In Forbes: Professor Leah Stokes discusses wins and losses on decarbonization

This year, many more Americans will turn off the gas—they’ll wake up to the fact that burning natural gas in their homes is poisoning their families and warming the planet. Instead, people will begin going all electric in their homes, using induction stoves, electric hot water heaters, and more. And more cities will ban natural gas from homes.

Unfortunately, the pace of electric vehicle adoption will likely slow down because Congress has failed to extend the tax credits for some automakers—Tesla and General Motors—who have sold more than 200,000 vehicles.

At the last minute in 2019, Congress extended tax support for wind energy through 2020, so many developers may rush to conclude projects, making this a big year for wind energy. The same may not be true for solar energy, since federal support for that technology started stepping down on January 1.

It’s a bit hard to predict how coal retirements will proceed this year. In some parts of the country, including the Midwest, retirements could slow down because after years of effort, the Trump administration has finally begun subsidizing uneconomic coal plants to keep them open. Some states, like Ohio, have also approved coal plant subsidies. But not all states will continue on this perilous path and retirements should accelerate in Colorado and other western states as state governments ramp up clean energy laws. In fact, one utility just announced it will retire all of its coal plants in Colorado and New Mexico.

We should also expect the Trump administration—in perhaps its last year in office—to continue rolling back environmental and clean energy laws. And in response, climate protests will continue to grow. As the federal election ramps up and climate impacts—such as the devastating fires in Australia—worsen, more Americans will take to politics to demand action on climate in 2020. 

News Date: 

Monday, January 13, 2020