WASHINGTON, Jan. 20, 2016 - M.J. Bradley & Associates has published a comprehensive modeling analysis of the Environmental Protection Agency’s controversial Clean Power Plan. The study finds that the plan can achieve significant reductions in carbon pollution from the nation’s power sector while preserving a diverse energy mix. The analysis also finds that the Clean Power Plan will increase investment in cost-effective clean energy and energy efficient technology that can result in savings on electric bills.
States and utilities that increase investment in energy efficiency programs will see a reduction in the costs of complying with the Clean Power Plan because plants will purchase less fuel and fewer new plants need to be built, the analysis shows.
“This comprehensive analysis shows that, by various pathways, the Clean Power Plan’s carbon pollution reduction goals are very achievable,” says Christopher Van Atten of M.J. Bradley & Associates. “The nation’s electricity sector can significantly reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and employing a mix of clean energy resources will both help clean up the air and cut costs of doing so.”
M.J. Bradley & Associates developed the assumptions and policy scenarios for this analysis with insights and feedback from several companies, trade associations and non-governmental organizations.
Other key findings in the analysis:
· The U.S. electricity sector can achieve the Clean Power Plan’s goals to reduce carbon pollution emissions by more than 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 using a diverse mix of resources, including energy efficiency, renewable power, nuclear, natural gas and coal.
· Broadening the geographic scope of trading can significantly reduce the incremental costs of the program.
· Wind and solar installations are projected to continue growing under all of the modeling scenarios. In 2030, renewable energy is projected to supply between 11 percent and 15 percent of U.S. electricity.
· Across a range of scenarios, customers could see savings on their electricity bills from 5 percent to 20 percent on average.
However, many lawmakers are unconvinced that the Clean Power Plan is workable and have filed legislation to change and delay the effort. In November and December 2015, Congress passed two resolutions designed to demonstrate opposition to the CPP, which President Obama later vetoed. During that Senate debate, West Virginia Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., called the CPP the “most expensive environmental regulation that the EPA has ever proposed on our nation’s power sector.” In addition, 27 states have sued the EPA in an attempt to overturn the carbon dioxide standards.
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