June 10, 2020: The U.S. could transition to 90 percent carbon-free power by 2035 -- led largely by wind, solar and batteries -- at no additional cost to consumers. Germany unveiled the world’s “greenest” coronavirus economic recovery plan, allocating out 41 billion euros for low-carbon investments. A women and Navajo-led utility called Native Renewables is aiming to electrify every home in the Navajo Nation to address energy poverty and empower tribal members. The clean energy industry is grappling with ways racism shows up in the sector, including Black communities being more exposed to toxic pollution, a lack of diversity in the sector’s jobs and decades of environmental racism in places like New Orleans.
Stories at the intersection of racial justice and energy
Racism shows up in the clean energy sector in a number of ways, including in the disproportionate exposure to toxic pollution that Black people face from fossil fuels, highways and refineries. Black people also pay more money for their energy, and clean energy equity programs meant to serve diverse communities often fail to be designed in a way that Black communities can take advantage of. Meanwhile, the U.S. clean energy sector remains largely white, despite efforts to diversify employment and hire more women and people of color. Last year, over 70 percent of solar jobs were held by white people, compared to just eight percent held by Blacks. The solar and wind industry associations have indicated they will increase their efforts to diversify the workforce.
On Tuesday, witnesses inserted environmental justice into a hearing by the Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change -- including Jacqueline Patterson at the NAACP who pointed to the fact that 71 percent of African Americans live in counties that do not meet federal air pollution standards. In New Orleans, activists are protesting decades of environmental racism alongside protests for George Floyd’s murder, including calling the city out for building low-income housing on a former Superfund site known to have contaminated soil and groundwater.
"This equity push, it looks good and it sounds good," said Alexis Cureton, formerly at GRID Alternatives, on the need for energy policies to address racial inequity. "But for people of color who are suffering right now, it doesn't feel good. We have to remove the repercussions for constructive criticism around programs that don't address racial equity."
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The U.S. could transition to 90 percent zero-carbon electricity by 2035, without incurring extra costs to consumers, according to a new report from UC Berkeley. The majority of that power would come from wind and solar, with coal generation phasing out completely along with a reduction in gas-fired plants. The target is possible due to the drastic decline in costs for wind, solar and battery technology. The transition to renewable power would also reduce pollution and cut health care costs, saving as many as 85,000 lives by 2050, and could increase energy jobs by over half a million jobs per year to help overcome the current economic crisis. Separately, costs for utility-scale solar power and onshore and offshore wind have declined between roughly 30 and 80 percent since 2010, and leaders of those industries along with the hydro and storage sector unveiled a plan to increase their market share by 2030. (Popular Science, Utility Dive)
Germany unveiled the world’s “greenest” economic recovery plan, allocating about 41 billion euros to areas like public transport, electric vehicles and renewable energy. The plan highlights Chancellor Angela Merkel’s commitment to transition away from fossil fuels, and notably leaves out subsidies for internal combustion engines in favor of larger subsidies for battery-powered cars. It also includes spending nine billion euros on hydrogen power through 2040 and eight billion euros on promoting electric vehicles.The world’s largest 50 economies have planned $18 billion in COVID recovery dollars for low-carbon measures -- less than 0.2 percent of total planned recovery budgets. (Bloomberg)
General Motors is developing an electric van for commercial delivery vehicles, as it aims to beat Tesla to the market. General Motors, Ford and at least two electric vehicle startup companies are spending billions of dollars on their electrification strategies. Companies like Amazon and the United Parcel Service are looking to electric vehicles, drawn by their reduced maintenance and fuel costs. GM is expected to start producing its electric van in 2021 at its Detroit-Hamtramck plant. (Reuters)
A Navajo women-led solar power company called Native Renewables is aiming to electrify every home in the Navajo Nation. Excluded from a federal electrification program in 1936, over 15,000 Native homes continue to lack access to electricity, making up over 75 percent of the homes without electricity in the country. The organization works to empower the Navajo Nation by employing tribal members and educating them on the benefits of renewable energy and economic independence. While the company is still in early stages of outreach and marketing, initial projects have successfully boosted economic security for tribal families, and they are now seeking impact investors to finance expansion for families living below the poverty line. (Global Citizen)
Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. announced it can produce an electric vehicle battery that lasts a million miles. The manufacturer’s chairman Zeng Yuqun said the company has yet to receive an order for its battery, although the company is known to work closely with Tesla, BMW, Volkswagen and Porsche. The million-mile battery has a 16-year lifespan and will only be 10 percent more expensive than current battery technology. (PC Mag)
Two Tesla workers tested positive for the coronavirus after the company re-opened early. Tesla reached an agreement to restart production with Alameda County in May if it agreed to implement certain safety measures for its employees and to report positive cases of the virus. However, the newly reported cases may have come from the company starting production a week earlier than it was allowed to, creating loopholes in its requirement to report positive cases. Employees have also aired concerns around inadequate precautionary measures on production lines. (Washington Post)
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