Complete list of press releases

(Washington, D.C. – February 28, 2024) The Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed pollution standards for new cars, buses and freight trucks would save more than 40,000 lives and prevent more than 25 million asthma attacks, according to a new analysis by Environmental Defense Fund.

EPA has proposed strengthening our national air pollution and greenhouse gas emission standards for both new light-and-medium-duty vehicles (cars, passenger trucks, and small delivery vans) and new heavy-duty vehicles (including freight trucks, buses, and garbage trucks). The agency is expected to finalize both standards next month.

“Our new analysis shows the magnitude of the health risk we all face from traffic pollution, and the lives we can save with the stronger, more protective clean vehicle standards that EPA has proposed,” said Ellen Robo, manager of transportation and clean air policy at Environmental Defense Fund. “Reducing pollution from new cars, trucks, and buses will save thousands of lives, prevent serious illnesses, and help us address the climate crisis.”

EDF looked at EPA’s projected emission changes for vehicle tailpipe, electricity generation, and refinery emissions due to the proposed standards. We then conducted an analysis using a health incidences-per-ton methodology, using the emission changes to understand the mortality and illness reductions these rules will provide.

Our analysis finds that between 2027 and 2055, EPA’s two proposed clean vehicle standards would prevent:

• 41,400 premature deaths
• 63,600 hospital and emergency room visits
• 25.5 million asthma attacks
• 9.3 million lost workdays and school absences

The two proposed standards will dramatically reduce harmful air pollution. EDF’s analysis found sharp reductions in fine particulate matter (sometimes called soot), sulfur dioxide, and some of the pollutants that cause ground-level ozone (commonly known as smog). EPA estimates the vehicle standards will reduce climate pollution by almost 10 billion metric tons by 2055 – about two years’ worth of U.S. total climate emissions from all sources.

You can read EDF’s analysis here.

(Boulder, Colo. — Feb 27, 2024) In response to the release of the Polis administration’s Greenhouse Gas Pollution Reduction Roadmap 2.0, Environmental Defense Fund, Western Resource Advocates and Sierra Club released the following statement:

“Governor Polis’s Roadmap 2.0 presents an opportunity to chart a course for sustained climate leadership through 2030 and beyond. The state’s continued, and rightfully earned, status as a national climate leader hinges on its ability to meet the promises leaders have made for a stronger climate future in Colorado. While the updated roadmap would move the state closer to its targets, it is not designed for the task at hand: meeting Colorado’s legislatively-mandated climate pollution reduction goals.

“We are at a critical moment. According to Colorado’s own analysis in Roadmap 2.0 and elsewhere, the state remains off-track from its near-term targets, poised to miss its 2025 greenhouse gas pollution reduction goal next year and with little time to correct course on its 2030 goal. Colorado is in a position to miss its climate goals after implementation of the first roadmap, which relied heavily on incentives and voluntary actions — an approach that is not delivering on the hoped-for results. The state’s updated “baseline” scenario shows the state is not only off-track from its targets, but is also behind its own previous projections for where emissions would be today. Banking on a similar uncertain approach — without directly limiting pollution across major emitting sectors — is likely to continue leaving the state short of its emissions reduction estimates, and short of the results that are needed.

“Five years after Colorado first passed nation-leading climate goals into law, the state is still missing the most critical part of an actual roadmap to meet our climate goals: a concrete regulatory agenda capable of cutting pollution at the speed and scale required by law. With Colorado’s climate future at stake, stronger leadership is needed to deliver on the climate action Coloradans have demanded.” 

(SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO – February 27, 2024) - Today the Rio Piedras Watershed Community Coalition publicly presented alternative solutions to build flood resilience and promote climate adaptation through the Puerto Nuevo River Flood Control Project, which was proposed by the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The coalition is made up of various community groups and leaders dedicated to building flood resilience in a way that responsibly protects the river basin and its communities and ecosystems.  

“Environmental Defense Fund supports the requests made by the Rio Piedras Watershed Community Coalition and calls on decision makers to study alternative solutions that will build flood resilience and promote climate adaptation.  

“Solutions we support include community engaged planning and action that meets the priorities of residents and ensures housing needs are met, as well as incorporates the best available science and prioritizes nature-based solutions. We also encourage creating a review committee comprised of multiple levels of government, with coalition representatives to provide guidance from scientists, planners and designers. In addition, we believe it is essential to continue dialogue with the community and seek their participation during the flood planning process.  

“By collaborating alongside the coalition and other relevant stakeholders to revise the Puerto Nuevo River Flood Control Project, the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers can enhance the existing flood damage reduction plans to ensure a future where the Rio Piedras Basin thrives in harmony with the residents and communities it supports.” 

- Braulio Quintero, Director, Puerto Rico, Environmental Defense Fund 

- Emily Steinhilber, Director, Climate Resilient Coasts and Watersheds, Environmental Defense Fund 

ST. PETERSBURG, Florida, February 22, 2024 – A new tool aimed at helping Floridians understand and respond to the unique challenges posed by climate change was released today. Florida’s Climate Future is an interactive online platform that leverages public data from the world’s leading climate scientists, offering an at-a-glance comprehensive overview of the climate challenges by counties across three risk areas that impact Florida’s economy and family budgets.

Facing rising energy costs, more frequent flooding and extreme heat, Florida residents are asking questions and need clear information to assess their specific risks and prioritize actions to protect their communities. Florida’s Climate Future showcases how risks vary across counties and regions for Florida families and businesses.

With the energy insecurity map, users gain insights into the fluctuating prices of natural gas and escalating energy costs in their region, especially in rural areas where energy burdens are the highest. The extreme heat map delves into the state's heat-related fatalities, the risk of wildfires, and the effects of rising temperatures on water bodies with notable impacts along Florida’s west coast. On the storms and flooding map, users can explore the changing rainfall patterns, extreme hurricanes, and flooding including damage and financial costs that hit regions like St. Johns County and many in the Southeast especially hard.

“This effort shares localized information on the rising costs of climate in our state,” said Dawn Shirreffs, Florida director of the Environmental Defense Fund. “It is important that Floridians can see how climate change impacts them directly. It is also crucial that our state leaders understand how reducing dependence on fossil fuels like natural gas can reduce these risks in order to keep Florida safe and affordable.”

With this tool, Floridians and policymakers can hear stories from farm workers, retirees and teachers already being impacted to make informed decisions and take proactive measures to navigate Florida’s evolving climate landscape.

“Our hope is that by compiling all the data that already existed, Floridians and our elected officials will see we have to focus on mitigation efforts to reduce taxpayer risk and substantial financial loss due to climate change,” said Thais Lopez Vogel, co-founder and trustee of the VoLo Foundation. 

Visit https://floridasclimatefuture.org today to explore the platform.  

(Washington, DC) Today, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) launched its Chemical Exposure Action Map, a tool designed to help visualize health harms from multiple chemical exposures and encourage the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to consider the fuller picture of those harms when assessing risks.

When conducting Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) risk-assessments, EPA typically considers the risks from one chemical and one facility at a time—but communities are exposed to multiple chemicals simultaneously that can cause the same health impacts, such as cancer, developmental harms and asthma. Many–including scientists, communities, some regulators, and advocacy groups–have long called for EPA to take a cumulative approach to assessing the risks from these chemicals.

The Chemical Exposure Action Map employs user-friendly, interactive graphics and action alerts to offer a more realistic approach that recognizes exposure to multiple toxic chemicals that cause the same harms and their associated cumulative health risks.

The map includes data on facilities releasing chemicals that EPA has designated “high priority” for assessment and regulation under TSCA. The facilities release these chemicals into the air, soil and water.

“We hope this map will help users encourage EPA to take a more holistic look at the risks communities face from the many chemicals that cause similar harms,” said Maria Doa, Senior Director, Chemicals Policy.

Map users will be able to search for chemical releases in their community, state or congressional district and to view:

• Chemical exposures by the health impacts they cause, such as cancer, asthma and harm to pregnant women and infants.
• Information on the size of these chemical releases.
• Weighted relative risk levels for the facilities in their community that consider the total amount of chemicals released and their relative toxicity.
• Community demographics and baseline vulnerability indicators, as defined by the Climate Vulnerability Index.

The map also gives users the ability to send a letter directly to EPA, urging the agency to consider the risks from toxic chemicals that cause the same harms together to better protect community health. The letter to EPA will bring in localized chemical release information based on facilities in the near vicinity – showing EPA the need to assess the real-world chemical risks communities face.

The map also includes the congressional district information for each facility–giving users information they can use to advance advocacy efforts for improving risk assessments and regulations that match the real-world, cumulative risks communities face.

“EPA’s Good Neighbor Rule protects the health of people in downwind states from dangerous air pollution that blows across state lines from coal-fired power plants and other large industrial sources in upwind states. It is already in effect in eleven upwind states, safeguarding tens of millions of people from serious heart and lung diseases linked to smog. When fully implemented, the Good Neighbor Rule is expected to save a thousand lives and prevent a million asthma attacks every year.

“The Good Neighbor Rule is grounded in the Clean Air Act’s Good Neighbor provision and firmly based in long-standing legal precedent. More than a century ago Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes recognized that downwind states had a legal right not to suffer pollution from their upwind neighbors, and the Supreme Court affirmed EPA’s authority to protect downwind states as recently as 2014 in the EME Homer City Generation case. Now this Supreme Court is hearing challenges to the Good Neighbor Rule on its shadow docket – without full briefing and before the D.C. Circuit has considered any of the litigation on its merits.

“Upwind polluters have rudimentary and commonsense options to comply with the law. Modern pollution controls are readily available and have already been widely deployed. A decision by the Supreme Court to issue an emergency stay of the Good Neighbor Rule’s life-saving protections would be extraordinary, premature, and harmful.”

            - Vickie Patton, General Counsel, Environmental Defense Fund

Environmental Defense Fund is a party in the case and is serving as counsel of record for environmental groups.

Standard frameworks used to assess the climate impacts of hydrogen production are vulnerable to broad miscalculation, according to new research by scientists at Environmental Defense Fund. As governments, investors, and industry look to hydrogen to help meet climate goals, the researchers say it is critical to get this accounting right.  

Published today in the journal Environmental Science & Technology, the study shows that the most widely used lifecycle assessment frameworks fail to include three critical factors: 1) the warming effects of hydrogen emissions; 2) measured real-world methane emissions intensities; and 3) the near-term warming impacts of emissions.

To more accurately gauge the potential impacts of hydrogen deployment, EDF reanalyzed a previous lifecycle assessment of hydrogen. They found that when these factors are included, hydrogen systems could be considerably better or worse for the climate than the fossil fuel technologies they are replacing.  If hydrogen and upstream methane emissions are high, blue hydrogen pathways (natural gas with carbon capture) could actually increase near-term warming by up to 50% compared to fossil fuels. By contrast, if those emissions are low, it could decrease warming impacts by over 70%. For green hydrogen pathways (renewable-based electrolysis), high hydrogen emissions can reduce the climate benefits in the near-term by up to 25%.

“It’s important to get the emissions accounting right, both to accurately assess climate impacts of hydrogen systems and to identify opportunities to reduce them,” said EDF climate scientist and lead author Tianyi Sun. “When we consider all climate warming emissions and their impacts over the near- and long-term, our analysis shows that hydrogen deployment can have far greater impacts than expected.”

Furthermore, the new analysis demonstrates how other factors such as lack of renewable electricity resources or insufficient carbon capture rates could further reduce anticipated climate benefits of hydrogen deployment. Consistent with other studies, the EDF analysis found that adding renewable electricity to local systems is necessary to help ensure the climate benefits of green hydrogen development. Otherwise, renewable electricity used to produce green hydrogen is likely replaced by natural gas or coal, resulting in full elimination of intended climate benefits to 3 times increase in emissions at the system level.

With respect to carbon capture rates for blue hydrogen, the previous assessment uses 98%, a rate which has not yet been consistently achieved. When applying a lower rate of 60%, the climate benefits of blue hydrogen pathways are reduced by 15-50% in the near-term, and 20-60% in the long-term.

“As we build out the hydrogen economy, we have a very real opportunity to ensure the enormous investments in hydrogen projects worldwide yield the climate benefits being sought – and avoid unintended climate consequences. We need robust assessment methods and data to ensure the potential is achieved in practice,” said Ilissa Ocko, EDF Senior Climate Scientist.

“Important decisions are being made about future clean energy systems, with implications for decades to come,” said Steven Hamburg, EDF Chief Scientist. “Hydrogen can be an effective decarbonization tool in many cases, but only if we ensure that its climate impacts are kept to a minimum. This requires upping our game on emissions accounting of climate impacting gases including hydrogen itself.”  

To help advance the science and identify best practices to maximize the benefits of hydrogen systems, EDF is working with new sensor technology by Aerodyne Research and industry partners to begin to measure real-life emissions from hydrogen facilities. As the market becomes more aware of the need to measure and mitigate emissions along the value chain, this technology will play a key role in providing better understanding, and ultimately solutions, to the hydrogen emissions challenge.

To read the full paper, see Environmental Science & Technology. 

Washington, D.C. - This week, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) took an important step towards modernizing their approach to the nation’s investments in water resource projects and programs. USACE published a proposed rule in the Federal Register, which if implemented, would revise the Agency Specific Procedures (ASPs) for the USACE’s implementation of the Principles, Requirements, and Guidelines (PR&G) for water resources investments. The proposed rule would act as implementation guidance and provide a decision-making framework to govern how USACE evaluates proposed water resource investments to maximize economic, environmental, and social benefits. 

“EDF has been advocating for the release of this proposed rule for many years to ensure water resources projects and programs reflect national priorities, encourage economic development, and protect the environment.  

“Implementation of this rule will result in a more holistic approach to maximizing public benefits in USACE water resources projects by more effectively accounting for the true social and environmental costs and benefits to support both environmental justice and ecosystem services, while emphasizing the consideration and use of nonstructural and nature-based solutions and community input.   

“The public comment period on this proposed rule will be open for the next 60 days. We encourage stakeholders to submit comments to ensure that these guidelines direct public investments toward efforts that avoid unwise use of floodplains, protect, and restore the functions of natural systems, mitigate any unavoidable damages to natural systems, and otherwise promote sustainable economic development.” 

- Emily Steinhilber, Director, Coasts & Watersheds, Environmental Defense Fund 

February 15, 2024 – Today, Environmental Defense Fund and WSP, in partnership with Sierra Club, released a new analysis that finds many popular and widely anticipated electric vehicles (EVs) offer Colorado consumers thousands of dollars in lifetime cost savings.

The analysis looks at net purchase cost of the vehicle, fuel costs, insurance costs, and maintenance costs over ten years, using Colorado specific data. It finds cost savings as high as $21,500 when comparing the cost of Ford’s F-150 Lightning EV with the gasoline-powered Ford F-150. 

“With EVs offering so many new choices when buying a car or truck, Coloradans can welcome a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future,” said Sierra Club Colorado Field Manager Sarah Clark. “This new analysis on EV lifetime savings is great news for Coloradans who have a lot to benefit from driving cleaner vehicles. In addition to the vast climate and clean air benefits, Coloradans can save money driving electric – and not worry about unstable or rising gas prices.” 

“Electric vehicles are passing their gas-powered counterparts on total cost of ownership thanks to rapidly declining costs, generous federal and state rebates, and lower fuel and maintenance costs. In the process EVs are offering two things that consumers want – choice and savings,” said Peter Zalzal, Colorado resident and EDF’s Associate Vice President of Clean Air Strategies. “Coloradans want the freedom to choose the car or truck that’s right for them. EVs are proving to be the smart, cost-effective choice and are helping provide cleaner, healthier air.”

EDF’s analysis also found that there are 49 EV models available for less than $48,000, the average purchase price of a new car last year, and 18 EV models available for less than $35,000. In addition to the generous federal tax credits for buying a new EV (up to $7,500), Colorado offers a $5,000 tax credit for all EVs and an additional $2,500 for EVs with a Manufacturers’ Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of less than $35,000.

The Inflation Reduction Act is helping ensure that electric vehicles are at the core of the made-in-America manufacturing boom by requiring that EVs be assembled in North America in order to qualify for new vehicle consumer tax credits. And it’s working – 39% more electric vehicles were manufactured in North American factories in the first quarter of 2023 than the first quarter of 2022.  

OHIO– Today, Environmental Defense Fund and WSP, in partnership with Sierra Club, released a new analysis that finds many popular and widely anticipated electric vehicles (EVs) offer Ohio consumers thousands of dollars in lifetime cost savings.

The analysis looks at net purchase cost of the vehicle, fuel costs, insurance costs, and maintenance costs over ten years, using Ohio specific data. It finds cost savings as high as $22,300 when comparing the cost of Ford’s F-150 Lightning EV with the gasoline-powered Ford F-150. 

“With EVs offering so many new choices when buying a car or truck, Ohioans can welcome a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future,” said Ericka Copeland, Sierra Club OH's chapter director. “This new analysis on EV lifetime savings is great news for Ohioans who have a lot to benefit from driving cleaner vehicles. In addition to the vast climate and clean air benefits, Ohioans can save money driving electric – and not worry about unstable or rising gas prices.” 

“Consumers want to have choices and to save money. Those are powerful driving forces in today’s marketplace,” said Ellen Robo, manager of transportation and clean air policy at Environmental Defense Fund. “Electric vehicles are offering both choice and savings as they pass their gas-powered counterparts on total cost of ownership – thanks to rapidly declining costs, generous cash-in-hand rebates from the Inflation Reduction Act, and lower fuel and maintenance costs. Buyers want the freedom to choose the vehicle that’s right for them and EVs are proving to be the smart, cost-effective choice in states across the U.S.” 

EDF’s analysis also found that there are 37 EV models available for less than $48,000, the average purchase price of a new car last year, and 10 EV models available for less than $35,000.

Electric vehicles represent more than a cost-saving opportunity for Ohio – they’re also bringing 5,800 new good-paying jobs and $9.9 billion in economic investment to the state. 100% of those investments were announced since January 2021. 

The Inflation Reduction Act is helping ensure that electric vehicles are at the core of the made-in-America manufacturing boom by requiring that EVs be assembled in North America in order to qualify for new vehicle consumer tax credits. And it’s working – 39% more electric vehicles were manufactured in North American factories in the first quarter of 2023 than the first quarter of 2022.

(February 12, 2024) - Today, North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper signed an executive order vowing to preserve one million acres of land by 2040, as well as restore an additional million acres and plant one million urban trees. This initiative comes at a critical time, following a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision significantly limiting federal wetland protections.  

“Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) is grateful for Governor Cooper’s bold action toward natural resource conservation and restoration in North Carolina, particularly around wetlands ecosystems. Healthy wetlands offer an abundance of benefits to all North Carolinians. These ecosystems provide critical habitats for fish and wildlife and enable our state’s rich hunting and fishing traditions to thrive. They also act as a natural buffer to flooding – a challenge that so many of our communities, cities and towns face.  

“A preliminary EDF analysis, to be released in the coming months, shows that millions of acres of U.S. wetlands may be at risk in light of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent ruling. This action leaves many wetlands now entirely dependent upon state protections, underscoring the importance of the Governor’s actions today. The million-acre conservation initiatives outlined in the executive order are a big step forward and demonstrate Governor Cooper’s commitment to implementing conservation solutions that protect wildlife, preserve North Carolina’s rich outdoor traditions, and safeguard cities and towns increasingly impacted by flooding.” 

 - David Kelly, North Carolina State Director, Environmental Defense Fund 

EPA and DOE took critical action today in announcing the availability of $1 billion in funding from Congress’s Methane Emissions Reduction Program (passed as part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act). The available funds will be awarded to states, Tribes, technology developers, industry, and non-governmental organizations to slash methane pollution from oil and gas facilities. The oil and gas sector is the largest industrial source of methane emissions, a climate super-pollutant, and a significant source of health-harming air pollution for communities living near oil and gas sites.  

The funding announced by EPA and DOE will reduce methane and associated air pollution at oil and gas facilities in the near-term; spur the further development of methane mitigation technology to help oil and gas operators reduce emissions across their sites more quickly; and fund measurement and monitoring technologies that can help industry find and fix leaks, help states and Tribes enforce protections, and increase public awareness of where emissions are coming from.

(Washington, DC) On Thursday, February 8, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized amendments to the 2018 Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) Fees Rule. Under the law, EPA is required to set industry fees such that the agency recoups 25% of its TSCA program costs.

Lindsay McCormick, Senior Manager, Safer Chemicals, noted: “Environmental Defense Fund is encouraged that EPA has finalized a fee rule that will bring in an estimated $36.7 million in resources each year to better equip EPA to implement TSCA. However, we will be looking to better understand whether EPA’s 19% reduction of the baseline cost to implement the law is warranted—as any reduction impacts EPA’s ability to adequately resource its TSCA programs now and in future years.”

In the final rule, EPA reduced the total program cost estimate by over 19% to approximately $146.8 million (compared to approximately $181.9 million in the 2022 proposed rule). The agency commensurately reduced fees associated with EPA-initiated risk evaluations from $5.1 million to $4.3 million, and reduced fees for reviewing new chemical submissions from $45,000 to $37,000.

Read our previous statement on the 2022 Fee Rule proposal.

ENGLISH

Luego de dos años de trabajo hoy se dieron a conocer los resultados del Estudio de Resiliencia de la Red Eléctrica de Puerto Rico y Transiciones a Energía 100% renovable (PR100). El estudio fue presentado por el Departamento de Energía Federal, dirigido por la Oficina de Desarrollo del Sistema Eléctrico y financiado por FEMA. Este estudio es una herramienta que pretende examinar la política pública energética de Puerto Rico (Ley 17 de 2019), establecer una guía para el fortalecimiento y la restauración de la red eléctrica en Puerto Rico, y determinar la posibilidad de generar el 100 por ciento de la demanda de energía eléctrica en Puerto Rico a partir recursos renovables para el 2050.

“Este estudio es un paso significativo para encaminar a Puerto Rico a un futuro con una infraestructura eléctrica moderna y resiliente al cambio climático de manera informada e inclusiva,” dijo Braulio A. Quintero, Director de Transición Energética Environmental Defense Fund.

“Environmental Defense Fund favorece que los resultados del estudio sean evaluados con detenimiento y utilizados correctamente para el beneficio de las comunidades, de forma tal que los proyectos que conduzcan a la transición energética de Puerto Rico no repercutan adversamente en la calidad de vida de los puertorriqueños y en el costo de vida de las familias,” agregó Quintero.  

El PR100 fue guiado por un grupo asesor de más de 100 profesionales del sector energético de Puerto Rico lo que proporcionó una retroalimentación crítica en la producción del informe final. Se trató de un esfuerzo no partidista para estudiar elementos críticos del sistema eléctrico de Puerto Rico lo que refleja transparencia y credibilidad.   El estudio PR100 sienta las bases para la transición energética de Puerto Rico fundamentado con datos y modelaje estadístico, verificables que permite tomar decisiones bien informadas a las partes interesadas en el sector público y privado.

“El estudio PR100 provee una ruta sin precedente para que Puerto Rico pueda lograr una transición a energía limpia y equitativa antes de lo previsto,” dijo Dan Whittle,  Vicepresidente Asociado, Resiliencia del Caribe, Environmental Defense Fund.

“Pero esta guía no se implementará sola – depende de todos nosotros, los legisladores, los reguladores, los líderes comunitarios, las empresas privadas y el público en general, invertir el tiempo y el esfuerzo para hacer el trabajo", sostuvo Whittle.

Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) busca identificar soluciones energéticas efectivas y equitativas que puedan traer electricidad limpia y centrada a las comunidades de Puerto Rico, y que puedan satisfacer las necesidades diarias de sus familias haciendo que la isla sea más resiliente al cambio climático. Abordamos este trabajo de manera holística, aprovechando nuestra experiencia técnica, herramientas de financiamiento sostenible y experiencia en reforma energética para ayudar a desarrollar soluciones a largo plazo para la crisis energética del territorio. El proyecto residencial solar de EDF en la isla municipio de Culebra provee un modelo que puedes replicarse por otras comunidades en Puerto Rico y el Caribe. Este proyecto es ejemplo de cómo podemos movernos hacia fuentes de energía limpia y dejar atrás la dependencia en los combustibles fósiles.

Para obtener más información, visite: www.edf.org/PuertoRico.

SPANISH

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today released the results of the Puerto Rico Electric Grid Resilience Study and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy (PR100) study. The study was led by the Office of Electric System Development at the DOE and funded by FEMA. The study is a tool that aims to examine the public energy policy of Puerto Rico (Law 17 of 2019), establish a guide for the strengthening and restoration of the electrical grid in Puerto Rico, and determine the possibility of generating 100% of Puerto Rico’s energy from renewable sources by 2050.

“The study is a significant step in Puerto Rico’s path to a future with modern electrical infrastructure that is resilient to climate change in an informed and inclusive manner,” said Braulio A. Quintero, Director, Energy Transition, Environmental Defense Fund. “Environmental Defense Fund encourages the study’s results be carefully evaluated and used correctly for the benefit of the island’s communities, so that the projects that lead to the energy transition of Puerto Rico avoid increasing families’ cost of living and enhance Puerto Ricans’ quality of life.”

The PR100 study was overseen by an advisory group of more than 100 professionals from the Puerto Rican energy sector, which provided critical feedback in the production of the final report. It was a non-partisan effort to study critical elements of Puerto Rico's electrical system, which reflects transparency and credibility. It lays the foundation for Puerto Rico's energy transition based on verifiable statistical data and modeling that allows interested parties in the public and private sectors to make well-informed decisions.

“The PR 100 study provides an unprecedented road map for how Puerto Rico can achieve a just and equitable transition to clean energy ahead of schedule,” Daniel Whittle,  Associate Vice President, Caribbean, Environmental Defense Fund. “But it won’t implement itself. It is up to all of us – policy makers, regulators, community leaders, private companies and the general public – to invest the time and effort to get the job done.”

EDF seeks to identify effective and equitable energy solutions that can bring clean, community-centered electricity to Puerto Rico and can meet the daily needs of its residents, while making the island more resilient to climate change. Our work centers on advancing a community-driven solar and storage project on the island municipality of Culebra and supporting a range of partners who are driving systemic change to the energy system across Puerto Rico. We approach this work holistically, leveraging our technical expertise, sustainable financing tools and energy reform experience to help develop long-term solutions to the territory’s energy crisis.

For more information, visit www.edf.org/PuertoRico.