The 100% clean green energy by 2030 for NYS it is not only feasible, it will also significantly improve our quality of life and economy. 4.5 million jobs would be created during the build out. Electric bills will be half of what they would be with fossil fuels. Health problems from bad air and high temperatures would be reduced. And we would create a sustainable future for our children and grandchildren.
The price tag is significant - though less than the cost of inaction. The capital investement would be over $400 billion over several decades. Most of these funds would already be spent by the private sector on the energy system; they would be redirected from fossil fuels to renewables. The rest could be paid for with a state carbon tax or other mechanisms to hold carbon polluters financially responsible for the damages they cause. (Any carbon tax should include a rebate to low and middle income consumers to offset its regressive nature.)
New York should also divest its state pension funds from fossil fuels. We should not be investing in the destruction of our planet. Investing in fossil fuels is increasingly precarious as the consensus on the need to stop burning them grows.
With Congress and the federal government gridlocked on this and other critical issues, it is imperative that state and local governments step into the void. We look forward to Governor Cuomo's leadership in dealing with climate change.
Mark Dunlea, Green Education and Legal Fund, and Prof. Steve Breyman, Science and Technology Studies, RPI
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