DOT’s commitment to a green economic recovery in the months and years ahead. Developed trail systems like the East Coast Greenway are well documented to support economic development and raise real estate values. And the economically distressed urban areas that this grant helps the ECG connect (to be constructed over the next two and a half years) are important targets for economic recovery.

The Pennsylvania section of the 3,000-mile East Coast Greenway is poised to grow quickly from its base of 22% completion today. The application was performed by the Pennsylvania Environmental Council and the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia, regional partners of the ECGA, in collaboration with six counties and agencies in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

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Background on ECGA:

The East Coast Greenway Alliance is a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to establishing a safe, accessible 3,000-mile greenway from Maine to Florida through major urban centers along the East Coast. Mobilizing our network of staff, volunteers and partners, ECGA works to achieve its vision of an extensive bike/pedestrian corridor that links communities to the areas of natural beauty around them. By serving non-motorized users of all abilities and ages, the East Coast Greenway will help people safely bicycle or walk for their daily commutes to work, school, and play as well as for long-distance travel. The greenway will help free America from its expensive dependence on oil, lower health costs by improving citizens’ fitness, address climate change and air quality concerns by reducing pollution, and provide good construction and maintenance jobs to help our economy recover. Further details and membership information to support the project can be found at www.greenway.org.

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The Climate Ride initiative started last September with over 100 riders. This year, the ridership has more than doubled and is perfectly timed (September 26-30) to push the Senate to pass a climate bill like the House’s recent bill, the American Clean Energy & Security Act.

Pablo and Gabrielle are the two riders representing North Carolina, and I have no doubt they will represent my native state well. Pablo has been a great athlete since his childhood in Costa Rica. We played many fun soccer games throughout college and afterward. And they both just finished an impressive triathlon last weekend!

While the Climate Ride is focused on getting federal leaders to act, the ride also raises funds for three climate advocacy groups: Focus the Nation, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and Clean Air-Cool Planet. Each rider pays $100 to register for the ride and then aims to raise $2,400 for the cause among friends, family, and fellow climate stewards. Pablo and Gabrielle have raised 70% of their goal, but could use your help to finish it off by September 15th.

To learn more and make a tax-deductible donation, go to their ride website, Latinos por el Planeta, here. And if you like dance parties or auctions, Pablo and Gabrielle are holding an ’80s vs. ’90s dance party and a silent auction in Chapel Hill and Durham, NC, in the coming weeks (see details here).

It’s great these hundreds of cyclists are translating their love for biking and concern for our Earth’s climate into such a strong statement for political action. Along the route, expert speakers will educate and inspire local communities about global warming and what we can all do to be part of the solution. Then, at the steps of the U.S. Capitol, riders will call on federal leaders to act this Fall so that our country becomes a model in emissions reduction and a center for millions of clean energy jobs that drive a green economic recovery.

Though the current ride from New York City to DC is mainly for experienced cyclists like Pablo and Gabrielle, the East Coast Greenway Alliance plans to make the route accessible to all within a few years

Onwards in the Sustainable Energy Transition and good luck to Pablo and Gabrielle!

• RPS: 20 percent by 2020
• Renewable energy and energy efficiency industries receive 9.5 percent of carbon allowances
• Transmission: regional transmission grid planning and federal siting authority
• 20-year Federal Power Purchase Authority
• Establishment of a Clean Energy Deployment Administration to aid the domestic development and deployment of renewable technologies including solar.

“We are 24 hours away from the most important climate vote of our lives. Everything hangs in the balance.

Either the House passes the American Clean Energy and Security Act and we carry momentum to the Senate. Or, we lose the vote and probably any chance of confronting the devastating threats of run-away global warming for the foreseeable future.

In recent weeks, we’ve sent a lot of email urging you and the Action Network community to keep the pressure on for passing this landmark bill. In response, our TakeAction inbox has been flooded with comments and questions about this bill and the urgency for action.

We’ve tried to respond to each question individually but thought at this critical moment it would be helpful to explain why we are working so hard to pass this bill and why now is so important.

Your support and activism is absolutely critical to our success and we hope this response helps keep us moving together toward passing the strongest possible bill.

Thanks for all you do,
Sam Parry
Director, Online Membership and Activism

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Why This Bill, Why Now?

Our vigorous effort to pass the landmark American Clean Energy and Security Act is based on a number of factors, including:

• It is a strong bill that will put America on course to cutting global warming emissions by 83% by mid-century. This, along with cuts from other countries, is in the range of what scientists suggest is necessary to stave off the catastrophic threats of run-away global warming.
• It has broad support from labor, environmental, and community groups, as well as valuable support from the business community and even many electric utilities and energy companies. In order to pass a bill of this magnitude, this broad support is essential.
• It uses a proven policy approach — cap-and-trade — that sets a declining cap on global warming pollution and creates a market that rewards innovation to clean-energy technologies. This same approach has dramatically reduced acid rain pollution at a fraction of the estimated costs.
• Now is the time. Political momentum has built over many years to bring us to this pivotal moment in history, and we cannot squander it. Key political leaders from President Obama to Speaker Pelosi to Reps Waxman and Markey are engaged as never before on passing a good bill right now. If we lose the vote in spite of the political firepower devoted to this, it will set back our efforts for many years, which would be disastrous for the climate. Once lost, political momentum doesn’t easily regenerate.

Some of our online members and activists wonder whether we should be pushing for an even stronger bill or, short of that, whether we’d be better off allowing the EPA to regulate global warming pollution.

Keep the following in mind:

• EPA has not yet established global warming regulations and it is not yet clear how they would approach the issue.
• It could take years and many court battles before EPA regulations are set.
• Nor is it clear how regulations would be handled over time with changing administrations.
• The bill would replace EPA regulations with a clear policy that locks in emission reductions through mid-century.

This is why President Obama and his team, including EPA administrator Lisa Jackson, are fully behind passing the American Clean Energy and Security Act and favor legislation over regulation.

As to whether we should be supporting a stronger bill, we have to ask what’s the alternative? What other bill stands a prayer’s chance of winning 218 votes in the House and 60 votes in the Senate? What other bill has the support of President Obama, Speaker Pelosi and Reps. Waxman and Markey? What other bill could you even get out of the relevant committees?

Passing legislation of this magnitude is hard. Look at the efforts to reform health care. An entire generation of Americans has come and gone and that issue is not yet resolved.

If the planet is to avoid the catastrophic threat of run-away global warming, we have to act now. We must come together to support the strongest possible bill and get it passed. We just don’t have time to waste here.

The American Clean Energy and Security Act is a strong bill (see our summary of the bill).

Is it everything we would want? Of course not, but you don’t pass legislation in a vacuum. You must work with many interests and constituents and find common ground. That is how all legislation moves through Congress.

It is carpe diem time. It is save the planet time. It is time to pass the American Clean Energy and Security Act.

Please do everything you can in the next 24 hours to urge your member of Congress to vote yes on this critical bill.

Here are five things you can do right now to help:

1. Take Action: Send an email to your member of Congress supporting passage of the landmark American Clean Energy and Security Act. Even if you think your member is a solid yes or a definite no, it’s important for all members to hear from their constituents today on this important issue.
2. Call Your Member: Dial the Capitol Hill switchboard — (202) 224-3121 — and ask to be patched through to your representative’s office. Tell the staff that you are a voter back home and that you support the American Clean Energy and Security Act because it will create jobs, unleash our clean energy future, free us from foreign oil, and cut America’s global warming pollution.

   When you’re done with the Capitol Hill office, please look up your member at http://www.house.gov/ and find the phone numbers for home district offices — let the staff back home know what you think, too.

3. Spread the Word: Tell all your friends and family how important this vote is and that they need to get in touch with their members of Congress. Send them this url: https://secure2.edf.org/site/Advocacy?cmd=display&page=UserAction&id=118. Tell them that this is the only chance we have to pass a climate bill this year and that we need to act now.”

ACES Act caps US greenhouse gas emissions

The passed bill would establish a cap-and-trade system to achieve lower US emissions levels by allowing institutions to trade their emissions permits so that the most efficient reduction projects are executed. This market-based incentive is estimated to be cheaper than mandating all institutions to lower emissions the chosen percentage without regard to each institution’s costs. The cap, beginning in 2012, is set for 2020 emissions to equal 17% below 2005 (or ~4% below 1990) and then 2050 emissions at 83% below 2005 (~80% below 1990). The original bill draft called for 20% below 2005 by 2020 but was relaxed as a compromise to shore up support among legislators from coal states.

The sharp drop in emissions during 2008-09 already has emissions at 6% below 2005 levels, so 17% below seems unaggressive to me. I hope advances in solar, wind, and efficiency help persuade legislators to lower the cap at least back to 20% below 2005 during the bill’s continued development or after it becomes law.

Electricity Emissions Continuing to Plunge

The EIA just published its preliminary estimate for March electricity generation, and the numbers are even more climate-friendly than last month. The most notable change is the large substitution from coal to natural gas due to the recent lower prices for natural gas. Coal use fell 14.5% from March 2008 while natural gas consumption increased 5%. More good news for the climate were a 1.2% increase in hydroelectric power generation, a .3% increase for nuclear, and a 4.8% decrease for petroleum liquids.

Year-to-date, 2009 coal consumption for electricity is down a whopping 10.2% (much more than the EIA projection of ~2.5%, as I wrote last week would probably occur). Natural gas use for electricity has fallen .8%. US emissions could fall as much as 5% in 2009 (to 7.5% below 2005 levels) if current trends continue. But for now, I’ll stick with the more conservative projection that they will fall more than 3%.

Here’s to swift passage of climate legislation to ensure emissions continue falling during our economic recovery in the 2010s.

Onwards in the Sustainable Energy Transition-

Today, the oil price convincingly passed $60 per barrel as the dollar fell to $1.377 per euro (10% weaker than its peak several weeks ago). Oil had previously touched $60 before retreating during the last few days. But this time, a weekly report from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed a larger drop than expected in US inventories of crude oil, at 2.1 million barrels or .6%. This drop followed a bigger 1.2% drop the week before. Therefore, even though oil storage levels remain above average, the emerging trend of decline has caused speculators to bid the price up.

Gasoline May Spike to $2.50

Gasoline storage levels fell 2.1% to below the average range, its second big drop in as many weeks. With prices now at $2.33 per gallon and wholesale prices that translate into $2.50+, we are likely to see a continued spike in gasoline’s price in the week ahead. In fact, without extremely bad economic news derailing the rally – average gasoline prices seem destined to rise above $2.40 and toward $2.50 soon.

Lower Imports & Lower Demand

Crude oil imports averaged less than 9 million barrels per day (Mbd), down more than 5% from last year. But this still isn’t a problem for the short-term because inventories are so high and recessionary demand remains more than 5% below 2008 levels. Last week’s demand for gasoline, distillates, and propane fell 1.4%, 13% and 4.7%, respectively. The timing and speed of economic recovery along with the pace of oil field decline rates will determine prices going forward.

Fuel Efficiency Crucial

Obama’s announcement yesterday to raise fuel efficiency standards in the US market to 35.5 mpg by 2016 was a great step forward. The Union of Concerned Scientists estimates this policy will save Americans at least $30 billion dollars per year (reduced gasoline expense, etc.) in 2020 based on a gasoline price of just $2.25 per gallon. The efficiency standard will also lower our oil import needs by 1.4 million barrels that same year (enough to replace dwindling shipments from Mexico).

Bottom Line: A focus on efficiency will be crucial to keep our economy from suffering an even worse oil shock than 2008 in the years to come. This same efficiency is a big part of the climate mitigation effort we need to deploy in the US and worldwide. Solid policy like strengthened fuel efficiency standards accelerate the Sustainable Energy Transition, helping our environment and our wallets simultaneously.

Onwards-

The Details

The EIA expects oil consumption to fall 3% in the US to a little more than 18.8 million barrels per day. Most of the reduced demand is projected to come from lower use of distillates (mainly diesel) and jet fuel. For coal, the EIA predicts consumption to fall ~2.6% based on much lower industrial and coke plant demand and a substitution to natural gas for electricity generation. Even after taking up some slack from coal, natural gas consumption is expected to fall 1.9% (.1% further than estimated in April). Adding all these decreases together produces emissions that are 3% lower than in 2008.

Room for Further Reductions

I see room for emissions to fall even further than 3% as petroleum demand is currently more than 5% below last year (not just 3%) and substitution from coal to natural gas may drive a huge drop in coal demand of 4+% (compared to their ~2.6% estimate).

Some Background on Natural Gas Substitution of Coal

The report included a supplement on coal-to-natural gas substitution which helped me understand the situation more clearly. Since natural gas power plants are more efficient (less heat needed per kWh generated), natural gas prices that are higher than coal prices by 33% or less are often competitive. While most coal demand is guaranteed through long-term contracts, as much as 10-20% of some regional electricity markets can switch from spot market coal to spot market natural gas purchases. A natural gas price of $4 per MMBtu is more economical than a coal price of $3.25 per MMBtu in many efficient combined cycle natural gas plants.

Bottom Line: US greenhouse gas emissions from energy are now predicted by the EIA to decline faster than the swift fall of 2008. For us to continue this trend in 2010 and beyond, we must base our economic recovery on efficiency and renewable energy deployment (through federal climate legislation and a Renewable Electricity Standard).

I’ll keep you updated as progress is made-

Upscaling a Successful State Policy

For years now, Renewable Electricity Portfolio Standards (most often abbreviated RPS) have helped develop strong markets for wind, solar and other renewable power. As I discussed yesterday, these standards vary according to each state’s renewable resource from 12.5% to 45% by 2015-2020. RPS policy was critical to the development of the tremendous wind market in Texas and the solar markets of California and New Jersey. At the press conference held this morning, panelists from AWEA Executive Director Denise Bode to GE Energy’s VP of Renewables Vic Abate all called for federal leaders to set an RES that would ensure US leadership in renewable innovation: 25% by 2025.

EIA Report Shows RES Lowers Electricity Prices in Resource-Rich Regions

Panelist Don Furman, AWEA President and a leader at Iberdrola, called the opposition of a RES ill-informed. The opposition often says a national RES will raise energy prices. He cited a recent US Energy Information Administration (EIA) report that shows prices of natural gas would actually decrease due to the lower demand for the fuel. The report also projects electricity prices falling in many regions, with only slight increases elsewhere.

Michael Polsky, CEO of wind developer Invenergy, went further, saying the opposition has little credibility. Polsky gave a historical view of such opposition, declaring they used to allege renewables don’t work. With wind at more than 25 GW, they now admit it works. But they shifted their message to its too expensive. But wind turbine prices are already competitive with conventional sources, especially once pollutants such as carbon dioxide are taken into account.

Wind Power Costs

In fact, wind power is approaching $1.50 per watt and could fall toward $1 per watt if the industry has policy support to further mature and increase its efficiency. White-hot global demand for turbines since 2005 and the rise in the price of steel sent prices up a bit the past three years (similar to solar prices). But now costs are falling again and supply seems to have caught up with demand.

Future US Market Could Be 15-20 GW

GE’s Abate and enXco’s Jim Walker see the US market continuing to buildout in 2010 after a slowdown in 2009. In fact, they see market growth to 15-20 GW per year within a few years, as long as supportive federal policy continues. If they are right, we may be able to surpass China’s recent 2020 wind goal of 100 GW.

Such a market would translate into hundreds of thousands of clean energy jobs manufacturing, deploying, and operating turbines. AWEA’s Bode sees wind powering the American economy forward to recovery.

Bottom line: Significant momentum remains for renewable energy, especially cost-competitive wind power, to grow tremendously in the years ahead despite a recession-induced slowdown in 2009. The wind industry appreciates the federal government backing that enabled outstanding growth over the past few years. And they see this year as the perfect opportunity to set in motion a steady, long-term support to achieve energy security through a federal RES.

Onwards in the Sustainable Energy Transition-

To use their webtools, go here.

This is what they had to say:

I have some exciting news to share: President Obama just signed into law an economic recovery bill containing $87 billion in green investment funds–the largest investment ever in clean energy solutions!

And it was your passion and commitment to bold climate action that made this day possible. For the last two weeks, you phoned Congress for more than 121 hours through the 1Sky website–the equivalent of five days of nonstop calling on behalf of a green recovery. Kudos also to our allies who flooded congressional inboxes with emails.

President Obama and the members of Congress who supported the bill heard you loud and clear and took bold action. If we want them to do so again in the future, they need to know we have their backs today.

Please send a ‘thank you’ note to President Obama and the 306 members of Congress who voted for a green recovery:

http://www.1sky.org/green-recovery-thankyou

The green investments in the recovery bill will not only create over 1.7 million green jobs our country needs urgently: they are also a critical down payment on a clean, renewable energy economy.

President Obama and the bill’s supporters in Congress took a bold step towards real climate solutions, and they deserve our thanks for a job well done. Please send a ‘thank you’ note to the President and those in Congress who backed a green recovery:

http://www.1sky.org/green-recovery-thankyou

This is only the first step of many to solve the climate challenge and build a clean economy. In the months ahead, we’ll have to keep pushing Congress and the President to enact strong caps on carbon pollution and a halt to new coal power plants.

But in the meantime, take a moment to appreciate what we’ve accomplished today. Thank you for taking ownership of this movement!

Liz Butler
Field and Outreach Director, 1Sky

Step 1: The issue must be high enough in the positive public consciousness to win the attention and campaign promises of Presidential candidates. Check: Obama said he would set in motion a cap and trade bill to get US emissions to 1990 levels by 2020 and then 80% lower by 2050 and he emphasized the potential this sustainable energy transition has to create five million green-collar jobs.

Step 2: The issue must get the honor of joining the post-election message board. Check, as of yesterday: Obama spoke by video to an governors conference on climate change held in California on Tuesday. He renewed his campaign pledges on climate, and said the US would “help lead the world toward a new era of global cooperation on climate change.”

This is an excellent start for our country and the health of our Earth’s climate. But now we get to three more difficult steps (as detailed in John Kingdon’s “Agendas, Alternatives, and Public Policies“) that are in the recipe for US climate progress…

1. Keep climate change at the forefront of people’s minds

Political theorist John Kingdon called this pillar of progress the “problems” stream. The public has only a few problems at a time that it focuses its attention on, and energy/climate must stay high on the public’s list of concerns for Obama & Co. to spend their political capital on climate change bills. With energy prices lower than the records of mid-2008, it will take work from climate and energy advocates to keep “Joe Sixpack” from forgetting about the Southeast’s gasoline shortages in September, the $4+ per gallon pump prices experienced just a few months ago, and the hotter, more erratic climate we are creating at our current rate of fossil fuel consumption. The key will be to show that climate progress will make us richer (cutting energy costs through efficiency and creating new jobs in renewables development, manufacture, and deployment). Only if climate advocates craft and publicize a bill that can help us recover from our recession (like an efficient cap and trade system) that converges the economy and energy/climate problems streams, will the US move forward in 2009.

2. Build political alliances to pass a climate bill

Kingdon called this pillar the “politics” stream. With Democrats generally more environmentally-inclined than their colleagues on the right, the election seems to have aligned the stars for climate progress in 2009. But alliances across regions of the US must be forged to ensure a majority of representatives in the House and a filibuster-proof critical mass of 60 Senators are on-board. For instance, the bill must show that one region will not benefit and leave the rest of the country with the costs. Increased support for research centers that help each region develop their unique resources (such as wind in the Great Plains, solar in the Southwest, and bio-mass in the East) can help gather the political support necessary.

3. Refine the policy proposal to actionable form

The Lieberman/Warner-style bill of 2007 (which I discussed last week here) will evolve through a committee process in each chamber over the next several months before it is ready for passage. While the bill’s general framework is understood (from its successful application in a 1990 Clean Air Act Amendment to mitigate acid rain from coal plants), there are numerous details to be determined. Federal officials will decide a percentage of the emission permits they would like to auction rather than give away and how exactly they will administer the revenue generated from the auction. Climate advocates will need to regularly engage this federal “policy” stream to ensure compromises among policymakers and lobbyists do not dilute the bill to ineffectiveness.

Once these three streams of problems, politics and policy converge, a window of opportunity will arise for climate progress. There is a danger that we may put off climate mitigation because of short-term economic concerns. Therefore, those of us who understand the devastating impact of runaway climate change must raise our voices. Our letters-to-the-editor, Op-Eds, YouTube videos, and public events are necessary to keep the low cost of action today from preventing us to address the high costs of inaction in the years ahead.

Stay tuned for more info to help us achieve a sustainable energy transition…