G2. Local Greens

Montgomery County, VA — Failures of Mountain Valley Pipeline hydrostatic pressure testing have heightened concerns about public safety and discharged significant pollution to local water sources. Despite an ongoing Consent Agreement, MVP claims it will complete construction and be in service in the next month. At the same time, it continues to hike up its cost to nearly $8 billion.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR) responded:

“The earth-shattering disasters MVP continues to cause on the methane gas pipeline route are a terrifying forecast for the future of people and planet if FERC allows it to go into service. We have warned regulatory officials that MVP is a reckless company tossing corroding pipes into landslide prone mountain slopes in a rush to meet its contract obligations. It is past time for our safety to come first.”

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Witness at the Border held a 2 week Vigil for Justice in Eagle Pass, TX.

Washington, DC — The Mountain Valley Pipeline asked the federal government to permit it to go in service by May 23, 2024. The pipeline plans to start pumping gas as early as June 1, 2024.  This announcement arrives days after MVP told federal officials that it is 63% complete to final restoration and admitted to numerous environmental crimes, including significant landslides, water contamination, and soil disturbance.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR) responded: 

“We are watching our worst nightmare unfold in real time: the reckless MVP is barreling towards completion. During construction, MVP has contaminated our water sources, destroyed our streams, and split the earth beneath our homes. Now they want to run methane gas through their degraded pipes and shoddy work. The MVP is a glaring human rights violation that is indicative of the widespread failures of our government to act on the climate crisis in service of the fossil fuel industry.”

On May 8, frontline communities impacted by the MVP will rally in front of the Bank of America headquarters in Charlotte, NC to hold banks and asset managers accountable for financing the MVP and risking their investors’ money.

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In honor of Earth Day, activists from cities all over Washington gathered to continue to spread the dire important measure of having a Free Snake River.

Upcoming BIL/IRA Deadlines/Webinars 

April 17, 2024 @ 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM EDT – WEBINAR – IRS Office Hours for Elective Pay and Transferability of Clean Energy Credits – The IRS is holding office hours on the pre-filing registration process for elective payment & transfer of clean energy Tax Credits.

April 17, 2024 @ 2:00 – 3:00 PM EDT – WEBINAR – What’s Next? Overcoming Barriers to the Clean Energy Transition – Climate Xchange webinar on navigating barriers to projects.

April 17, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – DOE’s $10.5 billion – GRIP (Grid Resilience & Innovation Partnerships) – Submission Deadline for Full Grid Innovation Program grants.

April 17, 2024 – Deadline – Concept Papers – DOE’s Solar and Wind Interconnection for Future Transmission program – new $10 million in grants available.

April 18, 2024 @ 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM EDT – WEBINAR – Inflation Reduction Act Elective Pay: Learn How to Claim & Receive Payment – This Urban Sustainability Directors Network (USDN) webinar offers local governments & community partners an in-depth exploration of new US Treasury/IRS rules on elective pay, including tax form demos.

April 19, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM – WEBINAR – White House Council on Environmental Quality – Exec. Order 14096, Revitalizing Our Nation’s Commitment to Environmental Justice for All – 1 Year Anniversary – Register Here.

April 24, 2024 @ 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM EDT – WEBINAR – IRS Office Hours for Elective Pay and Transferability of Clean Energy Credits – April 24, 2024 – IRS office hours on the pre-filing registration process for elective payment & transfer of clean energy credits.

April 25, 2024 @ 3:00-4:00PM – WEBINAR – DOE’s National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) will hold its second annual update webinar to share progress on the partnership’s impacts in 2023. Join for updates on NCSP’s target to install community solar in 5 million homes by 2025, saving $1 billion in electricity bills for subscribers. Register Here.

April 25, 2024 – Applications Due – US DOT Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Low or No Emission and Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Programs – Apply for $1.1 Billion in competitive grants under the Low or No Emission Grant Program and $390 Million under the Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Program.

April 25, 2024 5:00PM -7:00PM – WEBINAR & Live Event –  Federal Investments in NEPA: Celebrating Wins and Highlighting Opportunities at Luzerne County Community College’s (LCCC) Conference Center – 1333 S Prospect St, Nanticoke, PA – Blue Green Alliance, Conservation Voters of PA, Reimagine Appalachia, PennFuture. Register Here.

April 30, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT – WEBINAR – Partnering with CBOs to Advance Environmental Justice – This webinar highlights successful strategies for collaboration between community organizations & mayors to advance environmental justice goals.

April 30, 2024 – End of Rolling Award Period – DOE’s $200 million Home EE Contractor Training (TREC) making $200 million available to state energy offices so they can train, test, and certify residential energy efficiency and electrification contractors.

April 30, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – DOE’s $530 million Building Codes Competitive Funding grants.

May 2, 2024 @ 1:00 PM – 2:00 PM EDT – WEBINAR – Congressional Progressive Caucus Center (CPCC) Direct Pay Office Hours – The CPCC is holding office hours for eligible entities or anyone interested to drop in and bring their questions about Direct Pay.

May 2, 2024 @ 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM EDT – WEBINAR – Navigating the IRA: EV Tax Credits This Electrification Coalition webinar focuses on private/public collaborations on IRA tax benefits, with a focus on incentives for EV procurement and charging equipment.

May 2, 2024 – Application Deadline – Concept Note for GitLab Foundation’s Green Jobs for Economic Opportunity Fund – This $3 million program supports early-stage and innovative ideas that will help drive new climate careers. Grants are flexible, from $250k for orgs & $500k for partnerships. Full applications due June 14, 2024 – More INFO HERE.

May 13, 2024 10:30AM to 11:30AM EDT – WEBINAR – DOE overview of the new Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Innovation Grid Deployment Report. Register Here. Download the Full Report Here

May 31, 2024 @ COB – Application Deadline – DOE’s Communities Sparking Investments in Transformative Energy (C-SITE) program – with $18 million for local government clean energy projects that reduce energy use & create local jobs. More DOE C-SITE INFO HERE.

 

New BIL/IRA Implementation Videos

• From PennEnvironment & Beth Meiklejohn – Video on the Philadelphia-based Solar States Apprenticeship Program – See the Solar States Apprenticeship Story Toolkit for interested members of the coalition to share with their partners and on their social channels. Watch Solar States Story Video Here.

• Industrial Sector Decarbonization Projects Will Employ Thousands in PA – Video Blog – by Josh Raulerson Pennsylvania Environmental Council – April 15, 2024 – Thousands of new jobs will be created to tackle carbon emissions from PA’s industrial sector, if the state is successful in its bid for $475 million in federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) funding under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley unveiled plans for the program, known as RISE-PA, at an April 2, 2024 press event near Pittsburgh. Watch PEC Video Here.

• Evergreen Action State Program – Press Conference Video – PA DEP April 2, 2024 Event on RISE PA, PA’s $475 million application for funds from EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program from the Inter. Union of Painters & Allied Trades District Council 57’s Union Hall in Carnegie, PA – See Full Video Here.

Lowered industrial pollution & increased jobs possible with RISE PA – community, climate groups & union agree – by Bob Batz Jr. April 2, 2024 – Pitts. Union Progress.

 

New Federal BIL/IRA Reports and Announcements

DOE Opens $40M Training for Residential Energy Contractors Program – Eligible applicants: state energy offices. DOE Training for Residential Energy Contractors (TREC) program – A total of $40M is available. DOE anticipates making 10-30 awards of $250k-$5M each.  Letters of intent are due May 9, 2024. Full applications are due July 12, 2024.

DOE announced a $40 million funding opportunity for states to train residential energy contractors. Funded by the President’s Inflation Reduction Act, states can now apply for up to $40 million in competitive grants for the Training for Residential Energy Contractors Program (TREC) to reduce the cost of training, testing, and certifying residential energy efficiency and electrification contractors & help implement the $8.8 billion Home Energy Rebates Programs. More TREC Information Program Here. Letters of intent are due May 9, 2024, and full applications are due July 12, 2024.

US Dept. of Interior Announces More Than $244 Million to Address Legacy Pollution, Revitalize Communities in PA – DOI announced more than $244 million in fiscal year 2023 funding to address dangerous, and polluting abandoned mine lands in coal communities in PA, the largest annual state allocation under BIL’s Abandoned Mine Land Program.

$1.35M for Nanticoke Creek restoration project – by Bill O’Boyle , April 1, 2024 – Times Leader – PA has already received $270 million for abandoned mine land cleanup – including $244 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Coal mining land reclamation project in Luzerne County – More than $1 million will reclaim old coal mining land & used to deploy renewable energy. – WNEP-TV April 1, 2024

Largest solar project in Pa. to be built on former coal mine with $90M federal grant —By Reid Frazier, March 28, 2024 – The Allegheny Front

Feds send $90M to largest state solar project yet — in Clearfield County, By Julie Noal and Jeff Corcino, The Progress, March 22, 2024

Swift Current Energy’s Mineral Basin Solar Project Selected by U.S. Department of Energy to Receive up to $90M Award to Develop Clean Energy Project on Former Mine Land – PITTSBURGH, PA, March 25, 2024

Federal Support Opportunities to Remediate and Redevelop Energy Assets – April 2023

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory – The IRA makes available up to $5 billion in Energy Infrastructure Reinvestment credit subsidies to support up to $250 billion in loan authority, which can aid in the remediation, repurposing, and redevelopment of eligible energy infrastructure sites (such as coal mines & coal power plants).

DOE, the U.S. Dept. of the Treasury, and the Internal Revenue Service announced $4 billion in § 48C tax credits for more than 100 projects across 35 states to accelerate domestic clean energy manufacturing and reduce greenhouse gas emissions at industrial facilities. These $4 Billion in Tax Credits will build clean energy supply chain businesses, drive private investments, & lower costs of projects in Energy Communities that will receive $1.5 billion of these tax credits (and at least $4 billion of the total $10 billion in tax credits) for projects in § 48C energy communities with closed coal mines or coal plants.

DOE Announces $18 Million Towards Clean Energy and Economic Development in 30 Historically Disadvantaged Communities – Thirty selected disadvantaged communities and those with historical ties to fossil fuel industries will receive a total of $18 million worth of technical assistance through the Communities Local Energy Action Program (LEAP) to create community-wide action plans that reduce local air pollution, increase energy resilience, lower utility costs and energy burdens, and create good-paying jobs. Oil City, PA will receive support for clean energy planning, clean transportation planning and incentives for community microgrids and enhanced manufacturing.

DOE Announces $62 Million to Lower Battery Recycling Costs Across the Nation – including 17 BIL funded projects to increase consumer participation in consumer electronics battery recycling and grow and secure America’s battery supply chain.

DOE Invests $22 Million to Improve Siting and Permitting for Large-Scale Renewable Energy and Energy Storage to improve planning, siting, and permitting processes for large-scale renewable energy facilities. Six state-based projects will receive $10 million through the Renewable Energy Siting Through Technical Engagement and Planning (R-STEP) program & will open a second round of up to $12 million in funding.

Federal Funding Driving Manufacturing and Economic Development in Energy Communities Webinar – April 1, 2024 – Energy Communities – Live stream replay of the webinar focused on funding programs at DOE relevant to clean energy manufacturing and economic development.

• Download the webinar resources
• Download the presentation slides

Energy Equity for Renters – This American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) program will help 10 Jurisdictions lower utility bills & preserve affordable housing. Energy Equity for Renters is providing technical assistance to the Office of Sustainability of Phila. on how to address energy burdens for tenants in small rental dwellings by improving energy efficiency in rental homes & preserving or expanding affordable housing.

 

Big Ticket/Big Dollar – BIL/IRA Grant Program Recap

EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund – April 4, 2024 ($20 Billion Announcement)

• National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF)
• Clean Communities Investment Accelerator Fund (CCIA)

EPA’s Next Steps for NCIF & CCIA

Award Finalization Process: April 2024 – June 2024

Future EPA Info at: https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund

EPA’s Solar for All Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund – Date TBD ($7 Billion)

Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority – Applicant 

Energy Accelerator Program (a/k/a Pennsylvania’s Green Bank)

New Green Bank Report/Resource – An Introduction to the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund– April 15, 2024 – from Local Infrastructure Hub, Drexel’s Nowak Metro Finance Lab & Accelerator for America. Complete overview and Guide including – How Cities Can Prepare for GGRF Financing. Resources include: An Introduction to the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund and an analysis of Transformative Project Case Studies.

EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) Program ($4.6 Billion Grant Program)

• Pennsylvania’s Priority Climate Action Plan
• Lehigh Valley – Trans. Decarbonization & Priority Climate Action Plan (LVPC)
• -Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD Priority Climate Action Plan (DVRPC)
• SW PA Climate Pollution Reduction Plan/Priority Climate Action Plan (SPC)

RISE PA: An Ambitious Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Application – Press Event.

CPC PA 2024 State Plan & CPRG Alignment – See Analysis Here

New CPRG Report/Resource from RMI/Evergreen – We Read 6,795 Pages of State Climate Plans. Here’s a First Look at What We Found. – April 10, 2024

 

National & Regional BIL/IRA and Related News Clips

China is all in on green tech. The U.S. and Europe fear unfair competition. — By Christian Shepherd, March 29, 2024 – Washington Post – China’s overwhelming dominance has alarmed officials in the United States and in Europe, who say they are worried that a flood of cheap Chinese products will undercut their efforts to grow their own renewable energy industries.

Breakingviews: Next Chinese trade war could benefit the planet – by Hugo Dixon, April 8, 2024 – Reuters (see graphics)

How to Revive a Burned Forest? Rebuild the Tree Supply Chain – By Lydia DePillis, April 4, 2024 – New York Times – As forests succumb to ever-fiercer wildfires, the federal government & adventurous private companies are trying to resuscitate an industry.

Germany’s Solar Panel Industry, Once a Leader, Is Getting Squeezed – By Melissa Eddy, March 25, 2024 – New York Times – Domestic manufacturers are caught between China’s low prices and U.S. protectionist policies, even as demand increases.

New Pollution Rules Aim to Lift Sales of Electric Trucks – By Coral Davenport and Jack Ewing, March 29, 2024 – New York Times – The latest in a string of ambitious climate regulations aims to clean up the heaviest polluters on the road. But truckers are worried.

Biden administration announces $20 billion in clean energy grants – by Sophie Boudreau, April 4, 2024 – The Keystone

Environmental Polling Consortium – Polling Summary – The Inflation Reduction Act / Federal Clean Energy Plan (Mar. 2024)

Nexamp nabs $520M to build community solar across the US – by Eric Wesoff – April 12, 2024 – Canary Media – Community solar helps people who can’t get rooftop solar access the benefits of solar ownership. Nexamp just raised a boatload of money to build more.

Not everyone in the hydrogen business wants to see weaker rules for federal tax credits by Kari Lydersen April 2, 2024 – Energy News Network – Some companies have voiced support for requiring green hydrogen to be produced from new clean energy, contradicting pushback from elsewhere in the industry.

‘Valuable and largely overlooked’: Interest in virtual power plants grows by Robert Zullo, April 9, 2024 – Energy News Network – Multiple states are considering legislation allowing multiple small energy resources to be aggregated as a grid resource.

With federal funds flowing, weatherization industry prepares to fill the gaps – by Kari Lydersen, February 27, 2024 – Energy News Network – Advocates hoping to tap federal funding have looked to the boom and bust that followed 2009’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act as a cautionary tale to avoid.

Opinion | Why Republicans Will Regret Their Crusade Against Electric Cars – by Mike Murphy, April 7, 2024 – Politico – New polling suggests that stance is a political loser in 2024. The top two states for new investment in EV-related manufacturing plants are Georgia & Michigan. Other critical presidential swing states on the mega-EV investment list are Nevada (fifth in EV manufacturing investment), Arizona (ninth) and North Carolina (seven th). An easy way to look at it: 68 percent of swing state Electoral College votes in November will come from states with very high EV manufacturing investment.

How West Virginia’s Coal Country Could Get a Clean-Energy Makeover – Newsweek – April 4, 2024

Grid interconnection queues jumped 27%, to 2.6 TW, in 2023, led by solar, storage: DOE lab – by Ethan Howland April 11, 2024 – Utility Dive – Solar, battery and wind projects make up 95% of the capacity in interconnection queues, according to the DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

Mid-Ohio Valley Climate Corner: Transition from exploitation to sustainability – by George Banziger – March 16, 2024 – The exploitation of Appalachia by outsiders goes all the way back to the days of George Washington, who, prior to serving as our first president, surveyed the lands around the Ohio River for development and ownership by the eastern colonists. Then, in the 1800s, as Steven Stool described in his 2017 book, “Ramp Hollow,” outsiders extracted lumber and coal from the Appalachian forests. One of the justifications for this exploitation was the disparagement of the residents of these areas as degenerate, backward, and ignorant. Fast forward to the 21st Century, and we witness the false promise of natural gas being extracted from the Utica and Marcellus shale deposits and the profits once again going mainly to outsiders.

  PA BIL/IRA and Related News Clips

With labor and environmentalists talking, Pa. House Blue-Green alliance debuts legislative agenda By: Peter Hall – April 16, 2024 – PA Capital Star – The 11-bill package includes solar for schools, prevailing wages for green energy, and e-waste recycling. For Robert Bair, president of the Pennsylvania State Building & Construction Trades Council, the event marked a years-long shift away from a belief that the interests of organized labor and environmental advocates are mutually exclusive.

Pennsylvania Solar Center announces April 25 webinar @ Noon – to discuss a wide array of career pathways that lead to Pennsylvania’s solar industry, and a growing number of workforce development programs to keep pace. With IRA funding, the webinar will include an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers discussion on their apprenticeship programs and world-class training facilities and the Pennsylvania College of Technology’s Clean Energy Center. Click Here to Register.

Pittsburgh teen summit aims to build community around collective action on climate change by Jillian Forstadt – April 12, 2024 – 90.5 WESA

‘It takes us to a new level:’ School officials back Pa. bill to fund solar energy in districts – by Marshall Keely, April 11, 2024 – WNEP-TV – A grant program called “Solar for Schools” aims to help districts save money by installing solar panels and allowing them to decide how to reinvest those dollars.

My commonsense plan for a new era of energy leadership in Pa – by Gov. Josh Shapiro, Tuesday, April 2, 2024 – Trib Live

As a Contested Pitts. Primary Nears, Climate Advocates Rally Around a Progressive Fracking Opponent, Rep. Summer Lee – by Keerti Gopal, Kiley Bense – April 10, 2024 – Inside Climate News. In the historic heart of PA’s fossil fuel industry, Lee finds herself in a hotly contested primary against a moderate Dem. who is backed by a GOP-funded PAC.

Centralia, Wash.’s coal plant has to close next year. Can Pa. communities learn from Centralia’s transition? By Rachel McDevitt – April 10, 2024 – StateImpact – Under pressure from climate activists to close, the plant agreed to a deadline & put millions in a transition fund. That’s giving Centralia a chance.

 

PA BIL/IRA Project Update

DOE’s Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current and Former Mine Land –

Mineral Basin: Coal-to-Solar in Pennsylvania Community Briefing Released – Full Slide Presentations Here – $90 Million Solar Project in Clearfield County.

Largest solar project in Pa. to be built on former coal mine with $90M federal grant — By Reid Frazier, March 28, 2024 – The Allegheny Front

Feds send $90M to largest state solar project yet — in Clearfield County, By Julie Noal and Jeff Corcino, The Progress, March 22, 2024

Pennsylvania’s largest solar farm will replace its largest coal plant – by Michelle Lewis, Electrek  | Mar 21 2024

Swift Current Energy’s Mineral Basin Solar Project Selected by U.S. Department of Energy to Receive up to $90M Award to Develop Clean Energy Project on Former Mine Land – PITTSBURGH, PA, March 25, 2024

 

In case you missed it: Biden-Harris Administration’s Top Climate Accomplishments:

1. Signed into law the largest climate investment in history, the Inflation Reduction Act, which has already created 210,000 new jobs across nearly every state and attracted more than $200 billion in private clean energy investments ($365 billion since President Biden took office), while putting the U.S. on a path to meet our climate goals and reach 80% clean energy by 2030 – in addition to securing the American Rescue Plan, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and CHIPS and Science Act
2. Established a whole-of-government strategy to tackle methane emissions – from plugging wells and leaks in the oil and gas sector, to reclaiming abandoned coal mines, to reducing food waste and agricultural emissions, and finalized a historic rule to reduce methane emissions from oil and gas operations by nearly 80%, delivering billions of dollars in health and economic benefits
3. Launched the American Climate Corps to mobilize a new, diverse generation of Americans – putting them to work conserving and restoring our lands and waters, bolstering community resilience, deploying clean energy, implementing energy efficient technologies, and advancing environmental justice, all while creating pathways to high-quality, good-paying jobs
4. Advancing the most ambitious environmental justice agenda in history, including by signing a historic Executive Order that calls on the federal government to bring clean energy and healthy environments to all and mitigate harm to those who have suffered from toxic pollution and other environmental burdens like climate change; delivering on the Justice40 initiative, which is ensuring that the benefits of President Biden’s historic investments in America – from clean energy projects to floodwater protections – reach communities that need them most; replacing lead pipes and taking action to protect communities from PFAS pollution; accelerating Superfund cleanups; tightening air quality enforcement near pollution facilities; and more
5. Protected 26 million acres of lands and waters – on track to conserve more lands and waters than any President in history – including five new national monuments that include protections for lands in Colorado, Nevada, Texas, and most recently, the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument in Arizona; initiating new national marine sanctuaries as part of the President’s goal of conserving 30% of lands and waters by 2030, delivering billions of dollars to accelerate land, water, and wildlife conservation efforts in all 50 states
6. Canceled remaining oil and gas leases issued by the previous administration in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, proposed protections for more than 13 million acres in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska, and withdrew approximately 2.8 million acres of the Beaufort Sea, ensuring the entire United States Arctic Ocean is off limits to new oil and gas leasing
7. Signed an Executive Order that sets an ambitious target to make half of all new vehicles sold in 2030 zero-emissions, while proposing strongest-ever limits on tail pipe emissions and issuing fuel economy standards, giving Americans more choices about the cars they drive, and saving Americans hundreds of dollars at the pump
8. Proposed carbon pollution standards for coal and gas-fired power plant emissions that would avoid hundreds of millions of tons of carbon dioxide emissions and protect people’s health
9. Accelerated permitting of clean energy projects, including 47 projects on public lands that total 11.2 megawatts of wind, solar and geothermal energy on public lands – enough to power more than 3.5 million homes, and broke ground on 10 major transmission projects, which are slated to connect 19.5 gigawatts of new generation to the grid
10. Rallied world leaders to raise global climate ambition, including by securing commitments from more than 155 countries to reduce methane emissions by at least 30 percent by 2030, joining leaders at COP28 to commit, for the first time, to transition away from fossil fuels, end new unabated coal capacity globally, and agree to triple renewable energy globally by 2030
11. Invoked the Defense Production Act using emergency authority on the basis of climate change to increase domestic production of key clean energy technologies, such as solar, transformers and electric grid components, and heat pumps

 

April 4, 2024 Announcement on EPA’s National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF) and Clean Communities Investment Accelerator Fund (CCIA)

By EPA’s Office of Public Engagement and Environmental Education

EPA has made three selections under the $14B National Clean Investment Fund:

• Climate United Fund ($6.97B): A coalition led by three leading mission-driven lenders and investors (Calvert Impact, Community Preservation Corporation, Self-Help Ventures Fund) with a proven track record of mobilizing $30 billion in private and institutional capital focused on economic opportunity and environmental sustainability in low-income and disadvantaged communities;
• Coalition for Green Capital ($5.00B): A new, national green bank that will partner with an existing network of state and local green banks across the country, which has collectively catalyzed $20 billion in investment into qualified projects; and
• 1 Power Forward Communities ($2.00B): A national housing decarbonization finance program led by leaders in community development finance (LISC, Enterprise), electrification (Rewiring America), and affordable housing (United Way, Habitat for Humanity)

 

EPA has made five selections under the $6B Clean Communities Investment Accelerator:

• Opportunity Finance Network ($2.29B): A leading industry group with a 40-year record serving community development loan funds;
• Inclusiv ($1.87B): A leading industry group with a 50-year record serving community development credit unions and cooperatives;
• Native CDFI Network ($400M): A critical umbrella organization that supports and advocates for Native CDFls;
• Justice Climate Fund ($940M): A new organization serving a broad cross-section of community lenders in hard-to-reach communities; and
• Appalachian Community Capital ($500M): A community development finance organization with a decade-long track record in Appalachian communities that is establishing a “Green Bank for Rural America” initiative to expand capital access in coal, energy, underserved rural, and Tribal communities.

 

These eight awards will create a national clean financing network to finance climate and clean energy projects— especially in low-income and disadvantaged communities. Commitments include:

• 70% of funds to low-income and disadvantaged communities; and
• Achieve at least a 7-1 private capital mobilization ratio.

 

 

EPA’s Next Steps

Award Finalization Process: April – June 2024

EPA processes the awards, including:

• Finalizing terms and conditions;
• Updating workplans and budgets; and
• Completing other paperwork to obligate funds prior to the September 30, 2024 statutory deadline.

EPA Note: Timeline assumes that no applicants successfully dispute non-selection decision administratively or judicially

Performance Period: July 1, 2024 & Onwards

Recipients and their partners begin executing their programs, with funding delivered to communities quickly, as evidenced by selected applicants having provided:

• Hundreds of letters from transaction partners and potential counterparties to deliver against a transaction pipeline of billions of dollars in the first year alone; and
• 700+ letters of interest from community lenders that are eager to participate and deploy projects that low-income and disadvantaged communities need most.

EPA’s Posted Materials – April 4, 2024

• GGRF Press Release – EPA announces eight selections under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund’s National Clean Investment Fund and Clean Communities Investment Accelerator.
• NCIF Selected Applicant Details – Links and information on Selectees
• CCIA Selected Applicant Details – Links and information on Selectees

These pages include contact links for each GGRF recipient organization listed above.

EPA Informational webinars – for each program, with additional webinars to be announced on EPA’s GGRF webpage.

• National Clean Investment Fund webinar:

• • Wednesday, April 10, 2024, 1:00pm – 1:30pm ET. Join the April 10 meeting
• Clean Communities Investment Accelerator webinar:

• Thursday, April 11, 2024, 1:00pm – 1:30pm ET. Join the April 11 meeting

Links for these GGRF Webinars also appear at: https://www.epa.gov/greenhouse-gas-reduction-fund/engagement-opportunities

The post BIL/IRA Implementation Digest — April 15, 2024 appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

This blog post was written by POWHR’s co-director Denali Nalamalapu. POWHR is committed to holding accountable the financiers that make MVP possible. Join us on May 8 in Charlotte, NC at the Bank of America headquarters to make our voices heard.

The same company behind the Mountain Valley Pipeline is responsible for one of the worst climate disasters of 2022; though the media barely covered the disaster, we never forgot it on the frontline of the MVP. The company now faces a fine of more than $1 million.

The methane gas disaster in Cambria County, where high volumes of gas leaked for nearly two weeks, is our nightmare. It is an example of the same corporate and regulatory failure that allowed MVP to resume construction of a needless pipeline across steep, landslide prone slopes.

The emissions from this leak account for 10% of all methane emitted by the state in 2022, five times what the nearby Shell petrochemical complex in Beaver County is permitted to emit every year. The gas leaked equals annual emissions from 300,000 gas-powered cars.

This was the worst methane gas leak since Aliso Canyon in 2015. From October 2015 to February 2016, residents of California were harmed by the largest gas leak in history at Southern California Gas Company’s storage facility. The Equitrans-caused leak in Cambria County was one-fourth the size of Aliso Canyon.

Photo credit: Chris Torres

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, which has been inconsistent in its responsiveness to fossil fuel disasters, detected radioactivity in the soil. Equitrans claims it will work with the DEP to remediate the site. Long term exposure to radiation can cause serious health issues in the surrounding community.

Equitrans says this disaster happened because of corrosion, which caused a well casing to fail at its Rager Mountain storage facility. It has spent more than $18 million on the well fallout so far.

Equitrans has resumed pumping gas, except for the blown-out well and two others.

Earlier this year, Equitrans announced a merger with EQT, whose stocks have been falling for the past year. There is currently an investigation into Equitrans regarding possible breaches in their fiduciary duty and other violations. Equitrans is facing criminal charges for their role in a 2018 house explosion that severely burned a family.

Equitrans and EQT are reckless fossil fuel corporations that are liabilities to their investors. All financial backers tied up in their MVP boondoggle should extricate themselves immediately.

Washington, D.C. — The Government Accountability Office has uncovered dangerous pitfalls in the federal pipeline safety agency’s ability to adequately ensure safety of methane gas pipelines like MVP.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR) responded:

“We are aware that PHMSA’s authority is limited and relies too heavily on industry self-reporting and investigation. With an alarming 21 percent of incidents resulting from ‘natural and other outside force damage’ the MVP stands as a very dangerous test case of ‘high consequence’ assessment.”

The MVP route goes over some of the steepest slopes in the country, as well as landslide prone terrain and seismic zones. Numerous landslides and earthquakes have occurred in the blast zone, and community members are very concerned about their safety, especially given the ineffectiveness of agencies.

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Members of our Creative Action Brigade took advantage of the darkness during the eclipse to project! 

Heavy industry is Pennsylvania’s biggest source of climate pollution and a principal cause of various environmental health concerns in frontline environmental justice communities. A new program known as Reducing Industrial Sector Emissions in Pennsylvania, or RISE PA, could help curb hazardous pollution while creating jobs and drawing new investment to the Commonwealth.

RISE PA is Pennsylvania’s ambitious implementation application for the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program and a critical step toward helping communities in the region advance a more prosperous, sustainable, and equitable Appalachia. The program would reduce climate-change-causing greenhouse gas emissions from industrial sources by providing grants to promote investment into emissions reduction equipment and technology and energy efficiency upgrades. Up to 5.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide or carbon dioxide equivalent emissions could be reduced between 2025 and 2030 under the program, which would also create upwards of 6,000 new jobs installing and maintaining the equipment.

On Tuesday, at the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades (IUPAT) DC 57’s Union Hall in Carnegie, PA, I joined DEP Interim Acting Secretary Jessica Shirley,  Office of the Governor Critical Investments Executive Director Dr. Brian Regli, Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato, and leaders of IUPAT DC 57, Moms Clean Air Force Pennsylvania, and Evergreen Action in support of RISE PA.

Initiatives like RISE PA will drive meaningful pollution reductions while creating good jobs, a durable career pipeline for workers, and improved quality of life in local communities. In Pennsylvania, the industrial sector has been a central economic driver for more than a century, producing critical goods – including steel, cement, and glass – that helped build and grow the modern U.S. economy. Today, manufacturing contributes more than $113 billion in state domestic product and provides 11% of the Commonwealth’s jobs. This significant manufacturing footprint also means that industry is responsible for one-third of Pennsylvania’s GHG emissions, making it the largest-emitting sector in the Commonwealth’s economy.

Earlier this year, we released a new report with Strategen titled A Roadmap for Industrial Decarbonization in Pennsylvania, detailing how the state could cut carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) emissions in the industrial sector by 84% by 2050, yielding significant benefits for local economies, public health, and the environment. Energy efficiency measures and electrification stood out as the highest-impact approaches in the short-term, with significant potential for job growth. Investing in near-term strategies like energy efficiency and electrification to decarbonize our industrial sector will help us build a better future for all Pennsylvanians, and RISE PA charts a path for how we can achieve unprecedented emissions reductions with an appropriate sense of urgency.

I was inspired by the press event because these are the exact ingredients we need to make this program as successful as we know it can be – representatives from state and local government, labor, environmental organizations, and local communities coming together in support of a plan to maximize the historic investment the Biden Administration secured through the Inflation Reduction Act in service of addressing harmful pollution from one of the most important sectors to decarbonize. Full funding for RISE PA would give us the opportunity to make significant steps forward in decarbonizing our industrial sector in Pennsylvania while boosting good paying union jobs and protecting our neighbors.

 

RISE PA

The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) Program, designed to incubate a wave of state climate action, is tailor-made for Pennsylvania. New investments from the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) are catalyzing a clean energy boom across the country. The CPRG program is a critical “force multiplier” that can empower subnational leaders to seize these opportunities and leverage greater public and private sector investments in climate solutions. Importantly, the program is designed to achieve near-term reductions in climate pollution that would not otherwise occur absent this federal investment—and effective applications in individual states can create scalable, replicable models for climate action.

Pennsylvania seeks to take full advantage of the CPRG’s Implementation Grant competition, applying for the largest funding tier to tackle a heavily polluting sector that would otherwise keep polluting at unsustainable levels. In its proposed RISE PA grant program, the Shapiro administration would allocate $440 million in flexible grants for industrial facilities to pursue decarbonization projects from 2025 to 2030 with three stipulations:

1. For medium- and large-scale industrial decarbonization projects, the grantee must achieve pollution reductions of at least 20 percent
2. Every project must pay at least the local prevailing wages for construction, alteration, or repair
3. At least 15 percent of the labor hours on most projects must be completed by apprentices

RISE PA would also offer a Community Benefits Bonus for projects located in disadvantaged communities that submit a community benefits plan, and a Fair Labor Bonus for projects that make collective bargaining commitments and dedicate resources for local hiring and workforce development.

Taken together, these requirements and incentives ensure that RISE PA would drive meaningful pollution reductions while creating good jobs and a durable career pipeline for workers. Analyses of the full potential of those climate and economic impacts show that CPRG funding for RISE PA would have sweeping benefits for both climate and jobs across the Commonwealth.

 

Decarbonization of Pennsylvania’s Industry

Heavy industry is a complicated sector to decarbonize, with processes requiring burning fuels for high heat, producing climate pollutants through unavoidable chemical reactions, and more. Despite those challenges, Strategen has identified several key decarbonization pillars that could drive pollution reductions in Pennsylvania’s industry.

Energy efficiency measures and electrification stood out as the highest-impact approaches in the short term with significant potential for job growth. Both pathways incorporate established market-ready technologies, including industrial heat pumps and thermal energy storage with significant co-benefits. Increased efficiency will bring significant cost savings for manufacturers, given that a typical industrial plant spends 30-50 percent of its operating budget on energy, while electrification will continue to drive decarbonization as the grid grows cleaner. Together, industrial efficiency and electrification would cut nearly 3.5 million metric tons (MMT) of carbon dioxide-equivalent pollution (CO2e) from 2025 to 2030 and nearly 7 MMT CO2e from 2025 to 2050.

All told, RISE PA would cut pollution by more than 5.2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide-equivalent from 2025 to 2030 and nearly 9.2 million metric tons from 2025 to 2050.

Heavy industry’s varied decarbonization pathways also offer an exciting opportunity to pursue community benefits. RISE PA will place a high premium on projects that positively impact the surrounding community through its Community Benefits Bonus. Strategen’s report details those potential benefits for each industry. For example, decarbonizing fossil fuel extraction would have meaningful health benefits for nearby residents, as those facilities are heavily concentrated in frontline communities that suffer from increased rates of asthma, heart disease, and other illnesses as a result. RISE PA offers an opportunity to rectify these injustices.

 

Industrial Decarbonization Means Jobs

In addition to reducing pollution, RISE PA will bring significant economic benefits to the Commonwealth. In a recent analysis, BW Research found that RISE PA would create 6,000 new direct and indirect jobs (in job-years). The retrofits and new construction funded by RISE PA would require painters, electricians, pipefitters, carpenters, and more.

Fulfilling this new workforce demand will be a key challenge for the Commonwealth, but RISE PA is well-positioned to meet that challenge. Many of those critical occupations are heavily unionized, which will help employers connect with skilled workers. The program’s Fair Labor Bonus will also help meet project labor demands and cultivate a new generation of workers in construction and retrofit fields. These key programmatic details ensure that RISE PA will effectively create jobs while cutting climate-warming pollution.

 

What’s Next for Pennsylvania

In accordance with the April 1 deadline, Pennsylvania has submitted its application for a $475 million CPRG Implementation Grant to fund RISE PA. Our organizations were pleased to provide independent technical assistance and stakeholder engagement support to help inform the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s Implementation Grant application.

EPA will be making award decisions this summer based, in part, on the below key criteria:

1. Funding need
2. Emissions reduction potential between from 2025-2030 and 2030-2050
3. Community benefits, centered on low-income and disadvantaged communities
4. Job quality
5. Stakeholder consultation and readiness to implement proposals

Based on these criteria, Pennsylvania’s application should be extremely competitive and deserves full consideration from EPA.

 

The post Pennsylvania’s Opportunity to Cut Industrial Pollution and Create Jobs appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

The truth, well told, can speed progress toward change.

The Ohio River Valley Institute (ORVI), an independent nonprofit providing research and solutions for a more sustainable, equitable, democratic, and prosperous Appalachia, is hiring for the newly created position of Senior Communications Strategist.

This is not a traditional communications role.

Words, images, and metaphors help us stake out areas of common ground, connect policy to people’s lives, and can even shape the underlying cultural mythologies that define a region’s choices. This belief is at the heart of this new position. Along with our team of regionally-focused experts producing substantive research on the most pressing issues facing our communities, the Senior Communications Strategist will take an empirical, research-driven approach to communications that will boost the outreach and communication efforts of the Ohio River Valley’s entire progressive community.

Seeking unconventional strategists:

Alongside sharing our mission to build a more prosperous, sustainable, and equitable Appalachia, we seek an unconventional communications strategist, a persuasive relationship builder, and a curious, self-directed, and entrepreneurial professional. If you believe this is a role that you’ll be excited to work in each day, read on and please apply!

SALARY: $85,000 – $100,000 DOE; includes generous benefits package

LOCATION: Remote, ideally from within the Ohio River Valley region (Western Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Eastern Kentucky and Eastern Ohio)

This position is open until filled, with applications submitted by April 23 given full consideration. Applications will be reviewed as soon as they are received; initial screening calls are anticipated to begin in mid-April. Early applications are strongly encouraged.

Apply

 

ORVI Senior Comms Strategist Job Opportunity

 

About the Ohio River Valley Institute

Founded in 2020, the Ohio River Valley Institute supports communities in the region working to advance a more prosperous, sustainable, and equitable Appalachia. The Institute produces data-driven research and proposes policies to improve the economic performance and standards of living for the greater Ohio River Valley, with a focus on shared prosperity, clean energy, and equitable democracy.

With nine full-time staff members, our organization is fully remote and operates as a program of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies. Our work covers the Appalachian states of Pennsylvania, Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky, and after just three years in operation our team has already made a significant impact, bringing the challenges and opportunities facing our region to national audiences. Our work has been featured in the media hundreds of times, including high profile stories at NPR’s StateImpact, Forbes, ProPublica, The New Republic, and CNN.

ORVI is engaged in boundary-pushing, cutting-edge work in some of the most challenging and exciting sectors in our region, including: building shared prosperity and clean energy; uncovering the false promises of hydrogen and carbon capture, natural gas, petrochemicals, and plastics; and repairing legacy damage from the fossil fuel industry. Our research portfolio includes long-form reports and informative blog posts, and our communications team ensures that this work reaches the audiences who need it most through traditional and social media channels.

Our organizational culture is one of collaboration and excellence, with deep respect for one another and an openness to new perspectives.

Organizational Commitment to Equity

As an independent research center, the Ohio River Valley Institute (ORVI) is committed to ensuring that our work accurately incorporates learnings from, and contemplates the potential impact on, people with a broad range of backgrounds and experiences in the region. We recognize that where equity is absent, there are no strong communities, thriving economies, or healthy environments.

The Ohio River Valley Institute has contributed to equity in our communities in two key ways: shining a light on the false economic promises made by the fossil fuel industry and examining the cost to working families in the region if we do nothing to shift our policy landscape and economic development strategy to better support community wellbeing.

About the Senior Communications Strategist Role

This is not a traditional communications position

“The truth, well told” can speed progress toward change. Words, images, and metaphors help us stake out areas of common ground, connect policy to people’s lives, and can even shape the underlying cultural mythologies that define a region’s choices. This belief is at the heart of this new position.

Along with our team of regionally-focused experts producing substantive research on the most pressing issues facing our communities, the Senior Communications Strategist will take an empirical, research-driven approach to communications that will boost the outreach and communication efforts of the Ohio River Valley’s entire progressive community.

Reporting to the Executive Director, the Senior Communications Strategist will focus on the following bodies of work:

Research-driven communications strategy development

Identify needs and opportunities and develop empirically-driven strategies and tactics that reframe the public debate around jobs, the economy, and the environment, with a focus on quality of work and quality of life for working class Appalachians. This includes creating multi-faceted impact communications strategies to educate and engage residents, allies, decision-makers, and other key audiences and amplify the evidence-based research being produced by ORVI researchers.

Opinion research and message development

Develop original opinion research (such as public opinion polling and focus group message testing) and identify the best available communications research found in academic studies, distilling it into easily understandable messages to share with ORVI staff and allies. Publish results in accessible forms, such as toolkits, talking points, or messaging guidance documents that showcase tested ways to communicate about complex topics. Analyze and write about public opinion research, voter attitudes, and issue campaigns that help audiences make sense of policy developments, especially those related to ORVI’s core program areas. Support ORVI’s inter-organizational communications network, supplying allied regional organizations with public opinion research and data, unified narrative guidance, educational opportunities and skills development, and additional comms capacity.

Content creation 

Coordinate with ORVI’s research and communications teams to identify needs and proactively conceptualize, script, direct, and produce content that provides our allies with a reserve of empirical knowledge about public opinion and what shifts it. Assertively engage the media to correct and improve coverage that uses unhelpful framing, inaccurate statements about public opinion or outdated narratives about the region. Lead responses to breaking news events with both proactive and reactive tactics to advance ORVI’s narrative.

Ideal Candidate Qualifications

Alongside sharing our mission to building a more prosperous, sustainable, and equitable Appalachia, we seek candidates with the following qualifications, expertise, and approach:

An Unconventional Communications Strategist: A seasoned communications strategist who brings experience approaching communications and message development as a field for rigorous study and improvement, rather than relying on intuition or “best practice”.  We seek someone who has taken unconventional approaches to shifting long-term sector-wide narrative goals for a region or community.  Prior experience and content knowledge in climate, clean energy, sustainable economic development, labor, public policy, and/or the fossil fuel industries is desirable, as is experience in analytics, measurement, and evidence-based evaluation of communications campaigns.

A Persuasive Relationship Builder: An outstanding written and oral communicator that demonstrates an ability to translate complex data and research into persuasive narratives across different types of media and audiences, including those that do not already share ORVI’s beliefs. Experience bridging divides and collaborating with a wide range of diverse constituencies, including experience working across lines of race, class, gender, and geography.

A Curious, Self-Directed, and Entrepreneurial Professional: A teammate who desires continuous learning, who asks questions and self-corrects, and is able to prioritize projects effectively.  We seek someone who demonstrates resourcefulness, meets deadlines, and responds flexibly to changing work priorities.

Current or past lived and/or work experience in the Ohio River Valley region, especially with the regional media landscape, is a plus.

Compensation and Benefits

This is a full-time salaried remote position, requiring a willingness to work some evenings and weekends and does include occasional travel throughout the Ohio River Valley region as well as the country. The annual salary range is between $85,000 – $100,000 depending on qualifications and experience.

Through our program host, the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, the Institute offers generous benefits including health, vision, and dental care coverage as well as paid holidays and vacation time and a match toward your 401K retirement plan.

Equity-Based Hiring

The Ohio River Valley Institute, a program of the Community Foundation for the Alleghenies, is an equal employment opportunity employer. People of color, LGBTQIA people, and women are strongly encouraged to apply. We believe that a diverse workforce and inclusive workplace culture enhance our ability to fulfill our mission. Employment and promotional opportunities are based upon individual capabilities and qualifications without regard to race, color, religion, gender identity or expression, pregnancy, sexual orientation, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic as established under law.

How to Apply

Online applications only, please no email or paper submissions. You will be asked to upload a cover letter and resume.

In your cover letter, please describe as specifically as you can:

• Your interest in and connection to the goals, mission, and vision of ORVI
• How your experience aligns with the job responsibilities and ideal qualifications described in this announcement.

Applications received by April 23, 2024 will be given full consideration; early applications are strongly encouraged! All applications will be acknowledged via an email receipt. Consideration will be given to applications as soon as they are received; initial screening calls are anticipated to begin as early as mid-April.

Questions regarding this opportunity are welcomed and can be directed to:

Julie Edsforth, Lead Search Consultant, Clover Search Works

 

The post Job Opportunity: Senior Communications Strategist appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

After the 2022 flood in southeast Kentucky, the Ohio River Valley Institute worked with the Appalachian Citizens’ Law Center to do an initial estimate of the cost to rebuild housing damaged by the flood and found that the cost far exceeded the funds that had been secured for rebuilding at the time.

Since we published that analysis last February, more funding has been secured. Rebuilding has also progressed but some signs suggest that rebuilding costs will be more than we initially assumed. Based on an updated analysis, we find that a considerable gap—on the order of hundreds of millions of dollars—remains between the estimated $1.4 billion it will cost to rebuild homes in safer locations and the approximately $800 million in current or anticipated funds.

 

How much will it cost to rebuild?

The cost of rebuilding depends on the approach to rebuilding, and especially whether you repair damaged homes or replace them with new homes in different locations that have a lower risk of future flooding. Immediately after the flood, we estimated that it would cost about $450 million to take the most bare-bones approach to rebuilding housing stock damaged by the flood (shown as approach A in figures below). This approach would’ve repaired most (but not all) damaged homes, and it would not build new homes for anyone except for the most badly damaged homes—and those homes would be rebuilt in the same flood-prone locations.

Thankfully, rebuilding has not gone the route of this bare-bones, rebuild-as-we-were approach. State and federal officials recognized the danger that would come with rebuilding damaged homes in locations that are likely to flood again and have taken a more ambitious approach. The clearest example is the seven “high ground” housing developments that the Beshear Administration is spearheading, which will build 665 new homes on former mine sites high above the area’s creeks and rivers.

 

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Broadly, the approach to rebuilding housing damaged by the flood has been one that seeks to build new homes in safer locations nearby and gives families the option to relocate. Our updated analysis shows that if most of the homes that suffered major damage—based on inspections performed by FEMA after the flood—were replaced by new homes in safer locations, it would cost about $1.4 billion to rebuild all of the flood-damaged housing (shown as approach B in figures below).

 

 

Note: The number of homes and extent of damage is based on home inspections conducted by FEMA. See previous report or endnotes for more detail. Under scenario B, major damage homes will be either replaced in new locations (assumed average cost of $272,000) or repaired in placed (assumed average cost of $70,000).

 

As the “high ground” developments have been initiated, we’ve learned that the cost of acquiring sites for new homes will be higher than initially assumed because many of the housing developments will need infrastructure to be laid before home construction can begin. This means we’ll need to finance not just home construction but a significant amount of infrastructure for new housing, so the total cost will be higher.

In the counties hardest hit by the flood, housing development has been nearly non-existent for decades. There aren’t as many big, flat parcels suitable for easy development and, because the region is rural, the places where you can build often don’t have utility service. These are problems that the proper resources could overcome, but economic struggles have long persisted in the area.

The “high ground” communities will require water, sewer, power, and broadband to be laid. Many sites are at relatively higher elevations, so road and bridge development will be needed to access them. This will all be costly, but any new multi-home developments will be impossible without it.

The state is budgeting $146 million to build 462 homes—or $316,000 per home, on average—at the three largest “high ground” communities, according to documents filed with the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). In addition, many homes have and will be built in single lots that already have infrastructure. In these cases, non-profit housing developers are finding that the cost is lower because infrastructure doesn’t have to be laid. In our analysis we’ve assumed two-thirds of new homes will be in “high ground”-type developments and one-third will be on more traditional single lots. [Other assumptions can be found in the figures and endnotes; otherwise, the methodology mirrors that used in our prior analysis here using updated January 2024 data from FEMA.]

Many families that lost their homes to the flood have acquired assistance for housing repairs from FEMA or other sources and have pursued housing options that are inadequate, unsafe, or prone to future flood damage—but were the only option they could afford. For example, some families who lost homes have bought a travel trailer or even a storage shed and placed it back on their family land by the creek. Others have used their little FEMA aid to repair their homes, but often without elevating them even though they are located in areas that will likely flood again.

While some officials might count these families as having secured permanent housing, these should be considered temporary solutions and additional efforts should be made to secure safer, more adequate housing options for these families. We have not incorporated these cases into the cost estimate, which means the eventual total cost could be higher.

 

How much money has been secured to rebuild housing damaged by the flood?

So far, about $800 million in current or anticipated funds have been identified: $713 million in state, federal, and philanthropic funds have been dedicated to housing recovery from the flood, plus an estimated $85 million that homebuyers are anticipated to contribute to the purchase of homes built with these funds that will then be re-invested in more home rebuilding.

Most of the funds are provided to either homeowners whose homes were damaged in the flood or home developers who are building and repairing homes. About $320 million, or 40% of the approximately $800 million total, is in the form of grants or donations to housing developers to build new homes and do home repairs and provide those products at subsidized rates to homeowners.

The funds provided to homeowners are in the form of grants, loans, insurance payments, and buyouts: $102 million (13%) is in the form of grants to homeowners, $53 million (7%) is in the form of loans that will have to be repaid to the Small Business Administration, $24.6 million (3%) is in the form of insurance payments made to the few homeowners that had flood insurance, and a massive $214 million (27%) of these funds are in the form of property acquisitions wherein the state has purchased (or anticipates purchasing) flood-damaged property from homeowners impacted by the flood at pre-flood fair market value.

The three biggest government programs that are providing funds are: a federal Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) grant from HUD (of which $276 million goes toward housing), a buyout program run by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) ($135 million in buyouts for about 475 homeowners), and housing repair aid from FEMA ($88 million).

Across all these sources, the federal government is providing 91% of the funds to rebuild housing damaged by the flood, via mandatory programs and discretionary appropriations across five agencies. Philanthropy is providing 6%–mostly from local and state groups the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky and the Team East Kentucky Flood Relief Fund– while the state of Kentucky is providing only 3%.

 

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Conclusion

The housing recovery so far has exceeded expectations in many ways. It has been miles from perfect—hampered by federal and state disaster policy that is too slow and too reliant on NGOs that have nowhere near the resources needed to rebuild and, in some cases, don’t prioritize rebuilding safer homes outside of flood-prone areas. But one of the biggest concerns after the waters receded was that there would be no real effort to relocate homes. That has not been the case: most of the non-profit housing developers as well as the Beshear Administration have gotten both serious and creative about finding a way to rebuild in safer locations.

About $800 million has been dedicated to or is anticipated for housing after the flood. That will probably build about 1,150 homes in new locations and provide over 800 buyouts, which homeowners could use to help build a new home nearby. But at the current level of funding, the rest of the damaged homes will probably be repaired in place. And that’s a big problem.

Why? According to home inspections by FEMA, 4,738 homes had at least one foot of water on the first floor (or at least one inch of water on the first floor of manufactured homes, which suffer more damage from less water). So at least 4,700 homes didn’t just have waves lapping at the front porch but took on serious water inside the home and could be at great risk as extreme precipitation and flood risk increase in the region.

The $800 million in identified funds will probably leave about 3,000 of these homes that took on serious water in harm’s way of the next flood. On the other hand, securing more funding above the current level—even if not the entire $600 million gap needed to fill the $1.4 billion in total estimated need—will help more and more families access adequate housing in locations that won’t put them at high risk of taking on water again in the coming years.

 

 

 

Endnotes

• We assume homes in the Major Damage category are either replaced with new homes at an average cost per home of $272,000 (inclusive of new infrastructure and land costs) or repaired in place at an average cost per home of $70,000.  We assume half of stationary homes in the Major Damage category that experienced 2 to 13 inches of water on the first floor in the flood are repaired in place. All other homes that suffered Major Damage are replaced in new locations: we’ve assumed two-thirds of new homes will be in “high ground”-type developments and one-third will be on more traditional single lots – yielding an average cost per new home of $272,000. It’s possible that the cost per home for “high-ground”-type homes could decrease if a significant share of additional homes are built adjacent to this first phase of developments and thus don’t need extensive infrastructure development– but no such plans have been set and even in that case some additional “high ground” sites would still need to be developed. Further, the first round of “high ground” sites were presumably the most ideal; additional “high ground” sites may be further from town or existing infrastructure, which could increase costs. Nonetheless, if the average cost to replace majorly damaged homes was reduced – to $225,000, for example –the total cost to rebuild housing from the flood would still be $1.203 billion.
• Kentucky Housing Corporation (KHC) also had a budget of $108 million statewide in its "Housing Credit - Equity from Private Sector" program for 2023 and 2024. Flood-impacted homes were eligible, but it is unclear how much, if any, of this credit went to these programs. Similarly, HOME funds statewide for single and multifamily homeownership production, managed by the Kentucky Housing Corporation, totaled $25.9 million for 2023 and 2024. Housing projects in flood-impacted areas were eligible, though it is unclear how much, if any, of these funds went to flood recovery housing. For this reason, these programs have been excluded from our calculation. KHC also offered a Low Income Housing Tax Credit carveout for the area, but there weren’t any applicants in 2023. It is unclear to what extent CDBG-MIT funds have been secured for housing-related efforts after the flood.
• “Anticipated homebuyer contributions to be reinvested” assume that homebuyers purchasing homes financed by funds provided to housing developers will contribute, on average, $60,000 per home purchase, which will then be reinvested in financing more new homes. Analysis of a sample of 19 homes built by Housing Development Alliance since the flood found that homebuyers contributed, on average, $5,000 in personal savings and $55,000 in amortized loans. The average annual income of homebuyers in the sample was $32,000, which is similar to the average income of homebuyers we might expect to purchase new homes financed by these programs. Data from the Census Bureau shows that the median household income in the four hardest hit counties varied (by county) from $38,209 to $45,330 in 2022, but data from applicants for FEMA aid in 2022 after the flood suggest that the median household income of those whose homes were flood-damaged was lower than the area median and could be below $30,000 annually. Assistance that homebuyers might have received from other government programs, such as FEMA aid or buyouts, have been excluded from our calculation, given that the specific terms of the financing for new homes under these programs are not yet known.

The post Housing Rebuild After Kentucky Flood Still Lacks Funds appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

Richmond, VA — The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality has cited the Mountain Valley Pipeline for violating environmental laws, demanding a fine of $34,000.

Criticism and pressure continue to mount regarding the DEQ’s delay and inaction to hold MVP accountable to environmental law. In February, about 30 groups sent a letter to DEQ asking them to issue a stop work order to MVP. DEQ has not responded to the letter. In March, community members gathered near the regional DEQ office in Salem, Virginia to protest their inadequate response to destruction caused by the MVP.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR) responded:

“Every day, diligent construction monitors traverse our streams and steep slopes to ensure our communities are safe from MVP’s reckless construction; they are to thank for this recognition of MVP’s violations. However, DEQ-issued fines amount to pennies for a corporation that’s throwing billions of dollars into an impossible project, with money to spare for SLAPP suits against the community.”

Protestors plan to return to DEQ offices in Richmond and Salem soon.

###

Upcoming BIL/IRA Deadlines/Webinars

March 2024 – EPA will notify applicants for the $7 billion Solar for All Fund Competition, the $6 billion Clean Communities Investment Accelerator and the $14 billion National Clean Investment Fund competition of awards and start contractual negotiations.

March 29, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – for DOE’s $70 million WAP Sustainable Energy Resources for Consumers (SERC) program.

March 31, 2024 – Application Deadline – USDA Rural Energy For America Program (REAP) – (with additional funding rounds going forward).

April 1, 2024 – Applications Due – State & Local (MSAs) for the EPA’s $5 billion – Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program.

April 1, 2024 @ 1:00PM – WEBINAR – Interagency Working Group on Coal & Power Plant Communities and Economic Revitalization (Energy Communities IWG) will hold a Webinar highlighting various DOE funding opportunities including: 1) funding & tax credits related to capacity building, manufacturing, clean energy, and economic development in energy communities; 2) information on the DOE application process; and 3) relevant resources to support potential applicants. Register here. In case you missed it: the IWG’s Getting Started: Meeting Communities Where They Are Webinar is Here.

April 2, 2024 @ 11:00AM – PRESS CONFERENCE – PA DEP will join the Ohio River Valley Institute, Moms Clean Air Force, local elected officials, community, climate, and labor leaders, and Evergreen Action, in Allegheny Co. to highlight the potential impact of RISE PA, PA DEP’s ambitious second phase application to secure up to $475 million for  investments under the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG) program. The location will be at the IUPAT DC 57’s Union Hall at 101 Ewing Road in Carnegie, PA.

April 3, 2024 @ 2:00 – 3:00PM – Webinar – Atlas Public Policy – The Monthly: 101 on Direct Pay & Financing Clean Energy Projects – the Sabin Center/Atlas will present on direct pay (aka elective pay) in the Inflation Reduction Act.

April 5, 2024 – Deadline – Concept Paper Due – for DOE’s $90 million Resilient and Efficient Codes Implementation (RECI) program.

April 10, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – DOE’s Energy Future Grants (EFG) – $27 million in financial & technical assistance to support local/state innovation partnerships.

April 12, 2024 – DOE Webinar – DOE will host a virtual fireside chat and webinar featuring senior DOE leaders to explore the “Pathways to Commercial Liftoff: Next-Generation Geothermal Power” report. Please register here.

April 12, 2024 – Application Deadline – Finance Action Organizers Network’s – Spring 2024 IRA Pathways Cohort: Clean Energy Finance Campaigns – free five-week program to provide the opportunity to walk away with a draft “campaign in a box” and follow-up navigation support as needed. Application information is HERE.
April 16, 2024 – Webinar – Clean Energy Manufacturing Summit/Reimagine Appalachia In Person Event – Energy Innovation Center in Pittsburgh. The summit will be a dynamic platform for sharing insights, best practices, and innovative solutions. Register here.

April 17, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – DOE’s $10.5 billion – GRIP (Grid Resilience & Innovation Partnerships) – Submission Deadline for Full Grid Innovation Program grants.

April 17, 2024 – Deadline – Concept Papers – DOE’s Solar and Wind Interconnection for Future Transmission program – new $10 million in grants available.

April 25, 2024 – Applications Due – US DOT Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA) Low or No Emission and Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Programs FY2024 Notice of Funding Opportunity – opportunity to apply for $1.1 Billion in competitive grants under the Low or No Emission Grant Program (Low-No Program) and $390 Million under the Grants for Buses and Bus Facilities Competitive Program (Buses and Bus Facilities Program). The FTA Low-No Program will help transit agencies replace aging buses, reduce air pollution, provide good-paying jobs, and improve reliability. This funding opportunity gives priority consideration to projects advancing environmental justice.

April 25, 2024 @ 3:00-4:00PM – WEBINAR – DOE’s National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) will hold its second annual update webinar to share progress on the partnership’s impacts in 2023. NCSP members and community solar stakeholders can join for updates on efforts to reach the NCSP target to enable community solar to power 5 million homes by 2025, generating $1 billion in electricity bill savings for subscribers. Register Here.

May 2, 2024 – Application Deadline – Concept Note for GitLab Foundation’s Green Jobs for Economic Opportunity Fund – This $3 million program is designed to support early-stage and innovative ideas that will help drive new climate careers while filling a gap in the funding ecosystem. Grants are flexible, from $250k for individual orgs and $500k for partnerships. Full applications are due June 14, 2024 – More INFO HERE.

April 30, 2024 – End of Rolling Award Period – DOE’s $200 million Home EE Contractor Training (TREC) program. TREC makes $200 million available to state energy offices so they can train, test, and certify residential energy efficiency and electrification contractors.

April 30, 2024 – Deadline – Applications Due – DOE’s $530 million Building Codes Competitive Funding grants.

May 31, 2024 @ COB – Application Deadline – DOE’s Communities Sparking Investments in Transformative Energy (C-SITE) program – awarding $18 million to implement local government high-impact clean energy projects in disadvantaged communities, energy communities & small cities and towns. The program focuses on delivering funding to support projects and programs at the local level that reduce energy use, create local jobs, and focus on benefits to disadvantaged communities. More DOE C-SITE INFO HERE.

 

New Federal BIL/IRA Reports and Announcements

DOE Releases New Pathways to Commercial Liftoff for Geothermal Power

As part of the “Pathways to Commercial Liftoff“ series, DOE has released a Next-Generation Geothermal Power Liftoff Report focused on how advanced geothermal technology could increase US geothermal energy production twenty-fold or more by 2050. On April 12, 2024, DOE will host a Webinar to explore the “Pathways to Next-Generation Geothermal Power” Report. Please register here. Findings include:

• Increased job opportunities:The existing oil and gas workforce of 300,000 can potentially transition and use their existing skills to advance geothermal power.

• Sustainable Production: Next-generation geothermal has unique advantages due to highly transferrable and existing technology, supply chains, and workforces.
• Access to sustainable resources: Next-generation geothermal technology can engineer geothermal resources & making heat resources accessible nationwide.
• Lower Costs: Competitive pricing models can position next-generation geothermal power to be as cost effective as other energy sources.

 

DOE – Industrial Demonstrations Program Selections for Award Negotiations -DOE Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations (OCED) – DOE selected 33 projects for award negotiations with a total anticipated federal cost share of up to $6 billion – March 22, 2024.

• Steel Slab Electrified Induction Reheat Furnace Upgrade | Cleveland-Cliffs Steel Corporation (Up to $75 million – Lyndora, Pennsylvania)

Clean Energy Demonstration Program on Current & Former Mine Land Selections for Award Negotiations DOE OCED – $90 million for Clearfield Co. demonstration project.

 

DOE released Home Energy Rebates: Education & Outreach Plan Required Elements to help state energy offices (SEOs) apply for and implement the Home Energy Rebate Program. DOE has posted a fact sheet to help consumers understand the types of incentives available to them under the Home Energy Rebate Program.

 

DOE & the Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS) on March 19, 2024 launched the pilot of the Clean Energy Connector, a tool that connects families to solar energy through HHS’s Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP). After announcing the development of the software in 2022, this pilot will enable as many as 40,000 LIHEAP-eligible households in the two pilot states, plus Washington, D.C., to have access to available community solar projects. Successfully enrolled participants could see meaningful electricity bill savings, in alignment with the National Community Solar Partnership goal of 20% household savings, equal to $370 per household annually.

 

DOE announced $425 million for the Advanced Manufacturing and Recycling Grant Program on March 8, 2024 to reduce industrial emissions and advance clean energy manufacturing essential to the U.S. energy supply chain. These grants of will help strengthen America’s energy security, create good paying jobs, cut climate pollution, and help ensure that the communities that powered our nation for generations reap the economic benefits of the clean economy. These grants will support small and medium-sized manufacturers in current and former coal communities that are focused on producing and recycling clean energy products, as well as investing in decarbonization at their facilities. DOE invested $275 million in 2023 on projects across seven states.  In this round of funding, DOE will be prioritizing: (1) Clean Energy Manufacturing & Recycling and (2) Industrial Decarbonization. DOE has a rolling application deadline for grants.

 

DOE Announces Funding and Technical Assistance to Support Community-Led Clean Energy Transitions – On March 19, 2024, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) announced a Request for Proposals (RFP) for Clean Energy to Communities (C2C) program funding and in-depth technical assistance. This opportunity is offered to connect local governments, electric utilities, & community-based groups with innovative modeling and testing tools. Teams comprising a local government, electric utility, and community-based organizations can prepare to apply for a multi-year partnership with experts from to DOE’s national laboratory experts. Awards up to $3.5 million. Due date: 6/14/24.

 

Secretary of Energy Appoints New Members to Federal Advisory Committee to Reduce Emissions Across the Industrial Sector – February 27, 2024 – DOE appointed 18 science, business, academic, and industry leaders to the Industrial Technology Innovation Advisory Committee (ITIAC) to help decarbonize America’s industrial sector. The ITIAC will be charged with developing a comprehensive strategy to accelerate the development of technologies and processes that will reduce emissions across the U.S. industrial sector.

Members are listed here: Industrial Technology Innovation Advisory Committee.

 

DOE Solar Power Highlight – Federal officials will spend $475 million to fund five clean energy projects on current or former mining lands across the country, including $90 million for Pennsylvania’s Clearfield County, where a former coal mining area is slated to become a 402 MW solar field. March 21, 2024 – DOE Press Release & WHYY

EPA announces over $1 billion to start new cleanup projects and continue work at 100 Superfund sites across the country – February 27, 2024 – Thanks to this third and final wave of investment from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, EPA is funding all the construction work that is ready to begin at Superfund sites nationwide.

 

Department of Housing and Urban Development – FY2023 Green and Resilient Retrofit Program (GRRP): Elements – $140 million funding announcement. GRRP is the first HUD program to simultaneously invest in energy efficiency, greenhouse gas emissions reductions, energy generation, green and healthy housing, and climate resilience strategies specifically in HUD-assisted multifamily housing.

 

DOE Invests $44 Million to Advance a Clean, Reliable Electric Grid – March 19, 2024

DOE announced the selection of eleven projects to receive $34 million for tools to advance a clean, reliable electricity grid powered by wind and solar energy. DOE also announced a new $10 million Solar and Wind Interconnection for Future Transmission (SWIFTR) funding opportunity to streamline interconnections of clean energy to the grid. These initiatives will enable grid planners, operators, & utility companies to connect and manage clean energy and battery storage resources on the grid. This funding will also help cut wait times for projects to connect to the grid & help accelerate deployment of clean energy resources (See PJM’s Report Card immediately below). In 2023, i2X released a draft roadmap that outlines goals, solutions, and metrics for the interconnection process and complements the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s rule to reform interconnection procedures. Concept Papers due: 4/17/2024 & Full Application Due: 6/28/2024.

 

New Non-Profit Organization Reports on BIL/IRA

Advanced Energy United’s Generator Interconnection Report Card for electric grid managers – Feb. 26, 2024. A new, first-of-its-kind scorecard from Advanced Energy evaluates & grades the seven U.S. regional transmission organizations on their generator interconnection processes. The scorecard, authored by Grid Strategies & The Brattle Group, shows that interconnection faces serious deficiencies in several regions. The PJM grid received an overall D- Grade with two F Grades for specific areas of evaluation.

See New scorecard rates nation’s grid managers on connecting renewables, by Robert Zullo, March 15, 2024, Maryland Matters.

 

Advanced Energy United’s Generator Interconnection Scorecard Grades

Visit – advancedenergyunited.org/scorecard

 

Clean Energy States Alliance – Empowering Tomorrow: A Preview of States’ Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund Solar for All Programs. This report summarizes trends & calculates the potential impact of the EPA’s $7 billion Solar for All competition. The report provides a review of range of state proposals that have been submitted in response to this competition. It can help states prepare for a massive & historic influx of LMI solar funding.

Calculating potential impact of EPA’s $7 billion Solar for All program – by Anne Fischer, PV Magazine – February 29, 2024

 

Clean Energy States Alliance – Directory of Solar Energy Technical Assistance Available to Community-Based Organizations – Community-based organizations (CBOs) pursuing solar energy projects may need additional resources and information to help them achieve their desired clean energy and community-building outcomes. Fortunately, technical assistance opportunities are now available through federal agencies, states, and nonprofits. CESA’s Directory has compiled currently available technical assistance opportunities for CBOs pursuing solar energy – by identifying who is providing the technical assistance, the program location, who is eligible, and more.

 

Clean Economy Tracker (CET) from Atlas Public Policy, tracks private-led investments and jobs in clean energy and technology manufacturing as well as non-manufacturing, commercial scale deployment projects in the United States. The CET is a one-stop shop for information on clean technology industries – 328,000 announced jobs, $231 billion in announced private sector investments by state & Congressional District.

 

New BIL/IRA Funding Guides on Urban Farms & Local Econ. Development   

BIL/IRA Notes from the USDA Urban Service Center in Philadelphia

USDA Grant List – compiled by Urban farmers in Reading, PA

Third Party Grant (and other resources) Assistance for Farmers:

• Step Well Strategies: https://www.stepwellstrategies.com/
• Good Agriculture: https://goodagriculture.com/
• DAISA Enterprises: https://www.daisaenterprises.com/

Climate Smart Funding through Pasa Sustainable Agriculture.

Youth Loans through Farm Service Agency.

USDA Local and Regional Food Systems Resource Guide (pdf)

National Resources Conservation Service – USDA Programs:

·      Environmental Quality Incentives Program

·      Conservation Stewardship Program

·      Agricultural Management Assistance

Deadlines in April/May 2024

• Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production Grants (due: April 9, 2024) – USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS)
• Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (due: May 2, 2024) – USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA AMS)
• Farmers Market Promotion Program (due: May 14, 2024) – USDA AMS
• Local Food Promotion Program (due: May 14, 2024) – USDA AMS
• Regional Food System Partnerships Program (due: May 14, 2024) – USDA AMS

Reimagine Appalachia’s Local Economic Development Resources

 

• Spreadsheet by Annie Contractor – One Stop Shop for 2024 Rural-Relevant Economic Opportunity Planning Grants

• Interagency Working Group highlights opportunities for energy communities 

• The Just Transition Fund supports grant writing and technical assistance.
• The Appalachian Regional Commission has a variety of opportunities and requires a lower match than many federal grants. ARC is currently seeking proposals for the READY Nonprofits training program. (Map of ARC districts)
• Your ARC Local Development District can help with stats and other info on your community.
• The Anthropocene Alliance offers support for environmental groups.
• Penn State has the PennTAP program that offers technical assistance.
• Local Infrastructure.org  offers a grant application bootcamp.
• A new technical assistance hub for Southwest PA.

·       EPA’s Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers Program – Map to find out which EPA District you’re in.

• For anyone interested in community scale intersectional planning, check out Just Communities (formerly EcoDistricts)

• Map from Blue Green Alliance to learn if you’re in an energy community or qualify for other special consideration.

 

Recent BIL/IRA Funding Announcements in PA

Appalachian Regional Commission (ARC) announced the creation of an Appalachian Sustainable Finance Hub with the Steel Valley Authority, partnering with the Ohio River Valley Institute (ORVI), Reimagine Appalachia, and Keystone Research Center. The Steel Valley Authority Finance Hub was awarded $500,000 through a Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies (ARISE) grant. BIL funded ARISE projects also included:

• A $293,551 ARISE grant to Carnegie Mellon University
• A $387,500 ARISE grant to PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship

Sustainable Pittsburgh Selected As 1 Of 10 Nationally To Advance To Phase 2 Of Quality Green Jobs Training Regional Challenge – PA ENV News – February 22, 2024

Jobs for the Future and the Ares Charitable Foundation have chosen Sustainable Pittsburgh as one of ten organizations across the United States to advance to Phase 2 of the Quality Green Jobs Regional Challenge.

 

Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) Update

EPA: PA One Of 45 States, MSAs To Submit Priority Climate Action Plans As Part Of $5 Billion Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program – March 12, 2024 – PA EN News

The race heats up for massive IRA state and local climate funding program – by Kari Lydersen – March 1, 2024 – Energy Network News – The CPRG program will award $4.6 billion to states & metro areas this year to implement aspects of local climate action plans.

EPA climate program: Sneak peek at 2028 Democratic primary – by Adam Aton, 3/22/24 – A little-known IRA provision (CPRG) has sparked competition among the party’s rising stars.

Priority Climate Action Plans for States, MSAs, Tribes, & Territories – EPA Link to All Priority Climate Action Plans (PCAPs), filed on or before March 1, 2024. Four PA Plans:

• Pennsylvania’s Priority Climate Action Plan
• Lehigh Valley – Trans. Decarbonization & Priority Climate Action Plan (LVPC)
• -Camden-Wilmington PA-NJ-DE-MD Priority Climate Action Plan (DVRPC)
• SW PA Climate Pollution Reduction Plan/Priority Climate Action Plan (SPC)

 

Climate Pollution Reduction Grants Background

EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program – provides $5 billion from the IRA in grants to states & local govts. to develop & implement GHG emissions reductions.

What Happened: March 1, 2024 – Deadline for states & MSAs to submit PCAPs.

What Happens Next: April 1, 2024 – Deadline for CPRG Implementation Grant Program 

$4.6 billion in new competitive grants to fund projects that cut climate pollution, advance environmental justice, pursue innovative policies, and deploy clean energy technologies.

What Happens After That – EPA CPRG awards to be announced in July 2024.

EPA Criteria – EPA will prioritize measures that achieve the greatest amount of GHG emissions reductions & can be replicated in other states & MSAs.

CPRG Grant Size – PA DEP will apply for the maximum grant of $500 million (Tier A). SPC, DVRPC & LVPC are TBD with anticipated ranges of $10 million to $100 million (Tiers C & D).

PA DEP’s Re-Grant Approach – No final decisions have been announced yet, but on December 30, 2023 PA DEP published a draft Reducing Industrial Sector Emission in Pennsylvania Grant Program that would re-grant $440 million to PA projects that achieve 20% emission reductions, deliver community benefits and provide prevailing wages.

PA PCAP Goals (Table 5, on Page 25) Top PA Carbon Reduction Measures & Sectors 

1. Industrial Electrification, Efficiency, and Process Emissions – Industrial
2. Low Carbon Fuels – Industrial
3. On-Site Renewable Energy – Industrial/Buildings
4. Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage – Industrial
5. Fugitive Emissions Reduction- Industrial/Agricultural/Waste
6. Net-Zero Electricity Grid – Power
7. Building Electrification and Efficiency – Buildings
8. Electric and Alternative Fuel Vehicles – Transportation
9. Public and Active Transportation – Transportation

CPRG is a PA Turbocharge program for Transportation and Power/Industrial Strategic Plans. Stay tuned for an analysis of the 4 PA PCAPs & 2024 Strategic Planning Goals.

 

Update on Green Banks 

Pennsylvania Energy Development Authority (PEDA) News

Board Meeting/Briefing Materials (PA Board of Directors Meeting Slides) Feb. 2024

Governor’s Office of Critical Investments Report on BIL/IRA Implementation

• PA Gov’s Office Invitation to Present Clean Energy Projects (PDF pages 8-19)

Current Focus is schools & municipal assets – but other projects are eligible.

Description of Inaugural Energy Accelerator Programs (EAP) (PDF pages 20-23)

Note: EAP is PEDA’s term for Green Bank.

• PEDA’s EAP Product #1 & EAP Product #2 are expected to total $10 million and $15 million, respectively.
• PEDA hopes to receive EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund funding:
  • $250 million under the Solar for All program
  • Additional funding through the National Clean Investment Fund/Clean Communities Investment Accelerator
• PEDA is exploring a $100 million loan guaranteed by the Department of Energy to facilitate seed funding for a Solar for Schools Program

National Energy Improvement Fund’s (NEIF) Description of PA KEEP Home Energy Loan Program “EAP Product #1” (PDF pages 24-35)

PA DEP Description of Municipal Opportunities for Retrofits and Energy Efficiency Proposal “EAP Product #2” (PDF pages 36-45)

PA DEP Description of PA Solar for All Application and Program (PDF pages 46-47)

Background on EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund

NEW RESOURCES COMING IN 2024

Current Timeline – Important Dates:

                  March 2024 – Anticipated Notification of Selections

                  July 2024 – Anticipated Awards

EPA’s Inflation Reduction Act Greenhouse Gas Reduction Funds:

• National Clean Investment Fund – $14 billion
• The Clean Communities Investment Accelerator competition – $6 billion*

·      Solar for All competition – $7 billion*

*    All funds must be targeted towards underserved communities. 

Bottom Line: PEDA will roll out more than $375 million in seed money & Green Bank financing in 2024-2025.

 

PA News Clips on Gov. Shapiro’s Cap & Invest Plan – PACER & PRESS

Gov. Shapiro Unveils Cap-And-Invest PA Climate Emissions Reduction Initiative To Reduce Carbon Pollution From Power Plants; Update Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards To Diversify Electric Generation, Improve Reliability

·      Gov. Josh Shapiro is proposing a state-based alternative to a cap-and-trade program to fight climate change, & boost to clean energy standards. Spotlight, by Wyatt Massey, March 20, 2024. Also, Potential impacts on Penn State.

·      Energy Week – “Inaction is Not an Option“– Gov. Shapiro’s energy plan creates a stark contrast with fossil opponents, by Robert Routh, NRDC – March 22, 2024.

·      Senate Republicans Reject Gov. Shapiro’s Offer to Work On Legislation To Make The Electric Grid More Reliable, Diversify Our Energy Sources, Lower Energy Costs For Ratepayers, Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions – Dave Hess Blog Post by Dave Hess – March 13, 2024

·      AP: PA Gov. Shapiro Backs New Plan To Make Power Plants Pay For GHG emissions.

• Post-Gazette – Anya Litvak: Shapiro Calls For PA Carbon Cap-And-Trade Market, Plus Higher Clean Energy Requirements
• StateImpactPA – Rachel McDevitt: Shapiro Proposes State Climate Program To Replace RGGI, Asks For New Renewable Energy Goals
• Inside Climate News – Jon Hurdle: PA Governor Wants To Cut Power Plant Emissions With His Own Cap-And-Invest Program
• The Center Square – Anthony Hennen: Shapiro Tees Up Independent Carbon Tax Plan For Pennsylvania
• Pittsburgh Business Times: Shapiro Unveils Alternative To RGGI That Would Keep Proceeds And Cap In State
• PennLive: Shapiro Pitches Sweeping Two-Piece Energy, Climate Change Plan
• PA Capital-Star: Shapiro Pitches Carbon Cap-And-Invest Plant To Capitalize On PA’s Energy Exports
• Shapiro: PA Labor & Industry Leaders Praise Energy/Climate Plan
• Shapiro: PA Environmental Leaders Praise Energy/Climate Plan
• Utility Dive: US Electricity Prices Outpace Inflation; Consumers Not Seeing Rate Decreases & Increased LNG Gas Exports Could Send Prices Higher Again
• Reuters: US Natural Gas Producers Reduce Output In 2024 [To Raise Prices] While Demand Rises To Record High, US EIA Says
• Pennsylvania’s Electric Grid Is Dependent On One Fuel To Generate 59% Of Our Electricity; Market Moving To Renewables + Storage [PA EN]

 

Co-Sponsorship Memos for the PACER & PRESS legislative proposals

Press Release from PA Senate Democrats

Senator Comitta – PACER Bill Co-Sponsorship Memo
Rep. Abney – PACER Bill Co-Sponsorship Memo

Sen. Santarsiero – PRESS Bill Co-Sponsorship Memo

Rep. Otten – PRESS Bill Co-Sponsorship Memo

PA BIL/IRA and Related News Clips

 

Oil & Gas Well Plugging & Related Methane Gas Issues

Shapiro Marks Plugging 200th Abandoned Conventional Oil & Gas Well – March 12, 2024 – PA EN News.

DEP Set To Receive $2 Billion+ In Federal Funds Over Next Decade+ For Oil & Gas Well Plugging, Clean Energy, Climate Resiliency, Clean Water – PA DEP’s (Louie Krak’s) Feb. 21, 2024 briefing for DEP’s Environmental Justice Advisory Board on more than $2 billion in federal funding the agency expects to receive over the next decade to address legacy pollution problems like oil & gas well plugging, clean energy & climate resiliency projects.

Federal money has supercharged PA’s dangerous well plugging, but critics want more oversight  – by Kate Huangpu, Spotlight PA, Feb. 26, 2024: With millions in federal funding, PA has plugged more oil & gas wells in the last 1 & ½ years than it did in the past decade.

Pa. gains new abandoned gas wells as it sets records capping old ones – by Rachel McDevitt – StateImpact February 23, 2024 – Federal money helped Pennsylvania plug 139 abandoned oil and gas wells last year. That’s more than in the eight years before that.

Despite the state awarding more than $23 million in contracts to plug those wells in 2023, the number of abandoned wells continues to grow.

New Demands to Measure Emissions Raise Cautious Hopes in Pennsylvania Among  Environmental Sleuths Who Monitor Fracking Sites – By Jake Bolster, February 25, 2024, Inside Climate News – The new EPA rules govern wells as well as wastewater tanks, which can emit substantial amounts of methane and volatile organic compounds.

The Rising Cost of the Oil Industry’s Slow Death – By Mark Olalde, ProPublica, and Nick Bowlin, Capital & Main – Feb. 22, 2024 – Unplugged oil and gas wells accelerate climate change, threaten public health & risk hitting taxpayers’ pocketbooks. ProPublica/Capital & Main found that funds set aside to fix the problem falls far short of the cost. In the past 165 years, the industry has punched millions of holes in the earth. Now, those wells are running dry, and a generational bill is coming due. The estimated cost to plug those wells is at least $151.3 billion, according to the state data & the actual price tag will certainly be higher.

Gas export pause could scramble Biden’s chances in Pennsylvania  by Josh Siegel – 02/26/2024, Politico – Sens. Casey & Fetterman argued the pause could hurt their state.

Jason Altmire: Crippling LNG would be a political blunder Biden can’t afford in Pa. – Trib Live – March 19, 2024

LNG Exports Are a Rotten Deal for Appalachians – by Joanne Kilgour, ORVI – Mar 17, 2024

Exploring the Impact of LNG Exports on Pennsylvania Families, 03/15/2024

Recording of Pennsylvania Utility Law Project Webinar

 

PA Commentary on Gov. Shapiro’s Economic Development Plan 

Groups criticize Shapiro’s economic plan for ignoring climate change – by Rachel McDevitt, February 21, 2024 – The Allegheny Front – More than 100 advocacy groups say Gov. Josh Shapiro’s new 10-year economic development plan is not sustainable.

Pennsylvania Needs a Sustainable, Inclusive Economic Development Plan – PennFuture – February 14, 2024

Other PA BIL/IRA and Related News Clips

 

Reconsidering the reckoning over RGGI – by Harrison Cann – February 26, 2024 – City & State PA – As both sides dig in ever deeper over the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, fault lines and strategies become clearer, even as its future remains up in the air.

The lower court decision “took far longer than anyone anticipated,” and “I think it’s going to be quite some time before we see any movement.” Reference: Prospects for PA as a RGGI Member – Resources for the Future (RFF) & Kleinman Center (April 2023)

Special Report on the Future of Energy – February 26, 2024 – City & State PA – Various articles and Interviews.

A Q&A with state Sen. Gene Yaw, chair of the Senate Environmental Resources & Energy Committee – By Justin Sweitzer, February 26, 2024 – City & State PA – As chair of the Pennsylvania Senate Environmental Resources & Energy Committee, state Sen. Gene Yaw plays a major role in determining the direction the state Senate takes on energy policy.

Pittsburgh’s Climate Emissions Aren’t Falling Fast Enough To Meet 2030 Climate by Oliver Morrison – March 19, 2024 – WESA

Up To 58 GW Of Power Generation In PJM Faces Retirement By 2030 Without Replacement Capacity In Sight – by Ethan Howland- March 18, 2024 – Utility Dive

A grid for all: How to assemble an army of energy soldiers through virtual power plants – Anya Litvak – March 12, 2024 – Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

State Rep. promotes solar projects through school visit – By Matt Churella, Altoona Mirror, March 14, 2024, Rep. Fiedler tours Central Cambria as district looks to save money

PA Solar Center Hosts March 22 Webinar Unpacking Solar Energy Interconnection With Electric Grid In PA – March 23, 2024 PA EN News

Gov. Josh Shapiro wants to spend $80M to attack Pennsylvania’s housing crisis. Here’s how. – by Stephen Caruso of Spotlight PA and Charlotte Keith, Spotlight PA, March 18, 2024 – Shapiro also wants to direct $50 million to a popular state program that helps homeowners pay for essential repairs. The money can also be used to make units accessible for people with disabilities, improve energy efficiency, and provide construction-related workforce training.

New ‘Hub’ to help local governments in southwestern Pa. bring in historic clean energy funds – Julie Grant February 14, 2024 – Allegheny Front

Making electric charging stations more available – by Mackenzie Aucker WNEP-TV News, February 22, 2024 – Most places in Pennsylvania don’t have charging stations–including rural areas. WNEP-TV covers how state officials are trying to change that.

DEP Recommends 6 Major Legislative Proposals Be Adopted As Part Of 2024 PA Climate Action Plan – PA ENV News – February 21, 2024 – PA DEP presented six major legislative proposals to the Climate Change Advisory Committee on 3/20/24 that it would like to see adopted to implement the 2024 PA Climate Action Plan.

 

National BIL/IRA and Related News Clips

DOE: US energy storage pipeline up 300% since Inflation Reduction Act passed – by Cameron Murray, Energy Storage News – March 21, 2024

Why Mainers Are Falling Hard for Heat Pumps – By Cara Buckley, March 2, 2024, New York Times – The percentage of households burning home heating oil is the highest in the country. Yet no other state is adopting climate-friendly heat pumps as fast. According to Efficiency Maine, an independent agency that runs energy efficiency programs, replacing heating oil and propane with heat pumps saves a household over a thousand dollars a year.

John Fetterman introduces federal Whole-Home Repairs legislation – The bipartisan bill mirrors the home improvement bill passed in Pennsylvania in 2022 – by Harrison Cann – March 5, 2024 – City & State PA – U.S. Sen John Fetterman introduced a federal version of the Whole-Home Repairs program, which provides grants and forgivable loans to homeowners and small landlords looking to repair and weatherize their properties.

Car shoppers aren’t electrified by electric vehicles – EV growth slows as consumers look to hybrids & plug-ins – by Jeanne Whalen – Feb. 24, 2024 – The Washington Post

China’s Electric Vehicles Are Going to Hit Detroit Like a Wrecking Ball

by Robinson Meyer – February  27, 2024 – New York Times

U.S. Gas Producers Are Racing to Sell to Asia. And Mexico Is Key. – By Max Bearak

February 13, 2024 – New York Times – By next year, American natural gas will start flowing across Mexico to a major export terminal on the Pacific, reflecting a global energy landscape transformed by U.S. dominance in gas.

Biden vs. Trump on electric vehicles and China’s threat – by Glenn Kessler – The Fact Checker – January 30, 2024 – The Washington Post

The secret both parties want to keep about U.S. energy – by Catherine Rampell

January 25, 2024 – The Washington Post

The News About the News Business Is Getting Grimmer – by Michael M. Grynbaum, John Koblin, Benjamin Mullin and Katie Robertson – January 24, 2024 – The New York Times – Mass layoffs, closures and reader fatigue are afflicting news organizations as Americans prepare for a consequential election year.

The Zombies of the U.S. Tax Code: Why Fossil Fuels Subsidies Seem Impossible to Kill

by Lisa Friedman – March 18, 2024 – New York Times – For the fourth year in a row, President Biden is trying to eliminate federal tax breaks for coal, oil and gas companies. But fossil fuel subsidies have proven difficult to stop.

Biden Vows to ‘Save the Planet From the Climate Crisis’ – By Lisa Friedman The New York Times – March 8, 2024 – President Biden spoke about global warming in stark terms during the State of the Union address Thursday night, ditching the more sterile term “climate change” to instead refer twice to the climate “crisis.”

Getting off fossil fuels is hard, but this city is doing it — building by building

By Jeff Brady, March 4, 2024 – NPR NEWS – Ithaca, N.Y., wants to eliminate greenhouse gasses by 2030 — 20 years faster than the rest of the country. But even in this liberal city meeting climate targets is harder than expected.

Our Green Transition May Leave Black People Behind – by Rhiana Gunn-Wright, Hammer & Hope – I’m an architect of the Green New Deal, and I’m worried the racism in the biggest climate law endangers our ability to get off fossil fuels.

The False Promise of Carbon Capture as a Climate Solution – By Naomi Oreskes &

Peter Coy, March 1, 2024 – Scientific American – Fossil-fuel companies use captured carbon dioxide to extract more fossil fuels, leading to a net increase in atmospheric CO2.

Why Don’t We Just Ban Fossil Fuels? – Per Coy, Feb. 16, 2024 – New York Times

A Battery Company CEO on the ‘Massive’ Effect of the Inflation Reduction Act – By Dan Gearino, Feb. 15, 2024, Inside Climate News – Freyr Battery plans to invest billions in a factory near Atlanta.

Solar, battery storage will be 81% of new electricity generation capacity this year: EIA

by Diana DiGangi, February 21, 2024 – Utility Dive – Solar will increase by a record 36.4 GW if additions proceed as scheduled this year according to the U.S. Energy Information Admin. The IRA has “accelerated the development of energy storage by introducing investment tax credits for stand-alone storage,” said the EIA – “Prior to the IRA, batteries qualified for federal tax credits only if they were co-located with solar.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

White House Council on Environmental Quality

 RESOURCE HUB – Updated March 18, 2024

 

Justice40 Covered Programs List: List of federal programs working to advance the President’s Justice40 Initiative, which aims to deliver 40 percent of the overall benefits of certain federal investments to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution.

 

Invest.gov: Interactive map showing the historic public and private sector investments President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is bringing to states and territories across America.

 

Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and Inflation Reduction Act Technical Assistance Guide: Guide highlighting programs that help communities navigate the more than 100 Federal technical assistance programs that can help communities deliver infrastructure, clean energy, and climate resilience projects.

 

Inflation Reduction Act Guidebook: This guidebook provides an overview of the clean energy, climate mitigation and resilience, agriculture, and conservation-related tax incentives and investment programs in President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act.

 

Direct Pay Through the Inflation Reduction Act: Find resources on the Inflation Reduction Act’s “elective pay” (often called “direct pay”) provisions, through which tax-exempt and governmental entities can take advantage of tax credits for building clean energy projects.

 

Grants.gov: Learn about current federal grant opportunities.

 

Cleanenergy.gov: A one-stop shop for information on President Biden’s Investing in America agenda and how the IRA helps lower energy costs for consumers & small businesses while creating good-paying jobs as America’s clean energy economy and manufacturing sectors grow.

 

DOE Interactive Map: Interactive tool showcasing where clean energy investments are occurring across the United States thanks to President Biden’s Investing in America agenda.

 

Energy Savings Hub | Department of Energy: Access resources made possible by President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, which will help lower your energy costs and make your home safer and more comfortable while helping the planet.

 

Environmental Justice Scorecard: Find information about what federal agencies are doing to advance environmental justice in communities across America.

 

Department of Housing and Urban Development Funding Navigator: Find hundreds of available IRA, BIL, & other programs across a range of federal agencies in these categories: Energy Efficiency and Renewables, Utility Scale Energy, Resiliency, Lead and Healthy Housing, Brownfield and Waste Management, Transportation, Broadband, Workforce Development and Environmental Justice.

 

Department of Transportation Navigator: Explore federal funding opportunities that help plan for and deliver transformative infrastructure projects and services.

The post BIL/IRA Implementation Digest — March 25, 2024 appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

Pennsylvania, like several other oil and gas producing states, has a broken system when it comes to preventing orphaned and abandoned wells. Its inadequate bonding and regulatory systems incentivize the indefinite delay of plugging responsibilities and the orphaning of aging oil and gas wells. As a result, Pennsylvania holds the dubious distinction of being at the epicenter of the orphaned well crisis. The state has less than $50 million in bonding coverage, which is less than one percent of the total cost to decommission its inventory of unplugged owner operated wells.

On Monday, March 25, Senior Researcher Ted Boettner testified at the Pennsylvania House Environmental Resources and Energy Committee Hearing on Plugging and Abandonment of Conventional Oil and Gas Wells. Read Boettner’s full testimony below:

 

Chairman Vitali, Chairman Causer, and members of the Committee, thank you for inviting me to testify today on the issue of abandoned wells in Pennsylvania. My name is Ted Boettner and I am a Senior Researcher for the Ohio River Valley Institute where my research and analysis has focused extensively on solving problems associated with abandoned wells in Appalachia.

Pennsylvania has an enormous opportunity with the projected $401 million in Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) funds to find, clean up, and prevent orphaned wells while lowering greenhouse gas emissions and growing good paying jobs in economically distressed areas of the state. The state also has an opportunity to enact long-overdue reforms to prevent companies from orphaning wells in the future and to deal with the inventory of unplugged wells we have today. These reforms include creating a dedicated orphaned well trust fund so that the industry pays for its own mess instead of average Pennsylvanians. Think of it as Social Security for the oil and gas industry. These reforms can reduce pollution from hazardous wells, create thousands of good-paying jobs for decades to come, boost economic development, and make Pennsylvania a national leader in this emerging public good.

The Abandoned Well Crisis in Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, like several other oil and gas producing states, has a broken system when it comes to preventing orphaned and abandoned wells. Its inadequate bonding and regulatory systems incentivize the indefinite delay of plugging responsibilities and the orphaning of aging oil and gas wells. As a result, Pennsylvania holds the dubious distinction of being at the epicenter of the orphaned well crisis. The state has less than $50 million in bonding coverage, which is less than one percent of the total cost to decommission its inventory of unplugged owner operated wells.

Pennsylvania has approximately 218,000 documented drilled oil and gas wells in its inventory database, including 147,000 unplugged wells and 71,000 plugged wells. Of the unplugged documented wells, around 80 percent, or 116,000, are orphaned or likely to be orphaned because they currently produce little oil or gas – less than 1 barrel of oil equivalent per day (BOED) – or haven’t produced in over five years. The state also has the largest undocumented abandoned well inventory (legacy wells) in the nation, with a mid-range estimate of approximately 330,000 wells. Add this all together, and the state could be looking at decommissioning around 446,000 wells at a cost of $49 billion (based on a decommissioning cost of $110,000 per well from IIJA’s Initial grant of $25 million to decommission 227 plugged wells). In today’s dollars, that amounts to the State of Pennsylvania’s entire fiscal year budget. And this figure doesn’t include the thousands of wells that are likely improperly plugged – or the fact that well decommissioning is not a “one and done” process, and most wells will need to be re-plugged in the future – nor does it include other discarded oil and gas infrastructure.

Preventing Future Orphaned Wells
There are several concrete steps lawmakers can take to prevent future orphaned wells and address the state’s large inventory of orphaned and abandoned wells. To help prevent additional orphaned wells, the state could implement several reforms:

1. Ensure that all new permitted wells to be drilled are bonded at the cost of decommissioning or set to a specific amount, such as $75,000 per well.
2. Enact predecessor liability enforcement to hold previous operators or state lessees responsible for decommissioning if the current operator has defaulted on its responsibilities, like the U.S. Bureau of Land Management’s policy for federal leases.
3. Require full-cost bonding, or a set amount of at least $35,000 per well like Arkansas, upon the transfer of low-producing wells.
4. Remove blanket bonds and gradually increase bond amounts on existing unplugged wells, especially non-stripper wells.
5. Prohibit consent orders or other agreements under which the state agrees to not enforce existing plugging requirements.
6. And lastly, regulators need to enforce plugging deadlines and enact meaningful consequences for violations when operators do not plug their wells when they are required to do so. For example, some very profitable large shale operators in Pennsylvania have hundreds of abandoned wells that have not produced in years but remained unplugged because there is no enforcement. [According to PA DEP records, EQT Corporation has 70 wells on the “DEP Abandoned List” and 102 wells that are “Abandoned”. The TCF Upstream database finds that EQT has 248 abandoned wells and 5 orphaned wells. Of the 248 abandoned wells, 108 abandoned wells have reported production and 96 of these wells haven’t reported production after 2020.] We need cops on the beat.

Creating an Abandoned Well Trust Fund
While full-cost bonding can help prevent wells operated by large shale companies or new wells from being orphaned, it won’t prevent most unplugged wells in Pennsylvania from being orphaned. This is largely because most low-producing “stripper” well operators would likely be unable to secure or pay for a bond set at the full cost of decommissioning or they don’t have the reserves necessary to decommission their wells.

To ensure that most oil and gas wells, including the state’s inventory of documented and undocumented orphaned and abandoned wells, are properly decommissioned will likely require a small production fee set aside in an interest-bearing Orphaned Well Trust Fund, like the federal Abandoned Mine Land Fund that pays for abandoned coal mines before 1977.

A fee of 12 cents per Mcf in Pennsylvania could raise approximately $25 billion over the next 25 years (2025-2049) based on natural gas projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (this doesn’t include NGL or oil). [The estimates are derived from US EIA 2023 Annual Energy Outlook of projected eastern gas production and prices (per Mcf) from 2025 to 2050 by using Pennsylvania’s share (59%) of eastern natural gas production. These estimates do not consider the impact of putting plugging funds in an interest-bearing account. If plugging funds are put into an interest-bearing account, the plugging costs could be considerably lower depending on the timing of revenue and disbursements and the investment rate of return. It is also important to consider that the projected natural gas production from the EIA may be overly optimistic, especially since more utilities are moving toward renewable energy to meet carbon reduction goals.] These funds could decommission anywhere from 250,000 to 385,000 abandoned wells (depending on costs) from 2025 to 2050 while creating approximately 4,400 direct jobs annually. The good news is that most of the production fee would not be paid by Pennsylvanians (exported out of state), and it would help provide jobs for thousands of displaced oil and gas workers such as union pipeline workers.

Investing in High-Road Workforce Development and Strong P&A Practices
Pennsylvania has taken a great first step with the Commonwealth Workforce Transformation Program, which could provide millions for on-the-job training to decommission wells. However, since there are no specific workforce development programs in Pennsylvania training people to decommission oil and gas wells, the state will need to take additional steps. The state needs to invest in and incentivize high-road workforce standards, including the development of labor-management partnerships to decommission wells. The state could do this by including apprenticeship utilization requirements in plugging contracts, bundling the contracts, incorporating project labor agreements (PLAs), and by creating a high-road training partnership grant program.

For example, the state of California allocated $14.3 million in grant funds to train apprentices and upskilling journeypersons on well-plugging projects in Los Angeles and Kern Counties. Last summer, California Legacy Well Services received a $6.4 million grant to develop a certified well abandonment training program with a labor-management partnership that included the Operating Engineers Local 12 and LiUNA Local 220. They are currently training former oil and gas workers and other union members in the program.

We need quality workers to do a quality job. And this means Pennsylvania also needs to update its plugging standards and procedures to reflect best practices. If we are to meet this task, we need a well-staffed and well-resourced Department of Environmental Protection to inspect all wells before and after plugging and perform a post-plugging test to ensure no leakage, to name just a few. Proper plugging not only requires a set of guidelines but sound judgement and expertise. Contractors should have workers who are licensed or certified to operate heavy machinery, have undergone appropriate safety training (OSHA 10), and have property safety equipment.

This will require both a professional workforce and responsible contractors but also strong processes and procedures around plugging and reclamation itself.

Conclusion
Pennsylvanians are facing a challenge that they did not create, but this Legislature, our public servants, and our union workers can be the people who face it head on. In that sense, it is an opportunity more than anything. We can eliminate the menacing impacts of these wells. We can pay well-trained Pennsylvanians to do quality work. And those paychecks will pay Pennsylvania mortgages, fund local governments and schools, and support real Pennsylvania families. All that is needed is public policy in service of the public. Thank you.

Appendix:

The post Addressing Pennsylvania’s Orphaned Well Crisis appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

Backbone Campaign ED and Solutionary Rail Lead Bill Moyer gave a presentation on the Rosalia to Pasco Shortline Rail Access Corridor on Toki TV.  Listen to this overview of SR's Proposal for shipping grain in SE Washington by short line rail.

 

Do you know a bad deal when you see it? Possibly not, if the deal has to do with something as arcane as leasing underground pore space to an oil and gas company that wants to dispose of carbon dioxide. But that’s the kind of deal property owners and elected officials need to start figuring out, because the “landmen” are coming with pens and contracts in hand.

A few weeks ago a news story, titled “Carbon dioxide storage hub seeks 80,000 acres across Western Pa., Ohio and West Virginia,” described in detail a proposal by Tenaska, Inc. to lease underground pore space across seven counties in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, in which it proposes to sequester some 150 million tons of carbon dioxide waste. The story also included a document, submitted by Tenaska to the Washington County, PA Planning Commission, proposing terms for the acquisition of 1,377 acres of pore space in county parklands.

Tenaska offered to pay Washington County about $3.9 million between 2027 and 2056 for the lease. If the 1,377 acre parcel receives a proportional share of the 150 million tons of CO2 Tenaska says it plans to sequester region-wide, then about 2.6 million metric tons will be buried there. That comes to $1.50 per metric ton of sequestered carbon.

What do you think? Is this a good deal? I’ll spare you the suspense. It’s ridiculous and borderline insulting.

Imagine for a moment you were selling a house and listed it at a very fair price of $225,000, then somebody offered you $100,000. How would you react? Would you laugh? Get angry? Affably cringe? What you wouldn’t do is sell at that price. But that’s the deal Tenaska is offering Washington County and very likely property owners all over the region.

How do we know the deal is that bad? First, there’s already a “comp” out there. In August of last year, Mountaineer GigaSystem, LLC offered the state of West Virginia a royalty of $3.35 per metric ton to sequester carbon dioxide on public land in Mason County. That’s two and a quarter times what Tenaska is offering Washington County.

The Tenaska offer is also a bad deal in another way. The ultimate cost of capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide waste isn’t going to be paid by Tenaska or the industrial customers that engage Tenaska to take the stuff away and bury it. The cost will be shouldered by taxpayers in the form of direct payments from the U.S. Treasury, which is giving away $85 for every metric ton of CO2 that is sequestered.

That means Tenaska and its corporate customers, who anticipate sequestering 5 million metric tons of carbon dioxide waste each year, will receive $425 million annually from the U.S. Treasury. That doesn’t count the $69 million grant Tenaska already received from the government to “jumpstart development”. Meanwhile, at Tenaska’s proposed lease rate of $1.50 per metric ton, property owners in the region will receive only $7.5 million annually – less than 2% of the subsidies Tenaska and its customers are receiving for the one asset that’s indispensable: a place to put 150 million tons of toxic waste.

If you’re a property owner who is inclined to strike a deal with Tenaska (and many of us would not be so inclined) then, given the value of the asset and the risks you will have to take with your health and our property, $7 per metric ton would not be unreasonable. At that price, instead of $3.9 million, Washington County would stand to get over $18 million. At the very least, the payments should match the $3.35 per metric ton Mountaineer GigaSystems will pay West Virginia. And, if Tenaska says they can’t do it at the price we think makes it worthwhile, we should walk away, just like you would walk away from that $100,000 offer on your $225,000 house.

The region got a bad deal when the natural gas boom produced zero job growth. We got another bad deal with the Shell cracker in Beaver County, PA. Despite more predictions of job growth that were used to justify over a billion and half dollars of subsidies, job counts in Beaver County abruptly reverted to their old levels as soon as construction ended. And the promised proliferation of “downstream” manufacturing jobs never materialized.

Now, another industry wants to make a deal. Will we once again roll over even though the proposal is insulting and would leave millions of dollars on the table? Or will we negotiate a better deal? Will we leverage the fact that, because this region is one of the few with the necessary geology, Tenaska can’t just pick up and go elsewhere? Will we refuse to settle for another bad deal?

The post The Tri-State CCS Hub and The Return of The Bad Deal appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.

This blog post was written by POWHR’s co-director Denali Nalamalapu, originally for Mergoat Magazine’s newsletter. We are releasing an updated version of the article because students in Uganda are risking their lives to stop the East African Crude Oil Pipeline and they need our support.

12,000 kilometers. 

That’s the distance between Appalachia and East Africa. It’s also nearly the diameter of the globe. 

These far-apart lands are each terrorized by proposed pipeline projects: the 303-mile Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) in the US states of West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina and the 897-mile East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) in Uganda and Tanzania. The two fossil fuel projects have many similarities. Let’s dive into four of them.

1. Climate change

Rehema is the mother of five children. The youngest is five and the eldest is thirteen. They live in Darasalam, the capital of Tanzania.

When Rehema was in university, she developed an interest in defending children’s rights. The deeper she dove into children’s rights work, the more she realized a clear intersection with  the climate crisis. If we don’t urgently address climate change, future generations won’t have a chance of survival, and thus all of their rights will be in peril. So she began to organize for climate justice. 

For the past six years, Rehema has been working internationally to stop fossil fuel projects and train other organizers. Through this work, she found out about the EACOP and began organizing against it.

If completed, EACOP would be the largest crude oil pipeline in the world. It would be constructed during a historic moment — a moment about which  the UN Secretary General António Guterres says the world is running out of options to defuse the “ticking climate time bomb”. East Africa is significantly impacted by climate change; it is worsening droughts, floods, species extinction, and human conflict even though the two nations contribute about two or three percent of global emissions that cause the crisis.

Students in Uganda protest EACOP

On the flip side, the United States is the biggest historic carbon emitter in the world. In the US, the fossil fuel industry has preyed upon the resource rich region of Appalachia, making the region the largest source of US emissions.

If the MVP were to be completed and put into service, the greenhouse gas emissions may be equivalent to 19 million passenger vehicles, or 23 coal plants, and account for at least 1% of all greenhouse gasses from the US energy sector. 

Appalachia has faced and will increasingly face devastating floods as climate change leads to more severe rain storms. The damage to the land left behind by fossil fuel extraction makes the consequences more dire.

Here, halfway across the globe, another mother struggles alongside Rehema to halt environmental destruction in her home at the hands of fossil fuel companies. Mother of three, grandmother of five, and impacted landowner, Becky Crabtree is fighting the Mountain Valley Pipeline in order to protect her West Virginian community and preserve the land for future generations. 

Across the regions of Appalachia and East Africa, mothers and grandmothers are waging fierce resistance against fossil fuel projects like EACOP and MVP that threaten the future of their communities.

A mother and her children participate in a #StopMVP training camp in Newport, Virginia, where they are beading together. 2. Sacrifice zones

One of the primary motivators of colonialism is natural resource extraction.

The British colonized Uganda from the late 1800s to 1962. The Germans and British colonized Tanzania from the late 1800s until 1964. The extractive project of colonization and its legacies continue to this day.

Edwin Mumbere, resident of Kasese, Uganda (near the pipeline route) and CEO of Centre for Citizens Conserving Environment & Management (CECIC), says EACOP is a modern form of colonization. He says European powers continue to control resources in East Africa at the expense of its people and environment: “We are just being used. We are not going to benefit from our own natural resources.” Total, the company behind EACOP, is French. France—another colonial empire.

The fossil fuel industry, which stores the bulk of its power in Western nations, is notorious for preying upon under-resourced, rural communities who they don’t expect to fight back. In the Global South, this project is built on the remaining scaffolding of colonialism. In regions like Appalachia, certain places are deemed sacrifice zones, meaning their people and environment are offered up sacrificially in exchange for corporate profit. These places are often rural, poor, and majority elderly populations.

Colonial powers and the fossil fuel industry have made each of these resource-rich communities dependent on them. They perpetuate the myth that continued fossil fuel extraction will help local communities by providing jobs and access to wealth, masking the reality that those extractive practices are in fact destroying their communities, lands, and water.

Rehema, founder and Tanzanian coordinator of Partnership for Green Future (PFG), says that people on the Tanzanian portion of the projected route for the EACOP don’t have access to adequate information about the project. Most people in these communities are not on social media. This population is restricted to state run media, which supports Total and the construction of the pipeline. 

Edwin says the situation in Uganda is similar. People don’t have access to information from sources other than the key beneficiaries of the pipelines: the Ugandan government and French company Total. He says the company distributes information in English, which is difficult for many local people to understand.

Fossil fuel companies target rural, under-resourced communities so they can get away with hasty, cheap construction methods —increasing the danger posed to impacted people, who the companies see as expendable. Total uses the dangerous and cheap method of open cut trenching for most water crossings. Similarly, MVP has accrued hundreds of water quality violations for their faulty construction practices. The profits outweigh the punishments for these violations, and the practices persist.

Both pipelines cross many water bodies, which endangers the living beings that depend on them. Nearly a third of EACOP would run through Lake Victoria, Africa’s largest lake which more than 40 million people depend on. On average, MVP has a water crossing every mile of its 303-mile route.

A protester sits in front of the Virginia Attorney General’s office asking him to take action on MVP with polluted water from the pipeline route in her hand. Shaban Athuman / VPM News

Both of the pipelines also traverse earthquake prone areas. EACOP crosses a seismic zone that regularly experiences earthquakes. MVP crosses earthquake prone areas and 74 percent of the pipeline crosses high landslide risk terrain. This increases the danger to surrounding communities and ecosystems should the pipelines rupture.

3. Risks to organizers

Not only are people on the ground encumbered by a lack of information about EACOP, those who choose to stand up are also subject to government intimidation and personal safety risks. 

Police restraining students who are protesting EACOP

Edwin says pipeline resistors are labeled as anti-growth and anti-government by the government. Rehema says it is difficult to do on the ground organizing because of safety concerns for activists. Because of this, she directs her activism to the international stage.

Environmental defenders in the Global South face increasing safety risks in the form of intimidation, threats, and murder. This reality is intensifying in the United States as well; Tortuguita, an environmental defender opposing the Cop City project in Atlanta, was murdered by state police, while other Atlanta activists are being charged with domestic terrorism. Police violence towards pipeline resistors has risen drastically, including at Standing Rock. A growing number of states are escalating charges against anti-pipeline protestors. 

Protesters opposing Senator Joe Manchin’s Dirty Deal and demanding President Biden stop MVP while cops surveille them in front of the White House

MVP is attacking activists’ right to protest and filing egregious charges in civil and criminal courts. Community members have accused MVP of malicious prosecution and intimidation. The company has also worked to find out the identities of pipeline resistors online.

4. Fierce opposition

When EACOP was first proposed, some Ugandan communities were open to the project. They were told they would receive compensation for their land. However, years passed and they never received the money promised to them. They realized the company did not have their interests and wellbeing in mind. As they learned about climate change, their opposition to the project grew. 

In Uganda, the movement against EACOP emerged from impacted communities. It has grown into an international movement, which  Edwin helps lead. The #StopEACOP campaign has dozens of international partners and maintains sustained international opposition to the project.

When the MVP was first proposed, some activists like Becky Crabtree of West Virginia were open to learning about the project. However, when they observed the bad behavior and false promises of the pipeline company, they turned against it. The campaign to #StopMVP began in the hollers of Appalachia and has grown into a powerful national movement. 

Activists in both struggles are fighting tenaciously for their communities, their water, and their planet.

Students in Uganda protesting EACOP

Edwin believes in a better future for his country: “Uganda is blessed. We have so many rivers. We have sun almost 365 days of the year. If the project stops, [we can] invest in clean technologies that don’t impact the environment.”

Should the nation increase their investment in solar programs, Edwin says they could reduce energy poverty, which would secure cooking and lighting needs for many people.

Edwin and Rehema say people in Uganda and Tanzania feel disempowered. They see their land being taken from them without compensation. They see their home being victimized by projects like the EACOP. If they are presented with meaningful solutions and investments, the people of these communities will be empowered to look beyond their immediate needs and toward a self-actualized future. 

Many activists in Appalachia are similarly trying to build a brighter future for their region, away from fossil fuel dependence and towards a renewable energy transition. 

Both groups of pipeline resistors face wealthy, powerful opposition. Strengthening unity across their countries and the globe is the key to their future wins.

Students in Uganda are risking their lives to stop EACOP and they need our support.

Bent Mountain, VA – Impacted community members and Mountain Valley Watch monitors along the Mountain Valley Pipeline route met with federal pipeline safety agents on March 13, 2024. After eight months of requests for a visit, staff of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) met with nearly 40 community members in the community center of directly harmed Bent Mountain. Due to sustained community advocacy, Deputy Administrator Tristan Brown and key staff members attended the meeting in person.

Community members now request PHMSA staff to continue to meet with directly-impacted residents and return to the MVP route to conduct site visits with landowners present.

Russell Chisholm, co-director of the Protect Our Water, Heritage, Rights Coalition (POWHR), responded:

“I am so proud of my community for advocating fiercely for our safety, including putting such sustained pressure on our regulators that PHMSA was compelled to do their job and show up on our doorstep. We deserve to be treated like our input matters, not only because our lives matter, but because after ten years of fighting this pipeline, we are extremely knowledgeable on matters of pipeline safety.”

On Monday morning, March 18, 2024, community members gathered near the regional Virginia Department of Environmental Quality office in Salem, Virginia to protest their inadequate response to destruction caused by the Mountain Valley Pipeline. 

Deborah Kushner, climate activist, former state government employee, and long-time Virginia resident, responded:

“Who do you serve, DEQ? Following the egregious harms MVP has done to our mountains and streams, it is your duty and power to halt these harms and issue a stop work order. Yet you continue to side with the villainous corporation that your leader used to work for. You can be sure: we will never stop demanding you do your job.”

###

In a recent Wall Street Journal opinion piece, former Ohio Congressman Tim Ryan decried President Biden’s recent decision to pause liquified natural gas (LNG) export authorizations. Ryan, tugging on heartstrings, claimed that LNG exports and other new avenues for natural gas buildout are a “crucial bridge to a clean-energy future.”

To hear well-paid gas industry lobbyists like Ryan tell it, burning natural gas is good for the climate. In fact, liquefying and exporting gas is even worse for the climate than burning coal.

It’s a scheme from the same industry that promised fracking would generate unprecedented job growth and prosperity in Appalachia. But that promise has never materialized. Since the beginning of the fracking boom in 2008, the twenty-two largest gas-producing counties in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia have actually lost a combined 10,000 jobs and nearly 50,000 residents.

The truth is, LNG exports do nothing to help Americans. Instead, they drive up prices of everything from home heating to fertilizer. Gas exports cost US consumers over $100 billion from mid-2021 through 2022, partly due to overheating global markets and surging wholesale gas prices. Shipping US gas to higher-priced foreign markets is an excellent deal for Ryan and his bosses, but not so much for anyone else.

The US is already the world leader in gas exports. Biden’s pause is a smart move that gives Americans time to consider the impacts to our health, safety, and pocketbooks. Right now, all the evidence indicates that LNG is a rotten deal.

The post LNG Exports Are a Rotten Deal for Appalachians appeared first on Ohio River Valley Institute.