Biden's Energy Future

by Kelsey Tamborrino (Politico's Morning Energy) Joe Biden put some space between his clean energy plan and that of the Green New Deal during last night's town hall, while also pitching renewables and carbon capture. ... Former Vice President Joe Biden pitched a future dependent on renewables and carbon capture, while repeating his position that he would not ban fracking during last night's town hall in Philadelphia. "The future rests in renewable energy," Biden said, when asked what industries he supported that are not harmful to the environment or human health. "I'm going to say something that's going to sound self-serving, but I managed the Recovery Act and I was able to invest billions of dollars into bringing down the cost per Btu of wind and solar," Biden said. "So, now it's cheaper than coal, it's cheaper than oil right now." The Democratic nominee's comments come as President Donald Trump has tried to tout his own energy credentials on the trail — despite his repeated criticism of renewables.

Biden also again tried to walk the line on his fracking stance in the crucial swing state that employs thousands in the industry. "I do not propose banning fracking," he said. "I think you have to make sure that fracking is, in fact, not emitting methane or polluting the well, or dealing with what can be small earthquakes in how they're drilling. So, it has to be managed very, very well." Trump has repeatedly tried to tie Biden to a ban on fracking, although Biden's plan calls only for ending new oil and gas leasing on public lands.

The former vice president also tried to put some distance between his $2 trillion climate plan and the progressive-backed Green New Deal. "The difference between me and the New Green Deal, they say automatically by 2030 we're going to be carbon free. Not possible," Biden said, adding that the Green New Deal calls for elimination of all non-renewable energy by 2030. "You can't get there," he said. "You're going to need to be able to transition, to get to the place where we invest in new technologies that allow us to do things that get us to a place where we get to net-zero emission." (Fact check: The Green New Deal resolution, S.J. Res. 8 (116), calls for using "clean, renewable and zero-emission energy sources.")

The other notable thing: Biden highlighted using carbon capture and sequestration for eliminating emissions from electricity generation by 2035, while still using natural gas. "We should be moving toward finding the new technologies that are going to be able to deal with carbon capture so ultimately as the transition, we move from a net-zero emission of carbon, that we're still going to be able to use, if we find the right technology, some gases. … And I think we're going to be able to move in a direction where, by the year 2035, we'll be able to have net-zero emissions of carbon from the creation of energy."

Eyes emoji: Democratic former Michigan Gov. Jennifer Granholm, a name being floated as a possible Energy secretary in a Biden administration, responded: "I just love that @JoeBiden is talking about EV batteries, carbon negative strategies, transmission challenges, BTUs, weatherizing buildings, capturing methane and all manner of clean energy job opportunities ... does @realDonaldTrump even know what any of that is?" At Trump's town hall event over on NBC, the topic of climate never came up, as he took questions on the pandemic, immigration and the Supreme Court. READ MORE

Excerpt from VOX: Biden’s climate plan is a jobs plan, at its core. ... His plan will invest $2 trillion in clean energy and infrastructure over four years, creating millions of high-paying jobs with a choice to join a union. He’ll put Americans back to work to accomplish important tasks such as manufacturing electric vehicles, plugging abandoned oil and gas wells, and retrofitting our offices and homes to be more energy efficient. And he has set near-term sectoral targets, such as a carbon-free power sector by 2035.

He will fully integrate climate change into our foreign policy and national security strategies, as well as our approach to trade.

Furthermore, President Biden will sign a series of new executive orders with unprecedented reach that put us on the right track to address our climate crisis. These executive actions will focus on:

And, Biden will establish a new Environmental and Climate Justice Division within the Justice Department, as proposed by Governor Inslee, to complement the work of the Environment and Natural Resources Division and hold polluters accountable.

The Biden Administration will take action against fossil fuel companies and other polluters who put profit over people and knowingly harm our environment and poison our communities’ air, land, and water, or conceal information regarding potential environmental and health risks.

Biden will also hold companies accountable for the environmental damage of their operations, including by clawing back golden parachutes and executive bonuses for companies that shift the environmental burdens of their actions onto taxpayers.

Biden will overhaul and update existing programs at the White House, the Department of Justice, and the Environmental Protection Agency in order to comprehensively address the most pressing, intersectional environmental justice issues and hold polluters accountable. READ MORE

Excerpt from Politico's Morning Energy: CARBON SWITCH: BIDEN CLIMATE PLAN IS NO GREEN NEW DEAL: Energy efficiency analyst and advocate Carbon Switch finds that Biden's building efficiency plan would avoid far fewer carbon emissions than the ambitious Green New Deal. In a report released today , the group says Biden's plan would reduce annual CO2 emissions by 6.6 million metric tons by 2025 through upgrading 500,000 homes per year at the cost of $7,000 per house. In contrast, the Green New Deal, which seeks to make energy efficiency upgrades to all U.S. homes, would upgrade 8 million homes per year at a cost of $40,000 per home, according to Carbon Switch. It would reduce emissions by 263 million metric tons per year by 2025.

"There's no doubt that the difference between a Biden administration and Trump administration would be stark," the group says, but adds later that "Trump will likely continue to frame Biden's climate plan as 'radical.' But there's no doubt: Biden's Climate Plan is no Green New Deal." READ MORE