What to know about NYS climate goals as state says it will miss the first one
Waves crash along the shore of Patchogue as Tropical Storm Isaias moves across Long Island on Aug. 4, 2020. Credit: Newsday/Steve Pfost
ALBANY — Five years ago, New York adopted an ambitious climate plan to dramatically shift the state’s reliance on fossil fuels such as oil and gas toward renewable energy like wind and solar.
But the transition has proved more challenging and slower than anticipated.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and the agencies charged with implementing the climate plan this month said the state won’t meet its first goal: getting 70% of energy from renewable sources by 2030.
It may take another 3-5 years, and Hochul said the state may need to rethink its plan.
Currently, nearly 29% of the state’s power comes from renewables.
This comes at a time when New York’s power grid is demanding more and more energy as the state tries to become a national player in the semiconductor and artificial intelligence industries — both of which require massive amounts of energy.
While there are no immediate repercussions if the state doesn't meet its climate goals, New Yorkers will continue to face the negative and expensive consequences of hurricanes, floods and extreme weather if climate change is left unaddressed, experts said.
"People are already paying with their health and insurance premiums," said Judith Enck, a veteran environmental advocate and former regional Environmental Protection Agency administrator. And the cost of fossil fuel-based energy for homes and transportation has continued to rise, environmentalists said.
Here’s what to know:
In July 2019, New York adopted the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, which was hailed as the most aggressive climate plan in the nation.
The plan codifies into law the state’s goal of getting all of its electricity from emission-free sources by 2040 and reducing economywide emissions by 85% from 1990 levels by 2050.
It includes multiple interim targets to help meet the ultimate goals, including 70% electricity from renewable energy and a 40% reduction in greenhouse gasses from 1990 levels by 2030.
"What our climate law contemplates is truly a multi-decade transition," said Doreen Harris, president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, or NYSERDA. "We established goals in large part to indicate and reflect to the private sector and to the market writ large the magnitude of our commitment."
Environmental and energy experts say the energy component of the climate goals is the foundation of the entire plan, with other parts such as electrifying buildings and cars dependent upon the power grid’s capacity.
New York must simultaneously grow the capacity of the power grid to meet its growing energy needs while also growing renewable sources of energy and reducing emissions and reliance on fossil fuels.
The state is largely focusing on building out wind and solar projects and investing in transmission projects, but it's unclear how it plans to meet the future demand.
"Recent transmission investments are making great strides toward the full integration of renewable power across New York State," said Zach Smith, senior vice president of system and resource planning for the New York Independent System Operator. "More will be needed, however, to maintain system reliability and achieve public policies."
A report released this month by the Department of Public Service and NYSERDA cited issues with rising global interest rates, inflation, pressures on the supply chain and a limited number of skilled workers affecting the state’s ability to meet the 2030 renewable goal. Some of the supply chain constraints and costs are associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the report said.
Several large-scale wind projects canceled their plans with the state because of rising costs, according to the report.
Despite the challenges, the state has been making progress, Harris said. "We set these goals not because of the exact year or the exact number, but to really advise the market accordingly," she said.
New York could meet the goal by 2033 or 2035 at the latest, depending on the needs of the power grid, the report said.
The report highlights different pathways to achieve the state's goal and changes in forecasts, said Rory Christian, Department of Public Service CEO and chair of the Public Service Commission, the state's utilities regulator. A delay in meeting the goals will not affect energy reliability, he said.
"We will achieve these goals one way or another. These are legally mandated," Christian said.
State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli in an audit last week said the Public Service Commission needs to take stronger action to meet the state’s clean energy goals, including using recent data, conducting a comprehensive review of the climate act, and improving planning and transparency.
The costs of the transition to renewables are unknown, and if the state doesn’t identify funding sources, the ratepayers will bear the brunt of the costs, the audit said. The Public Service Commission for the most part disagreed with the audit's findings.
Critics say the state is "unrealistically" trying to phase out oil and gas when solar and wind energy supplies, as well as battery storage, can’t grow fast enough to meet the power needs of the state.
It already has made moves to switch to renewable energy with no plans to upgrade the current less efficient, fossil fuel-based systems, running the risk of not having enough power when demand is high, said Ken Girardin, research director for the Empire Center for Public Policy, a fiscally conservative think tank.
Demand for electricity is expected to increase up to 90% by 2042, according to a report from the state’s independent grid operator. The rise will largely be driven by the electrification of housing and transportation as well as energy-intensive economic development projects, including the semiconductor manufacturing industry, according to the report.
Girardin criticized the state for focusing on solar and wind and not building out renewable hydropower or relying more on zero-emission nuclear energy.
Currently, the bulk of power upstate is zero emissions, largely because of hydropower, while downstate and Long Island is mostly gas and oil, Girardin said.
Large-scale offshore wind comes with its own challenges, including going through federal processes and, to meet demand, the state will have to put a significant investment in battery storage, a technology that’s still evolving, he said.
"We're gonna get to our goals, but if we miss it by a couple of years — which is probably what'll happen — the goals are still worthy," Hochul said at an event last week. "We have to see about the collateral damage of these decisions, the collateral impacts — either mitigate them or you have to rethink them," she said, referring to both the climate goal and her decision to pause a plan aimed at reducing traffic congestion in Manhattan by implementing higher tolls.
The governor said she is "hardcore committed to protecting the environment."
Hochul said New Yorkers can’t afford the tolls right now, though many on both sides of the political aisle say the decision was politically motivated, coming during a contentious state and congressional election season.
The congestion pricing plan would have helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Environmental advocates say the NYSERDA report is a "call to action."
"We’re certainly not ready to wave the white flag," said Julie Tighe, president of the New York League of Conservation Voters. "We have to keep moving forward and making progress on those," she told Newsday.
Tighe said the state is ahead of schedule on its goal of 6,000 megawatts of distributed solar by 2025 and 10,000 megawatts by 2030.
The state earlier this month announced the start of construction on the 924-megawatt Sunrise Wind project — the state’s largest offshore wind project located off the coast of Long Island.
And earlier this year, the first large-scale offshore wind farm, South Fork Wind, became operational, delivering power to Long Island and the Rockaways.
The transition was never going to be a "smooth line, it was always going to be sort of big jumps," Tighe said.
Enck said backing away from the timeline "sends a terrible message to the rest of the country that a state like New York is not capable of tackling the climate crisis."
"It’s just not happening and it's not happening because it's not a priority for the state of New York," she said, adding it "sends a signal to investors that New York may not be the place to invest in renewable energy projects."
The goals are achievable, but the political will is lacking, said Liz Moran, New York policy advocate for Earthjustice. "The administration has been appearing to slow walk it from the jump. It’s a fear-based approach rather than a brave and bold approach that we need in the face of this crisis."
With Matthew Chayes
ALBANY — Five years ago, New York adopted an ambitious climate plan to dramatically shift the state’s reliance on fossil fuels such as oil and gas toward renewable energy like wind and solar.
But the transition has proved more challenging and slower than anticipated.
Gov. Kathy Hochul and the agencies charged with implementing the climate plan this month said the state won’t meet its first goal: getting 70% of energy from renewable sources by 2030.
It may take another 3-5 years, and Hochul said the state may need to rethink its plan.
Currently, nearly 29% of the state’s power comes from renewables.
This comes at a time when New York’s power grid is demanding more and more energy as the state tries to become a national player in the semiconductor and artificial intelligence industries — both of which require massive amounts of energy.
While there are no immediate repercussions if the state doesn't meet its climate goals, New Yorkers will continue to face the negative and expensive consequences of hurricanes, floods and extreme weather if climate change is left unaddressed, experts said.
"People are already paying with their health and insurance premiums," said Judith Enck, a veteran environmental advocate and former regional Environmental Protection Agency administrator. And the cost of fossil fuel-based energy for homes and transportation has continued to rise, environmentalists said.
Here’s what to know:
An ambitious plan
In July 2019, New York adopted the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, which was hailed as the most aggressive climate plan in the nation.
The plan codifies into law the state’s goal of getting all of its electricity from emission-free sources by 2040 and reducing economywide emissions by 85% from 1990 levels by 2050.
It includes multiple interim targets to help meet the ultimate goals, including 70% electricity from renewable energy and a 40% reduction in greenhouse gasses from 1990 levels by 2030.
"What our climate law contemplates is truly a multi-decade transition," said Doreen Harris, president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, or NYSERDA. "We established goals in large part to indicate and reflect to the private sector and to the market writ large the magnitude of our commitment."
Environmental and energy experts say the energy component of the climate goals is the foundation of the entire plan, with other parts such as electrifying buildings and cars dependent upon the power grid’s capacity.
New York must simultaneously grow the capacity of the power grid to meet its growing energy needs while also growing renewable sources of energy and reducing emissions and reliance on fossil fuels.
The state is largely focusing on building out wind and solar projects and investing in transmission projects, but it's unclear how it plans to meet the future demand.
"Recent transmission investments are making great strides toward the full integration of renewable power across New York State," said Zach Smith, senior vice president of system and resource planning for the New York Independent System Operator. "More will be needed, however, to maintain system reliability and achieve public policies."
Falling short
A report released this month by the Department of Public Service and NYSERDA cited issues with rising global interest rates, inflation, pressures on the supply chain and a limited number of skilled workers affecting the state’s ability to meet the 2030 renewable goal. Some of the supply chain constraints and costs are associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the report said.
Several large-scale wind projects canceled their plans with the state because of rising costs, according to the report.
Despite the challenges, the state has been making progress, Harris said. "We set these goals not because of the exact year or the exact number, but to really advise the market accordingly," she said.
New York could meet the goal by 2033 or 2035 at the latest, depending on the needs of the power grid, the report said.
The report highlights different pathways to achieve the state's goal and changes in forecasts, said Rory Christian, Department of Public Service CEO and chair of the Public Service Commission, the state's utilities regulator. A delay in meeting the goals will not affect energy reliability, he said.
"We will achieve these goals one way or another. These are legally mandated," Christian said.
State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli in an audit last week said the Public Service Commission needs to take stronger action to meet the state’s clean energy goals, including using recent data, conducting a comprehensive review of the climate act, and improving planning and transparency.
The costs of the transition to renewables are unknown, and if the state doesn’t identify funding sources, the ratepayers will bear the brunt of the costs, the audit said. The Public Service Commission for the most part disagreed with the audit's findings.
Unrealistic goals, critics say
Critics say the state is "unrealistically" trying to phase out oil and gas when solar and wind energy supplies, as well as battery storage, can’t grow fast enough to meet the power needs of the state.
It already has made moves to switch to renewable energy with no plans to upgrade the current less efficient, fossil fuel-based systems, running the risk of not having enough power when demand is high, said Ken Girardin, research director for the Empire Center for Public Policy, a fiscally conservative think tank.
Demand for electricity is expected to increase up to 90% by 2042, according to a report from the state’s independent grid operator. The rise will largely be driven by the electrification of housing and transportation as well as energy-intensive economic development projects, including the semiconductor manufacturing industry, according to the report.
Girardin criticized the state for focusing on solar and wind and not building out renewable hydropower or relying more on zero-emission nuclear energy.
Currently, the bulk of power upstate is zero emissions, largely because of hydropower, while downstate and Long Island is mostly gas and oil, Girardin said.
Large-scale offshore wind comes with its own challenges, including going through federal processes and, to meet demand, the state will have to put a significant investment in battery storage, a technology that’s still evolving, he said.
Call to action
"We're gonna get to our goals, but if we miss it by a couple of years — which is probably what'll happen — the goals are still worthy," Hochul said at an event last week. "We have to see about the collateral damage of these decisions, the collateral impacts — either mitigate them or you have to rethink them," she said, referring to both the climate goal and her decision to pause a plan aimed at reducing traffic congestion in Manhattan by implementing higher tolls.
The governor said she is "hardcore committed to protecting the environment."
Hochul said New Yorkers can’t afford the tolls right now, though many on both sides of the political aisle say the decision was politically motivated, coming during a contentious state and congressional election season.
The congestion pricing plan would have helped reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Environmental advocates say the NYSERDA report is a "call to action."
"We’re certainly not ready to wave the white flag," said Julie Tighe, president of the New York League of Conservation Voters. "We have to keep moving forward and making progress on those," she told Newsday.
Tighe said the state is ahead of schedule on its goal of 6,000 megawatts of distributed solar by 2025 and 10,000 megawatts by 2030.
The state earlier this month announced the start of construction on the 924-megawatt Sunrise Wind project — the state’s largest offshore wind project located off the coast of Long Island.
And earlier this year, the first large-scale offshore wind farm, South Fork Wind, became operational, delivering power to Long Island and the Rockaways.
The transition was never going to be a "smooth line, it was always going to be sort of big jumps," Tighe said.
Enck said backing away from the timeline "sends a terrible message to the rest of the country that a state like New York is not capable of tackling the climate crisis."
"It’s just not happening and it's not happening because it's not a priority for the state of New York," she said, adding it "sends a signal to investors that New York may not be the place to invest in renewable energy projects."
The goals are achievable, but the political will is lacking, said Liz Moran, New York policy advocate for Earthjustice. "The administration has been appearing to slow walk it from the jump. It’s a fear-based approach rather than a brave and bold approach that we need in the face of this crisis."
With Matthew Chayes
'I'm going to try to avoid it' A trip to the emergency room in a Long Island hospital now averages nearly 4 hours, data shows. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.
'I'm going to try to avoid it' A trip to the emergency room in a Long Island hospital now averages nearly 4 hours, data shows. NewsdayTV's Virginia Huie reports.
