by Patrick Woolsey Connecticut has released a draft Comprehensive Energy Strategy. The strategy, prepared by the state’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), calls for dramatically increased investment in energy efficiency and renewable power. The plan also calls for a large-scale expansion of natural gas use in the state […]
Energy Efficiency
New updates from November to the Center for Climate Change Law and Arnold & Porter Climate Case Chart. Find the complete chart here. FEATURED DECISION Town of Babylon v. Federal Housing Finance Agency (2d Cir. Oct. 24, 2012): added to the “NEPA” slide. A town commenced a lawsuit against the […]
The Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) has benefited the economy of participating states but achieved only modest reductions in greenhouse gas reductions, according to a panel of energy experts convened at Columbia Law School last night. To achieve greater reductions, RGGI should adopt a stricter carbon cap at its three-year […]
State public utility commissions (PUCs) could make major progress toward achieving energy efficiency if they utilized the tools available to them, according to a study released August 14 by Columbia Law School’s Center for Climate Change Law. The report, “Public Utilities Commissions & Energy Efficiency: A Handbook of Legal & Regulatory Tools […]
By Shelley Welton, CCCL Deputy Director and Fellow This summer is an important time for clean energy enthusiasts to pay closer attention to the complex, technical world of electric transmission planning and siting. In July 2011, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued Order No. 1000, the latest in a […]
By Adam Riedel, CCCL Associate Director Environmental impact statements (EISs) should analyze the potential for energy efficiency to reduce the adverse impacts of new projects, to make the projects smaller, or to provide more benign alternatives. The National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and its state counterparts require EISs for major […]
By Michael Kerstetter The Center for Climate Change Law has published a working paper on bundling solutions for energy efficiency (EE) retrofit projects in residential and commercial buildings. The paper provides a brief discussion on the EE retrofit market generally, touching on the current efficiency gap and barriers to EE […]
By Julia Ciardullo Fellow On April 27, 2012, the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) published a proposed final regulation regarding the use of forest biomass for generating energy in Massachusetts. If adopted, the regulation would be the first to set greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions standards for determining the eligibility […]