Democrats in Congress on Monday introduced a series of proposals on how to combat climate change as part of the $ 3.5 trillion budget package bill that is currently being negotiated.
The Build Back Better Act, as President Biden’s proposal to invest in U.S. infrastructure is known, was introduced in the House Energy and Commerce Committee and places climate change mitigation and adaptation at its center.
“Natural disasters cost Americans a record $ 95 billion in damage last year and are expected to be even higher this year,” said committee chairman Frank Pallone Jr., DN.J ., in his initial comments Monday. “Clearly bold action is needed: the days of incremental change are long gone.”
The highest profile of these measures includes a first federal rate for climate pollution by power plants, a tax on methane emissions from oil and gas producers, and billions of dollars for everyone, from homeowners to to state and local governments to invest in energy efficiency.
In the face of the crucial negotiations of the United Nations Conference on Climate Change in Glasgow (Scotland), this November, how much the United States, the world’s largest economy and the largest per capita emitter of gases are committed of greenhouse effect, to reduce its emissions, effect on the strength of the next global agreement.
While Democratic centrists like Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia have indicated they will block any bill as large as Biden’s proposal, House Democrats have continued to demand a solid response to climate change.
To this end, the most important climate and energy expenditures and expenditures of the current version of the House bill are detailed below:
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To help meet the White House’s goal of halving greenhouse gas pollution from global warming by 2030, $ 150 billion will be spent in ten years to provide public services for carrots and sticks. Electricity companies that increased net energy production by 4% over the previous year will receive a subsidy, while those that do not meet the benchmark would have to pay a payment. (The size of payments in either direction would be based on the amount by which the company exceeded or exceeded the 4 percent threshold.) Depending on the amount of carbon dioxide allowed, there would be no fossil fuels such as coal. , oil and gas. defined as net energy. The purpose would be to promote solar, wind, nuclear and hydraulic energy.
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A $ 27.5 billion greenhouse gas reduction fund would help deploy low- and zero-emission technologies. If, for example, a local government or non-profit organization wants to install a site in a public building, this program could support it.
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$ 5 billion to subsidize the purchase of electric vehicles for federal, state and local governments. These funds and many others in the bill have a portion earmarked specifically for areas with lower air quality, which are usually lower-income city color communities.
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$ 3.5 billion in grants and bonuses for technology that reduces port emissions, for example by capturing ship emissions when they are docked.
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$ 9 billion for bonuses to homeowners for energy-efficient renovations.
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$ 9 billion for homeowners, focused on low- and moderate-income communities and Native American tribes, to convert systems that currently burn oil or gas, such as heat and hot water, to electricity.
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A tax on methane, a particularly harmful greenhouse gas, emitted by natural gas and oil drilling, storage and transmission facilities. The problem of methane leaks has become more worrying in recent years as the fracking boom has led to domestic oil and gas production and studies have shown that there are more methane leaks in the atmosphere in from these operations than had been previously estimated.
The bill also contains a number of provisions for monitoring, enforcing regulation and building infrastructure to address conventional environmental issues, such as air and water pollution, some of which are ‘are aggravated by climate change.
It is assumed that some programs will be reduced or eliminated in the delicate negotiations with moderates like Manchin, but if the proposal is approved in its entirety it would be the largest federal climate action to date.
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