The climate crisis is the defining challenge of our era. Pennsylvania is already feeling the effects of climate change through increased extreme weather and flooding, bad air quality days, more deaths due to extreme heat in urban areas, respiratory illness, increased disease and pests, and disruptions to agricultural systems. The Commonwealth is the nation's second largest fracked gas producer and ranks fifth in energy-related greenhouse emissions (CO2 equivalent).

After decades of inaction, Pennsylvania took a big step toward tackling climate change by officially entering into the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) in April 2022. RGGI is a market-driven cap-and-invest program that requires regulated power plants to acquire allowances (limited licenses to pollute) for the carbon emissions they produce. RGGI has a proven track record of reducing emissions and jumpstarting climate change initiatives in other states. 

But the state’s participation has been blocked by multiple lawsuits, which has resulted in Pennsylvania missing out on over one billion dollars in RGGI proceeds since January 2022. This funding could have gone towards things like new renewable energy projects, clean energy job programs, and more energy efficient buildings. Proposed anti-RGGI legislation has also threatened PA’s participation in the program. Meanwhile, the state’s fossil fuel industry continues to pollute carbon dioxide unchecked, fueling more climate change. 

Regardless of the outcome of these lawsuits, Pennsylvania residents and their elected officials must support and defend PA’s participation in RGGI. Sign our petition to help ensure RGGI becomes a reality in Pennsylvania so that we can prevent the worst effects of climate change from radically altering life for PA residents and saddling them with the costs to rebuild after extreme weather impacts fueled by climate change. 

Background About the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI)

Cap and invest programs like RGGI set a limit, or cap, on overall carbon emissions in the state and power plant operators must obtain allowances equal to their covered emissions. One allowance is equal to one short ton of carbon pollution. Emitting less pollution means a plant needs fewer allowances.

Each RGGI state distributes its own budget of carbon credits or allowances at quarterly regional auctions, where they can be purchased by plants and investors. RGGI encourages the energy sector to reduce emissions while generating hundreds of millions of dollars to be reinvested in reducing energy costs, clean energy projects and jobs, and other climate change mitigation efforts. 

Sources:

https://www.eia.gov/state/?sid=PA
https://gis.dep.pa.gov/ClimateChange/index.html
https://www.rggi.org/