How Carbon-Focused Renewable Energy Development Can Accelerate Decarbonization and Confront Environmental Inequities in the US
As a result of the stark disparities in how electric power is produced across America, the impact that a new solar power plant has on fossil fuels burned, carbon emitted, and air pollution-related human health impacts can vary tremendously based on where in the country that facility is located.
In a new paper Curing Carbon Blindness: How Carbon-Focused Renewable Energy Development Can Accelerate Decarbonization and Confront Environmental Inequities in the US (Download Now) experts from Clearloop, a carbon solutions company, and WattTime, a climate data non-profit, explore the inequities of the US electric grid and their implications for carbon accounting, decarbonization strategy, and environmental justice. The paper shows how the cleanest parts of the US electric grid have emissions comparable to Finland or New Zealand, while the most carbon-intense regions are comparable to Iraq or South Africa. They argue that recognizing and confronting these inequities is essential to both accelerating decarbonization and advancing environmental and economic equity.
The paper explores four interconnected themes:
- The foundational role that renewable energy deployments play in advancing the decarbonization of the economy
- The opportunities to address historic health and economic disparities while decarbonizing the fragmented US grid
- How existing carbon accounting and renewable energy deal structures limit the deployment of renewable energy and dilute their climate impact
- How a new model for renewable energy deployment being built by Clearloop is broadening the opportunity for more organizations to participate in accelerating the decarbonization of the grid in a way that addresses environmental inequities.
Principal Author: Winston Vaughan, Clearloop Head of Climate Policy
Co-Authors: Laura Corso, VP, Strategic Growth, WattTime; Henry Richardson, Analyst, WattTIme; Laura Zapata, CEO Clearloop
Download the Paper Now!
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